Antiracist Activism in the Era of Post-truth and Erosion of Equity and Social Justice Education

• In Event: Highlighted Session: The Power of Protest to Improve Inclusive Education

Proposal

Recent events (e.g., the murder of George Floyd, the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, the disproportionate impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on marginalized communities, the discovery of unmarked graves at former Canadian residential schools) have generated discussions about systemic inequity and structural racism in Canada and around the world. At the same time, significant counter discourses around cancel culture, banning of books, and critical race theory particularly in the US context have also ideologically influenced the Canadian education system. Considering such contexts, teaching for equity and social justice has never been more relevant as it is today.

This research is part of a larger project on enactment of equity education in school boards in Ontario, Canada, and draws on a qualitative case study conducted through semi-structured interviews with 19 teachers in several school boards, during the 2021-2023 period.

Theoretical Framework

We draw on the work of critical race theorists (Ladson-Billings, 1995, 2009; Darling-Hammond, 2017; Gillborn, 2004; Ahmed, 2012; Marshal & Anderson, 2008; Matias & Liou, 2015; Diem et al, 2022). We define an activist according to Marshal & Anderson (2008, p. 18) as “an individual who is known for taking stands and engaging in action aimed at producing social change”. Matias & Liou (2015) discuss that activists work toward social change either individually and/or collectively by using a variety of strategies to disrupt the status quo in moving the society toward equitable and socially just processes.

Diem et al provide a framework for antiracist activism that we find useful to the analysis of our research findings of teachers’ activism. They discuss four domains of activism in antiracism work: These Domains of Activism are (a) Policy Domain, (b) Community Domain, (c) Leadership Domain, and (d) Teaching and Learning Domain. They argue that each domain comprises a set of nested dynamics that denote strategies and spaces where antiracism happens or does not happen in each context (Diem et al, 2022, p. 5). In this paper we focus on the domain of teaching and learning that mostly focuses on the work of teacher and equity activists in education. Antiracism teaching in Ontario dates back to 1990s when the Ontario Ministry of Education introduced a policy on Antiracism and Ethnocultural Equity in 1993 and all school boards were required to implement the policy in their local jurisdictions. However, changes in political leadership and governance consistently influenced the enactment of the antiracism and equity policy since the 1990s.

Findings:

We believe that while teachers realize the systemic and institutional limitations of their work, they have taken on an activist role to work collaboratively with those teachers and administrators who express commitments to social change and toward an equity principle. It is important to emphasize that like experiences in the US, this work has been inconsistent and primarily led by committed teachers who incorporate lessons and instructional strategies into their pedagogical practices (Darling-Hammond, 2017). These committed teachers were also influenced by those who challenged inequities at the policy domain. Their work in the classroom could not be realized without drawing on relevant policies and human rights codes that specifically focus on equitable treatment of marginalized and minoritized students. Provincial policies on equity education since 1990s (depending on the government of the time), have facilitated or archived the policy because it was not instituted during conservative governments and basically was contradictory to their ideological position on equity education. In fact, all equity policies in Ontario have been introduced and facilitated either by the liberal or social democratic parties in Ontario. Despite daunting challenges, these teacher activists took it upon themselves to ensure that their teachings are rooted in culturally responsive and antiracist pedagogies and practices, that their teaching material is diverse, and that the needs of their students are met. Although equity policies have been developed by nearly every school board in Ontario, teachers are rarely supported in their efforts to implement and enact change given the web of indifference as well as active resistance and hostility towards equity practices by administrators, school leaders, and their teacher colleagues. Despite this, our empirical findings demonstrate that teachers advocate for their students by creating inclusive curricula and learning environments, and learning opportunities despite limited support. Teachers approach activism through a broad sense of the term that recognizes teachers as activists within the context of their own classroom and in the lives of their students.

In conclusion, our findings show that for antiracism to have institutional support, the convergences of all four domains (policy, community, leadership, teaching and learning) of activism are necessary. As Lloyd (2007) stated, when this convergence happens antiracism activism in education will have an impact not only at the local level but also nationally.

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Authors

• Goli Rezai-Rashti, Western University

• Shirin Abdmolaei, The University of Western Ontario