Synopses & Reviews
The authors of the narrative chapters represented in this volume have in common that they are dedicated to the realization of a critical, multicultural, democratic society. Individually, they are female and male, from diverse ethnicities, socio-economic class backgrounds, first language groups, religious and spiritual affiliations, and sexual orientations. They are professors of education, psychology, sociology, and communication as well as community activists. The stories that they share reveal the history of racism in this country over a fifty year period beginning in the late 1930s and continuing into the early 1980s. The stories are most diverse, and share what it was like growing up White during and after Jim Crow segregation, the Civil Rights Movement, and busing and integration. Thus, there is a history here of our country's racism yesterday and today. Inviting students to experience this history may encourage them to further explore its ongoing manifestations.
Review
Becoming and Unbecoming White is an immensely impressive and essential contribution to the field of education, in particular teacher education and multicultural education....Through the stories and analyses, a much needed new space is created to catapult educational thinking, discourse, and action into a new direction that has the potential to free us to more directly and energetically engage in the work of fighting for equality and social justice for all of us.Beverly E. Cross Associate Professor University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Review
An excellent collection for college-level students to study.Multicultural Perspectives
Review
Becoming and Unbecoming White is an immensely impressive and essential contribution to the field of education, in particular teacher education and multicultural education....Through the stories and analyses, a much needed new space is created to catapult educational thinking, discourse, and action into a new direction that has the potential to free us to more directly and energetically engage in the work of fighting for equality and social justice for all of us.Beverly E. Cross Associate Professor University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Review
By engaging readers in a thoughtful analysis of Whiteness and its connection to critical and inclusive teaching, the authors in this book highlight both the transformative power and the potentially limiting nature of the discourse of Whiteness. They remind us that, in the final analysis, our focus as teachers needs to be on students because all of them, but especially students of color, are put in jeopardy by an education that favors Whites over others in all aspects of schooling. By emphasizing the experiences and the analysis of educators coming to terms with becoming both White and anti-racist, Chris Clark and Jim O'Donnell provide a healthy and empowering model for all teachers of all backgrounds.Sonia Nieto Professor, School of Education University of Massachusetts Amherst
Synopsis
White multicultural educators and activists have undergone a process of transformation as they move from a racist to an anti-racist consciousness. Through detailing their life experiences and significant "racial experiences," the authors identify and discuss the constitutive events that have affected their racial consciousness. In addition to the description of these "racial experiences," the authors discuss the impact that these experiences have on their pedagogy of multicultural education.
Synopsis
Describes the racist tendency of Whites to always and forever center the discussion of virtually any subject on whiteness, and suggests how to get past this worldview.
About the Author
CHRISTINE CLARK is Assistant Professor, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, New Mexico State University.JAMES O'DONNELL is Assistant Professor, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, New Mexico State University.
Table of Contents
Preface by Henry Giroux
Rearticulating a Racial Identity: Creating Oppositional Spaces to Fight for Equality and Social Justice by Christine Clark and James O'Donnell
Unthinking Whiteness, Rethinking Democracy: Critical Citizenship in Gringolandia by Peter McLaren
Lighting Candles in the Dark: One Black Woman's Response to White Anti-Racist Narratives by Beverly Deniel Tatum
Subverting Racism from Within: Linking White Identity to Activism by Becky Thompson
Transforming Received Categories: Discovering Cross-Border Identities and Other Subversive Activities by David Wellman
The Secret: White Lies are Never Little by Christine Clark
Becoming White: How I Got Over by Arnold Cooper
Seeing Things as They Are by Carolyn O'Grady
The Recollections of a Recovering Racist by James O'Donnell
What Could a White Girl from South Boston Possibly Know about Racism? Reflections of a Social Justice Educator by Mary Gannon
If You're Not Standing in this Line, You're Standing in the Wrong Line by Pritchy Smith
Building Blocks: My Journey toward White Racial Awareness by Patti DeRosa
"Justice, Justice Shalt Thou Do!" by Liz Aaronsohn
White Man Dancing: A Story of Personal Transformation by Gary Howard
Rewriting the Discourse of Racial Identity: Towards a Pedagogy and Politics of Whiteness by Henry A. Giroux