Teachers as resisters

Abstract

In this study, the author seeks to understand how Black teachers use emancipatory pedagogies with Black students as a way of preparing Black students for a society where they will encounter racism at many levels. Using critical race theory and narrative inquiry data collection methods, the author engaged in thematic analysis to find common themes. Findings indicate that Black teachers sought to keep their students grounded by alerting them of the inevitability of racism, sought to interrupt the racism that their White colleagues’ exhibited, learned to engage in emancipatory practices from their past experiences, encouraged students to use their voices and other platforms to speak about their oppression, and engaged emancipatory pedagogies in overt and covert ways depending on the social context and the teaching context. Based on the findings of this study, the author has determined that the participants of the study engaged in a pedagogy of racial realism. Implications are also discussed.