Dismantling power and privilege through reflexivity: negotiating normative Whiteness, the Eurocentric curriculum and racial micro-aggressions within the Academy

ABSTRACT

The challenging of normative Whiteness is paramount in dismantling the cycle of inequality that permeates society. The persistent and operant nature of Whiteness within the Academy is enduring and depicts faculty of colour as deficient or incapable. The articulation of racialised experiences has become an instrument of empowerment for faculty of colour in an attempt to reclaim power and disrupt the operant tools of Whiteness. This paper employs a Critical Race Theory (CRT) a storytelling method, which operates as a counter-narrative in attempting to conceptualise my own professional experiences of negotiating normative Whiteness, diversifying Eurocentric curricula and conceptualising the racial mirco-aggression. The narratives proffered demonstrate the subtle but powerful ways in racism unfolds within in the Academy and the nuanced, everyday forms of racism that persist against a backdrop of Whiteness. Deconstructing oppressive, racialised structures is central to the belief that morally we collectively have a responsibility to dismantle inequity in all its suboardinated forms to ensure that we reside in a more egalitarian society.

KEYWORDS:

• Race
• Whiteness
• Critical Race Theory (CRT)
• Eurocentric
• counter-narrative

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.