“Does the Color of Your Skin Make You American?:” Immigrant Parents’ Responses to History Texts in the New South

Abstract

This article describes the ways positioning theory is used to examine the reading responses of immigrant parents to texts about the contributions of historical figures of nondominant backgrounds. I explain how theories of positioning and identity can inform citizenship and social studies education; in particular, programs serving Latinx and immigrant students of diverse backgrounds. I then apply a positionality lens to examine immigrant parents’ responses to texts about César Chavez’ background, and to their responses to books about the Civil Rights Movement. I show how they discuss the intersection of race, citizenship status, and allegiance to the nation-state, positioning historical figures in relation to these concepts, and to narratives of injustice (present and past) across countries. I present implications for critical questioning of history texts in the classrooms, leveraging the knowledge and perspectives of diverse families and communities.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional References

• 1. Agarwal-Rangnath, R., Dover, A., & Henning, N. (2016). Preparing to teach social studies for social justice: Becoming a renegade. New York, NY: Teachers College.

This book provides a framework to teach social studies integrating a critical literacy lens, as well as strategies and insights to make sense of the pressure of meeting standards and building a community of social-justice oriented educators. The power of dialogue and students’ identities at the center of instruction are found throughout the chapters.

• 2. Shear, S., Tschida, C., Bellows, E., Buchanan, L, & Saylor, E. (2018) (Eds.). (Re)imagining elementary social studies: A controversial issues reader. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

This edited collection illustrates the ways various authors examine identity, injustice, and students’ backgrounds across controversial and difficult topics.

• 3. Southern Poverty Law Center (n.d). Teaching Tolerance. https://www.tolerance.org

This website provides resources for educators to support social justice and anti-bias instruction. Resources to explore intersectionality and identity labels across communities can be found in perspectives texts, media, and learning plans.

Notes

¹ This was the actual word used by Jimena—other parents used the word moreno to refer to Black Americans. Although this word looks similar to a racial slur in English, it is the verbatim translation of the word Black to Spanish. In our sessions, we discussed this similarity, and other words used to describe Black Americans in Spanish and English, as well as the painful history and use of slurs, past and present.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the University of Georgia Research Foundation; William T. Grant Foundation [184469].

Notes on contributors

Silvia Noguerón-Liu

Silvia Noguerón-Liu is an assistant professor in Literacy Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder.