‘What if what the professor knows is not diverse enough for us?’: whiteness in Canadian kinesiology programs

ABSTRACT

This study builds on research that found a significant lack of racial diversity in Canadian university kinesiology programs. We extend previous findings by including the experiences of students who reveal how whiteness structures every aspect of their kinesiology education. We employ Critical Race Theory and theories of whiteness within a case study of eight kinesiology faculties in Canada. The mixed methods data collection included: (a) analysis of website photos and anti-racism documents to determine the perceived racial diversity and anti-racism priority; and (b) semi-structured interviews with five undergraduate students from one kinesiology program to analyze their experiences with whiteness. We found (1) white privilege was evident through an overrepresentation of white bodies among the professoriate, overlooking whiteness in research and teaching, and a dearth of policies targeting anti-racism; and (2) that white social dominance was prevalent but made invisible in student culture, which allowed the needs and experiences of racialized and international students to be ignored. Eurocentric ideologies of meritocracy, individualism, and scientific objectivity that reflect the values of the dominant group create a white racial frame that remains unnamed but centered. The aim of this research paper is to further inform how whiteness operates in kinesiology programs. We connect student experiences to whiteness theories and propose recommendations to guide the dismantling of whiteness in kinesiology.

KEYWORDS:

• Whiteness
• race
• kinesiology
• Canada
• colonialism
• faculty

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the participants and the kinesiology program for facilitating recruitment and anonymous reviewers for supporting the improvement of the paper.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Although, ‘White’ should be understood as a racial identity, in this paper, we use the term ‘racialized’ to encompass those that ‘are, or traditionally have been, deeply excluded from social powers, rights, goods, or services in racial terms or on racial grounds’ (Goldberg, 1993, p. 265, note. 5). We specify ‘Indigenous’ groups because, although they are considered racialized, the specific harms to Indigenous rights and sovereignty on Turtle Island, or what settlers call North America deserve attention.

2 The data for the website photograph enumeration can be found here: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3971157. All other data (including interview transcripts) is available upon request to protect the identity of the university and the participants.

3 Academic freedom in Canada is protected by university union contracts and faculty association memorandum of agreements, and is considered a labor law right (Robinson, 2019). While professors have legal rights to expression of any opinion, it is worth considering how this can reproduce a system of privileging Eurocentric beliefs.