The permanence of racism in teacher education

Abstract

Using the chronicles of three friends, this chapter presents a counterstory that sets the stage for the examinationof racism in teacher education, within the United States of America, using critical race theory (CRT) as an analytical tool. The setting of these chronicles is during a time when postracial rhetoric in the United States was at its highest-just after the 2008 election of President Barack Obama. The three friends take the readers on a journey through their g aduate experience in teacher education and into their first faculty position in teacher education. Their experiences, asstudents and junior faculty, are akin to what many faculty and students of color and their White allies experience dailyin teacher education programs across the United States. The analysis of their chronicle, using CRT, reveals that postracial discourse has disguised racism and racial microaggression in teacher education. Racial microaggression is as pernicious as other forms of racism and, through its passiveaggressive orientation, validates institutional and individual lackof attention to issues of race.