LibGuides: Antiracism and Intersectionality Resources: Teaching Resources

Antiracism: An active and intentional effort to combat racism. Anti-racism also decenters whiteness and promotes the leadership of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color)—the people most impacted by racism.

BIPOC: Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. It is okay to say “people of color” when an issue affects all non-White people in a similar way (such as over-policing of BIPOC communities). It is helpful to say “Black people” for issues that affect primarily or distinctly Black people (such as the legacy of American slavery) or “Indigenous people” for issues that affect Indigenous people primarily or distinctly (such as Tribal sovereignty).

Cisgender: A person whose internal gender identity matches, and presents itself in accordance with, the externally determined cultural expectations of the behavior and roles considered appropriate for one’s sex as male or female.

Classism: The marginalization and/or oppression of people who are from low-income or working-class households based on a social hierarchy in which people are ranked according to socioeconomic status.

Colorism: A practice of discrimination by which those with lighter skin are treated more favorably than those with darker skin. This practice is a product of racism in the United States, in that it upholds the white standards of beauty and benefits white people in the institutions of oppression (media, medical world, etc.).

Cultural Appropriation: When people use specific elements of a culture (e.g., ideas, symbols, images, clothing) that misrepresents and/or disrespects the culture of that marginalized group of people. It usually happens when one group exploits the culture of another group, often with little understanding of the group’s history, experience and traditions.

Double consciousness: The awareness and internalization of the white gaze; “It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others” (W.E.B. Du Bois).

Ethnicity: A group that shares national origin, ancestry, language, or other cultural characteristics.

The gaze: The philosopher Frantz Fanon (1925-1961) coined the term the “white gaze” to refer to the social and historical experience of seeing the world through the forces of domination that render non-dominant groups “other” and, thus, inferior. There are gazes of all sorts—male, heteronormative, elite, able-bodied, among others—that objectify and delimit the life choices of those considered non-normative. In turn, marginalized figures have re-trained the hegemonic gaze in order to scrutinize the construction of normalcy, as well as the privileges that accompany it.

Gender expression: The presentation of an individual, including physical appearance, clothing choice and accessories, and behaviors that express aspects of gender identity or role.

Gender identity: A person’s deeply‐felt, inherent sense of being a boy, a man, or male; a girl, a woman, or female; or an alternative gender (e.g., genderqueer, gender nonconforming, gender neutral) that may or may not correspond to a person’s sex assigned at birth or to a person’s primary or secondary sex characteristics. Since gender identity is internal, a person’s gender identity is not.

Genderqueer: A term to describe a person whose gender identity does not align with a binary understanding of gender (i.e., a person who does not identify fully as either a man or a woman).

Hegemony: The control and imposition of dominant group ideology onto everyone in society.

Heterosexism: The marginalization and/or oppression of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer and/or asexual, based on the belief that heterosexuality is the norm.

Implicit bias: The attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner. Implicit biases can be positive or negative, and can be activated without you even knowing it. They operate unconsciously and differ from known biases that people may intentionally hide.

Institutional Racism: The systematic distribution of resources, power and opportunity in our society to the benefit of people who are white and to the exclusion of people of color.

Intersectionality: The understanding that we simultaneously occupy multiple social positions (race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, age, among others) and these work in conjunction, rather than canceling each other out.

Microaggression: A brief encounter with racism, usually unnoticed by members of the majority race.

Oppression: Group prejudice and discrimination backed by institutional power.

People of Color: Refers collectively to all of the socially constructed racial groups who are not perceived and categorized as White and, therefore, do not have access to the social, cultural, institutional, psychological, and often material advantages of Whiteness.

Race: A social and sociohistorical concept with no genetic or biological foundation. Human beings share 99.9% of the same genes.

Racial ally: An individual who takes an active, strategic role in confronting racism. Allies are not those who “help” or “save” people of color but instead those who consistently and meaningfully work to achieve racial equity.

Racial accomplice: An individual focused on the work of dismantling oppressive structures, as directed by stakeholders in marginalized groups.

Racism: The belief in the inherent superiority of one race over all others and thereby the right to dominance.

Racial trauma: Cognitive and emotional impact: In addition to points mentioned in the video, it is important to recognize that the impact of racism and structural racism are felt daily, particularly at PWIs. The stereotypes that POC are aware of existing, may affect how they navigate spaces. This constant monitoring of self can produce a litany of side effects (increased anxiety/social anxiety in white spaces, depressive symptoms, lack of self-confidence, etc.).

Sex: A person’s biological status and is typically categorized as male, female, or intersex (i.e., atypical combinations of features that usually distinguish male from female).

Sexual orientation: A component of identity that includes a person’s sexual and emotional attraction to another person and the behavior and/or social affiliation that may result from this attraction.

White fragility: When even a minimum amount of racial stress for White people becomes intolerable, triggering a range of defensive moves.

White privilege: An “invisible knapsack” of “unearned assets” that white people “cash in on each day, but about what [they] are ‘meant’ to remain oblivious” (Peggy McIntosh).

White supremacy: The term used to capture the all-encompassing centrality and assumed superiority of people defined and perceived as White, and the practices based on this assumption.

Leading anti-racist scholars and activists such as Cornell West and bell hooks encourage using the term “White Supremacy” instead of “racism” to broaden and clarify the understanding that the supremacy of the White race is a foundation stone of European and U.S. history. (Frances E. Kendall, Understanding White Privilege)