Exploring the Iconic Ghetto in Urban Education

Abstract

The racialization of space and urban education and the implicit meanings attached to spaces, specifically the idea of the “iconic ghetto,” play an essential role in how educators understand and interact with Black boys and their families. This paper examines how the iconic ghetto functions as a controlling image and shapes educators’ perceptions of Black boys, their families, and their neighborhoods in an urban boarding school. This institutional ethnography uses critical racial spatial theory to situate the interactions between educators, students, and their families within the legacy of anti-Blackness embedded in space.

Keywords

Black boys urban education controlling images institutional ethnography critical racial spatial theory

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