‘‘Dreaming of . . . ’’: Reflections on Participatory Action Research as a Feminist Praxis of Critical Hope

Abstract

In this article, the authors reflect on their collective engagements with community-based participatory action research (PAR) as part of a university—community partnership. The authors discuss both the transformative potential of PAR and the tensions that they struggle with in their praxis. The analysis raises questions of representation, accountability, and inclusion that are central to feminist and antiracist theory, critical pedagogy, community-based research, and social justice work. First, the authors discuss PAR by locating their position within this critical perspective. Second, the authors focus on research that the authors conducted with young people participating in the Mestizo Arts and Activism Collective of Salt Lake City, Utah. The authors identify key contributions of a liberatory PAR that may be of particular relevance to researchers who are working toward social change. To conclude, the authors identify the tensions and challenges in doing this work as a feminist praxis of ‘‘critical hope,’’ ‘‘where what could be is sought; where what has been, is critiqued; and where what is, is troubled.’’