Abstract
Anti-Racist Educational Leadership and Policy powerfully commences with the bold statement that “we are living in dangerously racist times, and White supremacy, anti-Blackness, xenophobia, and hate are intensifying” (p. ix). This 8-chapter book is a strong call to awareness that racism exists, and leaders can no longer ignore the racial inequities perpetuated in U.S. schools. The book addresses the structural barriers and obstacles in achieving racial justice. The authors disclose that as we move towards decolonizing the field of educational leadership, we require “anti-racist educational leaders who are trained and prepared to face political complexity and the uncertainty that will absolutely occur when they advance racial equity in their school communities” (p. 2). Through its anti-racist tools, guiding questions and resources, the book acts as a practical guide on how school leaders can promote racial equity in their school community, by moving away from the notion of colour-blindness, and toward race-consciousness. The authors place great responsibility on the part of leaders to (1) be cognizant of the realities of racial injustice in education (2) have a willingness to acknowledge how policies negatively impact how they lead (3) use an ant-racist lens to counter neo-liberalism policies and practices in education, and (4) be intentional about using their power and position to challenge the status quo. This book is a must-read for educators, practitioners, emerging and seasoned leaders.
In chapter 1, the authors explore the role of neo-liberalism in anti-racist thought. Diem and Welton reveal that neoliberalism cannot be removed from the context of racism, white supremacy, and social constructs such as ability/disability. Neoliberal ideology and market-based education continue to create and perpetuate inequities. They also introduce colour-evasiness as an alternative to the harmful colour-blindness. Colour-blindness is not a form of ignorance, but rather a deliberate denial of seeing colour. This is problematic because seeing colour is important. Acknowledging how colour has excluded members of society is important. The explanations of Whiteness, White Fragility, White Superiority and Anti-Blackness are extremely helpful in recognizing the factors that work to undermine anti-racism.
Chapter 2 uncovers the pressures and challenges school leaders’ face, and how they respond to demographic change, increasing diversity in schools, social and political shifts and educational inequalities in student learning and achievement. “Educational leaders’ response to the growing diversity in their districts and schools reveals how our current global political context, driven by whiteness and white supremacy, socializes us and affects our daily sentiments, structures, and practices in schools” (p. 27). This chapter also discusses how “districts’ good intentions often never really lead to full systemic and ongoing action to redress inequities” (p. 2)…thereby allowing white people to remain in their comfort zone, avoiding conversations about racism and oppression (p. 30).
In Chapter 3, the authors demonstrate how low-income and racialized students do not necessarily have a choice within free marketplace policies, and end up in the lowest performing and least-resourced schools (p. 15). “The Brown decision is a prime example of interest convergence where any policy change that intends to achieve racial equity only occurs when it aligns with the interests of white stakeholders” (p. 10).
Chapter 4 addresses school district concerns such as declining student enrollment, poor academic performance, budget limitations, and competition from other schools in the decision-making of closing schools. Closing schools is assumed to give students opportunities to transfer to higher quality schooling options, but the opposite happens, as it is Black and Latinx students and families who bear the burden of the negative effects that come with school closure (p. 16). This chapter also emphasizes the role of parents and communities in the struggle for social justice, and the role of leaders in furthering their understanding on matters of racial justice.
Chapter 5 critically examines the Elementary Secondary Education Act (ESEA), No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to learn from the lessons from the mistakes and fallouts of the NCLB, and to illustrate how educational leaders can facilitate anti-racist approaches in how they implement assessments and engage in data-use practices under the law (p. 80). The authors also warn that by allowing neoliberalism racism to exist as a form of color-evasive individualism, we are in fact absolving educational institutions from being held accountable for racist practices (p. 82).
Chapter 6 exposes the discrepancy in school funding and the need for resource redistribution. “White school districts average revenue receipts of almost US$14,000 per student, but non-White districts receive only US$11,682. That’s a divide of over US$2,200 on average, per student” (p. 99). This amounts to a US$23 billion funding gap between White and non-White school districts in the United States. (p. 99). This chapter concludes with providing examples on how educational leaders can design more race-conscious solutions that redistribute and restructure funding and resources to redress existing racial inequities (p. 16).
By highlighting two exclusionary discipline practices (the zero tolerance policy and the role of policing and criminalization of students), Chapter 7 underscores how “students of color, and Black students in particular, are not only disciplined at much higher rates than their peers, but the discipline is more frequent and severe. These disciplinary actions place students on a path that significantly alter their academic and life trajectories and perpetuates the school-to-prison pipeline” (p. 17).
The heart of the book can be found in the final chapter, where the authors propose an anti-racist policy decision-making protocol for educational leaders to utilize in their fight for racial justice. Based on equity audit frameworks and equity-centered policy analysis models, Diem and Welton developed their protocol in six phases that encompass the policy review, process, implementation and assessment. The authors provide guiding questions, action-oriented recommendations for each phase, uncover racial hierarchies entrenched in the political process, and ensure that policy equitably distributes power and resources along all racial groups involved (p. 145).
A key strength of the book is the urgent call to leaders to ensure that their everyday actions are drawn from anti-racism orientations, and to use their power and position to create meaningful discourse (p. 6). Placing the onus on leaders in building school climates that address, disrupt, and build a proactive stance against racism is pivotal to change. Another strength of the book is the authors’ sharing of personal experiences, as well resources for professional development and continuous improvement in cultural competencies. The discussion questions and resources at the end of each chapter offer real and practical advice, suggestions and recommendations that leaders can employ when combatting racial inequities in schools.
One notable gap is while the anti-racist decision-making policy tool appears to be useful in confronting color-evasive, market-driven policies, I wonder how realistic it is. I also wonder if all leaders are in a position to challenge the status quo. The authors do not go deep enough to address the complexities and challenges that leaders face when attempting to disrupt and dismantle systems and structures.
Anti-racist Educational Leadership and Policy accentuates how colonialism and capitalism continue to perpetuate racism and structures of oppression in education systems, structures, practices and attitudes, and calls for a “radical restructuring of the educational system” (p. 13). The main intention of the book is to encourage educational leaders to become racially aware of how color-evasive, market-driven educational policies operate in school systems, and how school leaders can achieve racial equity in school policy, improvement, and practice (p. 17). The authors powerfully articulate, “there are no neutral spaces in the work of equity, racial justice, advocacy, and activism. Either we are working towards anti-racism or we are working against it” (p. ix). They advocate for adopting an anti-racist lens in order to reassess what and how we teach in order to create new learning experiences for all learners. Diem and Welton remind us that “a just and anti-racist society cannot exist without an awareness of racism and a commitment to and investment in anti-racism by institutions and individuals alike” (p. 149). Engaging in the creation of anti-racist learning therefore, is not merely rhetoric, it is imperative to the survival of racialized students.
