ERIC Number: EJ1231818
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 5
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0148-432X
EISSN: N/A
Engaging in Meaningful Conversations: The Need to Foster Ethnic-Racial Identity in School
Rivas-Drake, Deborah; Umaña-Taylor, Adriana J.
American Educator, v43 n3 p18-22 Fall 2019
In the United States, one does not need to go far to encounter situations in which racial and ethnic dynamics are at work. Youth are bombarded with messages about race and ethnicity in their everyday lives. Such stories, images, situations, and broader conversations often evoke fear, pain, and guilt among even the most socially conscious adults who consider themselves well-versed in the complexities of ethnic-racial relations in U.S. society. It is challenging to reconcile the disparate perspectives on these ethnic-racial tensions, much less have open dialogue about them, but the nation's social fabric is weakened by not engaging in meaningful dialogue about these issues. In the authors' book, "Below the Surface: Talking with Teens about Race, Ethnicity, and Identity," from which this article is excerpted, they openly discuss many current ethnic-racial disparities and tensions about which conversations are usually stifled. Herein, they briefly discuss why these conversations are challenging but of the utmost importance.
Descriptors: Racial Identification, Ethnicity, Discussion, Adolescents, Intergroup Relations, Empathy
American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO. 555 New Jersey Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001. Tel: 202-879-4420; e-mail: ae@aft.org; Web site: http://www.aft.org/newspubs/periodicals/ae
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A