This study focused on the testimonios [life narratives] of 33 Mexican American Ph.D.s who successfully navigated educational systems and obtained their doctorates in a variety of disciplines at 15 universities across the United States. The theoretical and methodological frameworks employed were critical race theory (CRT), Latina/o critical race theory (LatCrit), and narrative analysis in order to examine power relations, multiple forms of oppression, and the intersections of race, social class, and gender within educational contexts. CRT and LatCrit frameworks were expanded by attending to the experiences of middle class participants and participants who identified as second- or third-generation college students, which challenge traditional paradigms that essentialize Mexican American communities. This study uncovered and contextualized the ways that Mexican American Ph.D.s resisted and reproduced power relations, racism, sexism, and classism through master narratives constructed by the dominant culture to justify low rates of Mexican American educational attainment. The findings suggested that as the dominant culture develops master narratives, Mexican American communities reproduce these stories as well. Mexican American communities also crafted counter-narratives that resisted the master narratives. The dominant culture master narratives were: Mexican American families do not value education; Mexican American women are not allowed to get an education; The dominant culture and Mexican American communities reproduce masculinist ideology; If Mexican Americans would work hard enough and persevere, they can succeed in education; The U.S. is a colorblind, gender-blind, and class-blind society; and Mexican Americans are only in college/graduate school because they are minorities. In addition, Mexican American communities constructed two master narratives in an effort to advocate for educational equity and increase research in Mexican American communities: Mexican Americans must struggle through educational systems and Mexican American Ph.D.s should research Mexican American issues. This study provided a venue for narratives on Mexican American educational attainment that reflected struggle and survival, privilege and merit, as well as overcoming obstacles and not finding any barriers along the way. These narratives have the power to reshape, reframe, and transform discourses of deficiency to those of empowerment and resistance in K-12 education, postsecondary education, and graduate school.

The cultural defense is an informal term that describes the use of cultural information to mitigate criminal responsibility, often used in conjunction with traditional defense strategies such as provocation or insanity. Arguments for the cultural defense include respecting cultural practices under the liberal narrative that frames the United States as a multicultural and pluralistic society. Advocates of the cultural defense recognize the harmful effects of the false universalism of the law. However, the cultural defense has been criticized as essentialist and harmful as it has been used in high profile cases to justify violence against women of color. The cultural defense superficially prioritizes the needs of marginalized communities by acknowledging the importance of culture in the administration of the criminal law. The rationale behind the cultural defense is politically appealing, but the impacts of the defense are incompatible with the goals of antisubordination, which will be further described by Critical Race Theory. Because the debate surrounding the cultural defense has yet to make significant advances, I argue that Critical Race Theory offers an essential starting point in intervening in the debate, ultimately transforming the realm of legal jurisprudence through its explicit race consciousness and examination of racialized power. In particular, I will examine the concepts of intersectionality and interest convergence which will offer valuable perspective into the cultural defense debate.

More people than ever before are living significant portions of their social lives online due to advancements in internet technology. Over the last few years, we have begun to see the most public discussions of racism increasingly occur online, to be later embedded in the public’s consciousness. It is therefore important for race critical scholars to observe how digital spaces affect racial discourse in the United States. Utilizing a race critical perspective, I explore comment section reactions to counter-framing articles to examine contemporary racial discourse. Through a discourse analysis, I find that counter-framing articles initiate the racial dialectic by inviting white racial frames, thereby structuring contemporary racial discourse. My research suggests race critical scholars should explore the internet as a racialized institution and a site of racial contestation. Race critical theorist must begin to grapple with how such a racialized institution will alter the experiences of racism in social life.

The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore the issues of race and mattering in relation to African American participation within historically White fraternities. Participant perspectives were obtained through six interviews with African American males at four collegial institutions within the Southeastern Region of the United States. Critical Race Theory was utilized to framed issues surrounding race in a homogenous Greek context. A second lens, Rosenberg and McCullough's (1981) concept of mattering, provided a comprehensive description of participants' feelings of significance within the inter-racial Greek experience. Thematic findings indicate that although African American members are recruited to be a part of a particular historically White fraternity's brotherhood, they initially experience marginality. Through continued interaction, the fraternal bonds become strengthened with participants rising to varying levels of leadership within the group, and, mattering to their White fraternal brothers. Other themes related to African American participation within historically White fraternities include: (a) One or no family member that attended college, (b) no immediate family members that are Greek, (c) significance of race is downplayed, (d) limited fraternal knowledge prior to entering college, (e) recruitment is driven by image, status, and counter assumption, (f) stereotypical organizations are racial holdouts; and, (g) discord exist with other African Americans that disapprove of the inter-racial experience.

Previous research has identified spirituality (Riggins, McNeal, & Herndon, 2008) as an important component of academic success for Black college students. Other factors researched include first year/ freshmen experiences, mentorships, faculty–student engagement (Caboni and Adisu, 2004), rigorous high-school curriculums, and summer bridge programs (Palmer, Moore, Davis, Hilton, 2010). Much of the research on college student success provides a comparison between Blacks, Whites, Asians, Latinos, and Native Americans (Caboni and Adisu, 2004; Carey, 2005; Palmer, Moore, Davis, Hilton, 2010; Townsend, 2007). However, few studies deal with Black students solely, and the influence of spirituality on the academic success within that one population. The lack of existing research on the relationship between spirituality and Black students’ college success, warrants a study that examines the possible ways in which spirituality might influence the academics of Black students (Hill, 2009). This grounded theory investigation examined the relationship between spirituality and the academic success among fifteen Black college students attending three Historically Black Colleges and Universities in Louisiana. Through depth interviews and analysis of resulting transcripts, it was found that spirituality plays a very important, yet indirect role in the academic successes of Black college students attending HBCUs. Three themes emerged: (1) Spirituality and Enduring Life’s Obstacles, (2) Spirituality as an Influence on Personal Transformation, and (3) the Academic Impact of Spirituality. This study helps to highlight a possible resolution to the post-secondary degree disparity seen between Blacks and Whites.

Thesis advisor: Lauri Johnson / Research has indicated that hiring and retaining educators of color can positively impact students of color, as educators of color have the capacity to be social justice change agents (Villegas & Davis, 2007), serve as strong role models for students of color (Ingersoll & May, 2011), promote culturally responsive curriculum (Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995), and positively impact student achievement (Ahmad & Boser, 2014; Dee, 2004). However, there is a significant gap in the existing research on how educators of color perceive the impact of their racial/ethnic identity on their work in the classroom. This qualitative case study sought to answer how educators of color perceive the impact of their racial and/or ethnic identity on their relationships with students, their instructional practices, and the reduction of cultural bias in their school. It was part of a larger group case study that sought to capture the perceptions of educators of color related to racial disproportionality and its impact on the educator pipeline and schools. Data was collected through semi-structured face-to-face interviews and the administration of the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure protocol with educators of color in the Cityside Public School District. Data was examined through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT), specifically the tenets of permanence of racism, critique of liberalism, and counter storytelling. Findings support that the majority of the participants interviewed have a strong sense of belonging to their racial and/or ethnic group. Moreover, educators of color perceive that they serve as positive role models, provide students of color with culturally responsive pedagogy, and offer counter narratives that combat stereotyping. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

This study explored the perceptions of ten White female South African volunteers working with black children diagnosed HIV positive and/or orphaned by AIDS. A qualitative research strategy was used in order to explore the participants’ perceptions of the role that racial dynamics and everyday racism play in their work as volunteers. Ten participants over the age of 18 years, that have been volunteering for a minimum of one month and that volunteer for a minimum of one hour a week at an organisation in Johannesburg, were interviewed. The data were transcribed and analysed using thematic content analysis and the findings were interpreted using a framework drawn from critical race theory and critical Whiteness studies. Notions of everyday racism were evidenced in the findings of the study. These findings challenge traditional notions in a novel way by expanding the current understanding of the racial dynamics at play in a country working towards equality. In doing so, the study raises theoretical and practical implications for efforts aimed to address racism in South Africa.

The topic of this research is lay counsellors’ attitudes towards difference in an NGO organization that offers a counselling service based on Carl Rogers’ Person-Centred approach. South Africa post-apartheid is a fragmented and traumatized society and attempts at redressing past inequities have largely overlooked the mental health care sector. As a result, NGO’s are increasingly having to fill the gap, with little co-ordination with or co-operation from professional mental health care practitioners. With critical race theory as a theoretical point of departure, Lacau and Mouffe’s discourse theory was used to analyze results from in-depth semi structured interviews with counsellors at an NGO in Johannesburg. The findings confirmed that counsellors’ attitudes towards difference are shaped by their and the client’s racialized identities, with the adherence to Rogerian principles and the need to be a ‘good’ counsellor, foreclosing any opportunity to critically examine subject positions and the role of history in how such positions are constructed. The introduction of a training component that includes historical analysis and courageous conversations about difference would better equip counsellors to carry the burden of complex presenting issues from a diverse clientele.

Thesis advisor: Ana M. Martínez Alemán / The term “diversity” was popularized in Justice Powell’s opinion in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, which identified the benefits of a diverse student body as a compelling state interest. Forty years after Bakke, deep inequities remain in higher education and racist events occur with regularity on college campuses (“Campus Racial Incidents : The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education,” n.d.). Institutions continue to struggle to address student concerns and a significant gap remains between students and administrators on the topic of diversity and inclusion. Because the public website is the face of the university to the world and the most powerful platform for conveying institutional values, goals, and priorities, representations of diversity on university webpages are potent statements about how institutions address these topics (Snider & Martin, 2012). Jesuit universities in particular have a 500-year tradition in education that is founded on a deep respect for cultural difference, making them an excellent choice for a study on diversity (O’Malley, 2014). This exploratory qualitative study utilizes Critical Discourse Analysis to examine how diversity is characterized on Jesuit higher education websites. The 28 Jesuit higher education institutions in the United States were analyzed during two time periods using a framework combining elements of Fairclough (2003) and McGregor (2014). The data were interpreted through the lens of Critical Race Theory (CRT), which posits that racism continues to be endemic and omnipresent in the United States. CRT scholarship on microaggressions, whiteness, and colorblindness is a foundational element of this analysis Based on this analysis, institutions were placed in an adapted model of diversity development based on Williams (2013). While respecting cultural difference and care for the marginalized is at the core of the Jesuit mission, translating this to an inclusive diversity web presence has presented challenges for institutions. In this study, just 3 of the 28 Jesuit higher education institutions attained the most advanced stage—Inclusive Excellence. Few Jesuit institutions placed diversity at the core of the mission or maintained cohesive and powerful diversity messaging across the website. This study found instances where imagery, prose, and information architecture issues reinforced hegemonic norms and objectified individuals. This analysis concludes with diversity website content recommendations for administrators, communications professionals, and faculty who seek to be inclusive rather than alienate, deconstruct hegemonic norms rather than reinforce them, and balance marketing goals with campus authenticity. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2018. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

In this thesis, I ask 'Do racism and anti-racism affect black middle-class cultural lives?' I answer this question through interviews with thirty-two black Brits in professional occupations, and ethnographic work across middle-class spaces in London. I argue there are three black middle-class identity modes - strategic assimilation, ethnoracial autonomous, and class-minded - that each show a different relationship between racism, anti-racism, and cultural lives. Each of these identity modes are characterised by specific cultural repertoires. Individuals towards strategic assimilation draw on cultural repertoires of code-switching and cultural equity. Through the repertoire of code-switching, individuals towards strategic assimilation 'switch' identities when around the white middle-class. This identity-switching is based on the premise that one must become palatable to the white middle-class in order to attain legitimate middle-class cultural membership. Racism thus affects such individuals' cultural identities as they show racialised (white) barriers to middle-class cultural membership. Nevertheless, such individuals draw on the anti-racist repertoire of cultural equity, meaning they strive to be equal to the white middle-class in terms of cultural capital. Such individuals therefore often 'decode' traditional middle-class culture as white, but consume such culture to maintain an equal standing to the white middle-class in terms of cultural capital. Those towards the ethnoracial autonomous identity mode draw on cultural repertoires of 'browning' and Afro-centrism. Through their anti-racist repertoire of browning, they stress that people ought to be proud of being black. They therefore resist 'code-switching' and challenge the view that one must assimilate with white norms to prove their middle-class status. Such individuals also use the anti-racist repertoire of Afro-centrism to argue that they have a moral duty to positively uphold black diasporic histories, identities, and culture. They therefore prioritise consuming cultural forms which give positive, authentic representations of the black diaspora, consequently challenging the devaluation of blackness in British society. Lastly, those towards the class-minded identity mode draw on cultural repertoires of post-racialism and de-racialisation. Such individuals believe British society is 'beyond' racism, and they define as 'middle-class' rather than 'black', often reproducing negative stereotypes of other black people. Such individuals use their consumption of middle-class cultural forms to symbolically separate themselves from other black people. Racism affects their cultural lives, therefore, as they often reproduce negative ideologies of other black people as being culturally myopic, uncultivated, or 'playing the race card'. My thesis develops the 'two streams' of research on Britain's black middle-class. Firstly, studies of black British middle-class identity have been unidimensional, focusing predominantly on strategic assimilation. My research shows that strategic assimilation is only one identity mode. Secondly, the literature on black middle-class cultural consumption is also unidimensional, making it appear as though all black middle-class people seek to consume 'middle-class' cultural forms that have a 'black' focus (for example, literature exploring black identity). My research shows that certain black middle-class people (those towards the class-minded identity mode) have no affinity towards 'black' cultural forms, while others (those towards strategic assimilation) make sure to consume 'traditional' middle-class culture to maintain an equal standing with the white middle-class.