In the shadow of whiteness: (re)exploring connections between history, enacted culture, and identity in a digital divide initiative

Abstract

Who we are, our identities, as educators and learners cannot be considered separately from our histories and cultures. As such, many attempts at improving education for historically marginalized minority groups often revolve around finding ways to connect youth culture to curricula. What remains largely unexamined, however, are the history, culture, and identities of White educators and how these forces necessarily impact the ways in which curricula are designed for youth of color. By reconsidering DeGennaro and Brown’s article “Youth Voices: Exploring Connections between History, Enacted Culture and Identity in a Digital Divide Initiative” through a lens of Whiteness, this article aims to illustrate that the histories and identities of African–American learners are dialectically related to the histories and identities of White educators. However, because Whiteness tends to be invisible, White educators have the privilege of not examining who they are and where they come from as part of their own identity development during the teaching and learning process. This article invites White educators to question what it means to educate youth of color by recognizing their own Whiteness as a powerful force in shaping pedagogical activities. By understanding both themselves and their students as racialized, cultural actors, White educators can begin to develop curricula that are truly empowering for minority youth.