Abstract:
The authors, one African American and one White, use personal narrative
and dialogue to examine the process of implementing a social justice perspective
into a teacher education program. The process reported in this article
unearthed issues related to race that caused unexpected tensions among a small
faculty. For the White educator this process entailed continuing a critical self-examination
of her own racial identity development. For the African American faculty
member, the process proved particularly stressful and isolating, yet led to an
increased understanding of the nature of institutional racism. The authors’ hope
is that through sharing our struggles around race and social justice others will be
encouraged to begin or continue such transformative journeys
