Introduction – Naming and Reclaiming Our Intergenerational Path Forward: Critical Race Theory in Education’s Past, Present, and Possibility

Abstract

Abstract In this Special Issue introduction, I share lessons from five trailblazing scholars who contributed to developing CRT in education fields – Laurance Parker, Tara Yosso, David Gillborn, William Smith, and David Stovall. I put their reflections into conversation with the contributing authors of the Special Issue, which include Daniel Solórzano, Walter Allen, María Ledesma, Chezare Warren, Rican Vue, and many more. As the host, of what I envisioned as sort of a dinner-party style introduction, I also share my own coming into CRT moments and the legacy I am proud to carry forward. We gather here to honor the liberatory impact of CRT, speak its intergenerational stories, and learn its lessons about our past, present and future: to name racism; to be in collective struggle; to create spaces of support, freedom, and possibility.