On White Racial Ignorance and Releasing the Ethic of Control: A Reflection on the 2018 Annual Meeting of the REA

Abstract

In response to the events of the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Religious Education Association, the author reflects on white racial ignorance as the inability to read racialized situations with nuance and to respond appropriately, naming three particular practices of academic conferencing in which her own actions potentially contribute to perpetuating white supremacy. The desire to be professional, to control how one's own actions are perceived, and to be above reproach are named as barriers to disrupting white supremacy, while willingness to be accountable and to continue showing up to do the work are encouraged.