Race, power, and minority parent participation

Abstract

Literature in the field of minority parent participation has focused on cultural differences and cultural mismatch as reasons for the difficulties that minority parents face in schools and has relied on a framework of cultural sensitivity in exploring the issues. Soyoung Lee proposes that the real issue underlying the dynamics between minority parents and schools and the reasons their voices are silenced are undeniably about race, power, and the exercise of racial privilege. She uses a personal narrative to illuminate how racism and power lead to the silencing of minority parents, and she makes recommendations for researchers, schools, and teacher educators to acknowledge and act on such forms of injustice.