The Perils and Strains of Teaching Race and Racism to Predominantly White Teacher Candidates

Abstract

This paper examines the overt and covert racism Black professors experience within the context of mainstream university teacher education programs. Informed by literature from Canadian sources and the authors’ personal experiences, the paper challenges the perception that Canadian postsecondary teacher education is amenable to honest, open and civil debates regarding racism. The common view of Canada as an inclusive and welcoming society needs re-examining given the degree of resistance encountered by racialized professors while teaching controversial topics, including racism and antiracism. A call is made for teacher education programs to revamp their curricula and to embed critical race and antiracist literature in all courses, in addition to recruiting, mentoring and retaining Black professors, senior administrators, staff and students.