The wages of whiteness: confronting the nature of ivory tower racism and the implications for physical education

Abstract

In this paper, we draw attention to the profound lack of racial diversity as well as the prevalence of whiteness within Canadian faculties of Kinesiology and Physical Education. In support of our argument that there exists an immediate need for equity programming within physical education in higher education, we present the results from two interconnected studies designed to make transparent: (1) the demographic character of faculties of Kinesiology and Physical Education across Canada; as well as (2) the delivery of content related to race, diversity and whiteness within the curriculum. In the first study, we collected website representations of faculty and staff (i.e. photos) as well as lists of curricular offerings for each of the member institutions of the Canadian Council of University Physical Education and Kinesiology Administrators. Website documents were downloaded, analyzed and organized according to criteria related to race and diversity. The follow-up study consisted of interviews with 40 faculty members across Canada where we asked questions pertaining to their perceptions of the faculty setting (i.e. the demographic make-up of their faculty including faculty, staff and students as well as the culture within the faculty) and the curriculum. As a method of triangulation, interview data was used to confirm and inform our analysis of the initial website data; when combined, the analyses provide a comprehensive picture of the cultures of whiteness that exist within physical education in higher education. In order for physical education to be truly inclusive, we call for the development of greater alliances across disciplines and geographic borders such that the hegemony of whiteness within the (physical education) academy can be disrupted.