I n work on multiculturalism and teacher education, much has been made of the ironic growth in the heterogeneity of America's public school students and the homogeneity of America's public school teachers (Fuller, 1 992). Educators have thus been alerted to the dire consequences to follow, should they continue to engage the complexity of culturally diverse student populations in their present state of ill iteracy (Ladson-Bil l ings, 1 99 1 ) . Along with this alert, lip service seems to be paid to what preservice teachers don ' t know, and what they should know and do in order to meet the educational needs of children of color and of linguistic difference (Gore, 1 993; hooks, 1 992) . Like our colleagues, we believe that the most effective way to reform education begins in our colleges and universities in teacher education. A review of the related research suggests that many multicultural education courses are taught with the intent of changing the attitudes and beliefs of white pre service teachers. We suggest that all preservice teachers need to improve their understanding of the role of l inguistic and cul tural diversity in children's l ives, to improve their understanding of its history, and change their beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors so that a more just multicultural school climate is realized. It is imperative therefore that teacher education courses not merely teach about multicultural education, but that they become multicultural environments. In this article we describe accounts of our experience as two African American instructors teaching multicultural education courses and the experiences of students who have taken them. Among a p lethora of publications on multicultural education, l i ttle has been written on the constraints facing teacher educators who attempt to convey attitudinal change. Consequently, there is a tacit, yet prevalent tension between ideas about the learning that must take place and the practical l imitations under which many multicultural education courses are conducted (Gore, 1 993). In fact, theoretical admonitions tend to underestimate the subtle dynamics within the practical setting and altogether fail to account for the ways in which multi cultural learning takes place. We believe i t is important to articulate clearly and explicitly the emotional nature of these discussions . Students have expressed responses that range from self-pity to racial hatred. We' ve i ncluded their words for, as Nieto ( 1 992) has pointed out, their voices must become part of our examination of the teaching process.