The Freedom School Movement originated at the nexus of the struggles for liberation and full citizenship. Beginning with the articulation of education as a means to freedom during the era of enslavement, the ideology behind Freedom Schools was an integral aspect of the long Black freedom struggle in the United States. Freedom Schools have…

In this paper, we reflect on Luisa Marco-Bujosa's paper, "Soul searching in teaching science for social justice: an exploration of critical events through the lens of intersectionality." Our goal is to offer the reader a deeper understanding of the principles and epistemologies of Afrocentric schooling that were foundational to Faith's…

This article draws from my Charles H. Thompson Lecture on November 4, 2020. I argue that the current educational system does not need to be reformed or reimagined--it needs to be abolished. My presentation was a call to action to utilize the imagination, determination, boldness, and urgency of abolitionists for educational justice. I conclude with…

Throughout this article we argue that collectivity and soul inform the work of the expert teachers who we refer to as Jazz Pedagogues. Jazz's complicated history, like teaching, calls for a consideration of the painful, the messy, the beautiful, and the healing. We, a team of university researchers and classroom teachers, examine the ways jazz can…

Since the inception of the mathematics education enterprise, whiteness and antiBlackness are two foundational components, ideological and social constructs. These constructs help to understand how the law, race, class, power, and other forms of oppression operate to establish, maintain, and elevate racism (white supremacy) in and out of the…

This article introduces a research project that works with former Extended Studies Programme students to make knowledge that emerges through online, multimodal collaborations. Knowledge-making is not politically neutral, and the project and article are responding in part to the calls of the 2015/2016 South African student protesters to decolonise…

African American learners deserve liberating learning experiences, yet rarely receive them. We argue that the framework of Afrofuturism is a productive strategy for reconceptualizing the work of mathematics teaching as liberating and empowering for African American learners and the Rights of the Learner Framework offers useful tools to enable…

Antiblackness, and the dominant stories it produces about Black humanity, creates distorted images of Black humanness that are used to justify violence against Black youth in schools and society. However, Black youth have different stories to tell about their being in the world that stems directly from their lived experiences and are inherently…

I argue that an analysis of antiblack racism in music education discourse is crucial in identifying and addressing potential for harm in the music classroom. I contend that Black children are particularly, and regularly, subjected to poor stereotypical depictions of their identity in digital media. Furthermore, I contend that this digital…

This study explores how Black girls express their "Black girl imagination" while participating in a critical, informal science learning program, Empowering Girls Through Art & Science, designed to prioritize the positive visibility of Black girls and promote the critical exploration of scientific histories. The goal of the research…

Historically, black male students in the United States have the lowest college degree completion rate. This chapter describes the work of the Black Male Initiative (BMI) at Empire State College in NYC. Grounded in an Afrocentric paradigm, BMI provides a safe space for students to share experiences. In this chapter, the author describes the…

This article features in-depth interviews and ethnographic vignettes that explore collectivism, social cohesion, and Black educational leadership as a strategy to infuse liberatory practices in the educational process. The article examines how the social foundation of African-centered ethos of collectivism can shift how marginalized students…

Drawing from the histories of nonformal Black education, (Pp)an-Africanist scholarship, and critical qualitative research, this participatory ethnographic study documents an organic conception of public space where Black people, many of whom have been disaffected by traditional public schools, come to teach and learn with each other. The article…

CaShawn Thompson's hashtag, #BlackGirlMagic, has transformed into a movement over the past five years. The hashtag focuses on celebrating the beauty, influence, and strength of Black women and girls. However, Thompson's term sits in a space of tension, where contradictory interpretations create boundaries around what Black girl celebration means…

The Toronto Symphony Orchestra presents a series of youth concerts each year to introduce and attract younger audiences to the symphony. Music teachers often attend these concerts with students, and the importance of such experiences is frequently emphasised and normalised. This article explores the historical roots of the following relations,…