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ERIC Number: EJ1289318
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2575-694X
EISSN: N/A
Is the Communication Center Racist? An Inquiry into Black Linguistic Justice, Antiracism, and Assimilation
Ladva, Nimisha
Communication Center Journal, v6 n1 p3-17 2020
Given the continuing harm that racism produces in the U.S. and the world, as well as the increased interest in anti-racist work, this paper asks: Is the work of the communication center racist? In the absence of an anti-racist praxis in every hire, in every tutoring session, in every workshop, in every training, the short answer is "yes." The communication center is racist because it is assimilationist. It expects the absence of Black Language and the presence and production of White Mainstream English (WME) in the work it does. In this paper, I offer the example of my own experience as someone engaged in communication work but who has not confronted, until now, the absence of Black Language in my own work. Black Language is not only a language equal to others, it is a living record of direct ties to African languages spoken by the first Blacks brought forcibly here as enslaved people. As such, Black Language deserves our attention. This attention must be part of an anti-racist communication center praxis.
National Association of Communication Centers. 738 South Mason Street MSC 1023, Harrisonburg, VA 22807. e-mail: ccj_editor@uncg.edu; Web site: http://libjournal.uncg.edu/ccj/index
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A