This three-article dissertation examines the role of comics as a medium for developing anti-oppressive pedagogies with teacher educators and teacher candidates in English language Arts (ELA) and literacy education. Using methods of critical content analysis (Johnson et al, 2016), descriptive qualitative research (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), and (post)qualitative analysis (Jackson & Mazzei, 2012), I conducted three studies to consider the following broad research question: "In what ways can comics support teacher candidates in pursuit of anti-oppressive ELA curriculum and pedagogy?" Drawing on Kumashiro's (2000; 2001; 2002; 2009) framework for anti-oppressive education, theories of multimodality (New London Group, 1996; Kress & van Leeuwen, 1996; Sousanis, 2015), and sociocultural theories of reader response (Smagorinsky, 2001; Lewis et al, 2007; Park, 2012; Enciso, 2021), my analysis illuminates how one teacher educator and a group of teacher candidates at a Midwestern university pursued and developed anti-oppressive stances while reading and responding to young adult literature (YAL). For the first article, I conducted a content analysis of texts marketed to youth to explore how representations of fatphobia within comics differed from representations of fatphobia in prose. For the second and third articles, I conducted descriptive qualitative research of teacher candidates in the context of a monthly book club. For the second article, I analyzed teacher candidates' responses to YAL and comics about fatphobia. For the third article, I analyzed teacher candidates' response to comics marketed to queer youth of Color. I took an ethnographic approach to data collection; and I used qualitative analytic methods to analyze within and across multiple data sources, including audio- and video- recordings, transcription, impromptu interviews, artifacts, memos, and field notes. Analysis from this dissertation builds on existing empirical research that examines how teacher educators use YAL and comics as a necessary medium for teacher educators and teacher candidates in pursuit of anti-oppressive pedagogies. In response to my research question, I report that the medium of comics, when read and discussed collaboratively, are uniquely able to disrupt dominant narratives, reposition privileged readers as critical outsiders, and encourage self-reflexive talk and thinking. Findings from this study demonstrate how teacher educators and teacher candidates within ELA and Literacy Education might use comics to curate texts for curriculum and develop discussion-based classrooms rooted in anti-oppressive pedagogies. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]