Damage Can No Longer Be The Only Way We Talk About Ourselves: A Re-Evaluation of How We Teach About Narratives of Damage, Discrimination, and Oppression in the Classroom

In her article “Suspending Damage, indigenous scholar Eve Tuck argued that researchers well-intentioned idea of exploring how systems of oppression created brokenness and despair had the unintended consequence of portraying the marginalized peoples enmeshed same systems as similarly broken and filled with despair. Borrowing from Tuck’s article, this presentation will explore how well-intentioned educators, seeking to teach students about racial discrimination and systems of oppression, can harmfully impact their students if narratives of damage are the only stories educators present in a diverse classroom. By the end of the presentation, attendees will learn how they can create a culturally responsive curriculum and instructional approach that that situates the classroom as a democratic forum to co-construct, contest, and provide a fuller story beyond just narratives of damage.