“If I bring my whole self to school, I am opening myself up to hurt” : A case study and (re)humanizing counterstory of an early career, multiply-marginalized multiracial teacher with justice commitments

This study conceptualizes the teaching profession as a dehumanizing institutional space for teachers of Color, embodying the oppressive ideologies that explain, justify, and normalize the perpetuation of white supremacy and racism. Although research on teachers of Color has examined issues of recruitment and retention, and impactful social conditions, less is known about their experiences through a humanizing lens that attends to their emotional health and well-being. Drawing on humanizing frameworks, this qualitative case study and counterstory illustrates the inner conflicts and tensions of an early-career, multiply marginalized multiracial teacher with justice commitments that emerge from her own humanizing efforts, commitments, and identities being frequently at odds with the external dehumanizing forces and racist ideologies that undergird the teaching profession. Findings revealed three major tensions, whether to: (1) be present as her authentic self, (2) take risks or make safer choices, and (3) act on personal or institutional values.