Critiquing Color-Blind Racism and Racial Fallacies in "The Daily Show"

Abstract

This classroom activity provides an opportunity for students to practice identifying colorblind racism (Bonilla-Silva 2003) and racial fallacies (Desmond and Emirbayer 2009) in media and in everyday conversations. While students often understand the idea of covert racism, their ability to make use of the concepts in their lives is often limited because...

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Details

Subject Area(s):

Racial and Ethnic Relations

Resource Type(s):

Class Activity

Class Level(s):

Any Level

Class Size(s):

Any

Usage Notes

I conduct this activity early in the term, and refer back to it as a reminder of how to critically appraise discourse about race. It requires video projection capabilities and a chalk/whiteboard that is visible during video use, takes between 45-75 minutes, and works well in small or larger classes. The long version of the activity is presented, but it...

Learning Goals and Assessments

Learning Goal(s):

1. To clarify the concepts of color-blind racism and racial fallacies, two primary ways that racism functions covertly in contemporary society, and illustrate how they arise in media and everyday interactions.
2. To provide students an opportunity to practice identifying covert racism in media and conversation; to encourage students to develop a critical awareness of race in their everyday lives.
3. To connect contemporary covert racism and white privilege to more obvious forms of racism in recent history.

Goal Assessment(s):

1. As this is an in-class activity, student learning is assessed primarily through visible student understanding and vocal response during the activity.
2. The activity can be expanded to include a written follow-up assignment that ask students to reflect on covert racism they have observed outside of class, or to name the frame/fallacy in a given statement and write a critical response.
3. Assessment could also be included in later quizzes, exams, etc.