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Constructive dialogues on race have been proposed as a means to heal racial and ethnic divides, reduce prejudice and misinformation, increase racial literacy, and foster improved race relations. Studies on the psychology of racial dialogues indicate social and academic norms that dictate against race talk between White Americans and persons of color: (a) the politeness protocol, (b) the academic protocol, and (c) the color-blind protocol. These protocols discourage race talk and allow society to enter into a conspiracy of silence regarding the detrimental impact oppression plays on persons of color. Facilitating difficult dialogues on race requires educators to recognize what makes such discussions difficult. For people of color, engaging in race talk exposes them to microaggressions that invalidate and assail their racial/ethnic identities. For Whites, honest discussions are impeded by fears of appearing racist, of realizing their racism, of acknowledging White privilege, and of taking responsibility to combat racism.
Derald Wing Sue received the Award for Distinguished Senior Career Contributions to Psychology in the Public Interest. Award winners are invited to deliver an award address at APA’s annual convention. A version of this award address was delivered at the 121st annual meeting, held July 31–August 4, 2013, in Honolulu, Hawai’i. Articles based on award addresses are reviewed, but they differ from unsolicited articles in that they are expressions of the winners’ reflections on their work and their views of the field.
Teaching a class in urban education, I was analyzing brief biographical sketches of Black Americans who described how race impacted their lives and the special hardships they encountered. Contrary to the usual class involvement, the responses were brief, tepid, and guarded. It was like “pulling teeth” to get any type of response. Finally, a White female student observed that...