Even Our Heroes Are Flawed; How Brown v. Board of Education Reinforced Racial Hierarchy
Program
#RaceClass
Episode
26
Episode Length
27:03
Media Type
Podcast
Release Date
2-29-2024
Publisher
WNHN
Language
en-US
Abstract
In this episode, we explore two things that Brown v. Board of Education and DEI have in common.
The first is the story we know well. Both Brown and DEI have been openly vilified by the Right—a history that spans the Southern Manifesto to an ongoing assault on racial diversity.
The second is the story that’s almost never told. The Supreme Court’s most celebrated decision and contemporary efforts to diversify elite institutions valorize and center whiteness—often in ways that naturalize longstanding patterns of racial inequality in the United States.
The answer isn’t to disown Brown or demean inclusionary commitments. But we have to tell the full story. That includes a story about how many of our most prized equality-oriented achievements can undermine the very goal of racial equality.
Recommended Citation
Jonathan Feingold & Arnie Arnesen,
Even Our Heroes Are Flawed; How Brown v. Board of Education Reinforced Racial Hierarchy
(2024).
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.bu.edu/raceclass/64
