These terms are used in documents and discussions about Equity and CLSP. The Opportunity Gaps Office has assembled this glossary, and we encourage you to use these definitions to clarify and provide a common vocabulary for your discussions and policy development.
A powerful social construction that historically has been used to differentiate groups and maintain a hierarchy of human beings. While race is not biological, it is real and affects everyone, whether we are aware of it or not, providing people different access to opportunities and resources (Haney-López, 2000; Omi & Winant, 1994; Solorzano & Yosso, 2002; Banks, 1995; Perez-Huber, 2010).
The ways that we each live our lives, including values, language, customs, behaviors, expectations, ideals governing child-rearing, the nature of friendship, patterns of handling emotions, social interaction rates, notions of leadership, etc. Culture is how the brain makes sense of the world (Hammond, 2015).
Individuals whose heritage includes African, Asian, Indigenous, Latinx, and/or Pacific Island ancestry, and have been impacted by the history and current reality of racism, colonialism, and genocide.
The belief and dominance of one race over all others, manifested in practices, beliefs, social relations, phenomena, institutions, structures, and systems. The reproduction and maintenance of a racial hierarchy and social structure that yield superiority, power, resources and privilege for some, and discrimination, exploitation, and oppression for others. In the US, this racial hierarchy has White people (“Caucasians” or “people of European heritage”) at the top (Lorde, 1992; Marble, 1992; Solorzano & Yosso, 2002; Perez-Huber, 2010; Bonilla-Silva, 2001; Dubois,1999; Roediger,1999; Cole 2019).
The interpersonal manifestations of racism, whether overt or covert, that include expressions of hate or discrimination, or support the reproduction of a racial hierarchy (Government Alliance of Racial Equity, 2016; Aspen Institute, 2016; Marble, 1992; Solorzano & Yosso, 2002).
Policies, practices and procedures within and across institutions that, intentionally or not, yield better outcomes for White people than for People of Color (Government Alliance on Racial Equity, 2016; Aspen Institute, 2016).
The historical and current system in which public policies, institutional practices, cultural representations, and other norms work to reinforce a racial hierarchy that distributes privileges associated with “whiteness,” leading to adverse outcomes and conditions for Communities of Color (Government Alliance of Racial Equity, 2016; Aspen Institute, 2016; Tuck & Yang, 2012).
Acceptance of negative attitudes, beliefs, ideologies, and stereotypes perpetuated by the White dominant society as being true about one’s racial/ethnic group. (Molina & James, 2016).
A belief born out of the erasure of Indigenous Peoples and the history of White settler colonialism in the United States, that holds Whites as the native and relegates People of Color, particularly immigrants of Color as foreigners. Settler Nativism has three critical components: (1) and an intense opposition to the “foreigner,” which (2) creates the defense and protection of a nationalistic - White - identity, where (3) the foreigner becomes a perceived threat to that nationalistic identity. Settler Nativism and its intersection with racism impacts the lives of a large segment of the BPS population. (Tuck & Yang, 2012; Galindo & Vigil, 2006; Higham, 1955; Pérez Huber, 2010).
One who supports racism through action or inaction. One who expresses an idea stemming from racism or acts in accordance with racism. Being racist is not always a fixed state (Kendi, 2019).
One who supports policies, practices, and action aimed to dismantle racism and racial hierarchies. One who expresses an idea that counters racism, and acts in accordance with that idea (Kendi, 2019).
Lending disproportionate weight in favor of or against one thing, person, or group compared with another. Biases are not always negative, but are cognitive shortcuts that can distort the nature or impact of our actions, and can lead to rash decisions or discriminatory practices. Keeping biases in check requires a delicate balance of self-awareness and deliberate action. See 7 Forms of Bias.
When everyone receives identical treatment and services.
Providing people what they need to achieve a desired outcome. In light of equity, the desired outcomes can be debated, but what is indisputable is that people bring different assets and require different supports to achieve it. This calls for targeted universalism. (Rose, 2020)
When race can no longer be used to predict outcomes. This is what a genuinely non-racist society would look like (Government Alliance for Racial Equity, 2016; Aspen Institute, 2016).
Providing access to opportunities, resources, and support for each and every child by intentionally recognizing and eliminating historical and current barriers, as well as the predictability of personal and academic success based on race, background, and/or circumstance.
When historically marginalized/oppressed communities do not have access to opportunities and a person’s race/circumstance can predict their outcomes (Government Alliance for Racial Equity, 2016; Aspen Institute, 2016).
A strategy that addresses everyone’s needs by focusing resources on those with the highest needs first. In education, targeted universalism addresses all students' learning and flourishing by focusing resources on the highest need students and historically marginalized students, and addressing these needs first (Powell, 2009).
Those who are charged with meeting the needs and concerns of those most impacted by the issues you are working on, are held responsible for the depth of their efforts and the measurable results.
Those students, families, and community groups impacted by the proposed policy, program, or budget decision. A commitment to racial equity requires BPS to center the voices and priorities of those whose lives are most impacted by the decision, namely Black/Latinx students and families.
The measurable results a plan seeks to achieve as identified by using the equity tool.