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By Eesha Pendharkar - December 13, 2022 5 min read

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Dozens of state laws restricting lessons on race and racism. School policies restricting transgender, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming students from participating in sports, using bathrooms aligned to their identities, and being addressed by their preferred pronouns. And thousands of books removed from classroom and library shelves.

The backlash to expanding diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts started in 2020, but has split and spiraled over the course of two years into several initiatives that impact students' schooling experiences. Both at the state and district levels, these efforts have been driven primarily by Republican lawmakers and right-wing groups who claim books and lessons about LGBTQ topics are inappropriate and that lessons on race and racism can teach white students to "hate themselves."

How did we get here? This timeline traces the growth of the current movement to limit what gets taught, discussed, or read on controversial topics in the nation's schools

Trump executive order - September 2020

First wave of divisive concepts laws - May 2021

Educators lost jobs in anti-CRT backlash - August 2021

As the backlash against lessons on race and racism escalated, educators started losing their jobs. James Whitfield, a principal in the Grapevine-Colleyville district in Texas was put on administrative leave after he wrote that racism is "alive and well" in a letter to his school community following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. .

First lawsuit - Arizona Sept 2021

Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' bill passes - March 2022

Book bans - April 2022

Oklahoma districts' accreditation docked - August 2022

Virginia anti-transgender law - September 2022

Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, was accused of restrict ing the rights of transgender, nonbinary and gender nonconforming students when he introduced a policy that requires teachers to not hide information about a student's gender identity from their parents, use a student's sex assigned at birth and their legal name according to school records, even if the student or their parent requests otherwise. The policy also requires transgender students to use bathrooms and play on sports teams that are aligned with their sex assigned at birth as opposed to their gender identity. Virginia's policy will affect hundreds of districts because it requires them to comply.

Right-wing groups influence school board elections - November 2022

Eesha Pendharkar was a reporter for Education Week covering race and opportunity in education.

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The Evolution of the Anti-CRT Movement: A Timeline

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What started as a federal executive order gave way to restrictions on racism lessons, book bans, and anti-LGBTQ policies over two years.

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Critical race theory, an academic concept about systemic racism typically taught in higher education institutions, has become a target of Republican legislators in states across the country.

At least 16 states have laws or policies in place that limit lessons about race and inequality being taught in American K-12 schools.

Many of the bills don't directly mention critical race theory in their text, and instead legislate against lessons that may make students feel "shame," "guilt" based on race or discuss "oppression" and "intersectionality." Critics say the vague language could impact lessons detailing racism and oppression in the U.S.

Still, lawmakers pushing these bills forward have invoked the educational movement of critical race theory while advocating for this legislation.

Critical race theory, according to founding critical race theorist Kimberlé Crenshaw, is a discipline that seeks to understand how racism has shaped U.S. laws and how those laws have continued to impact the lives of non-white people.

Critics of the theory claim it shames and guilts children based on their race.

"We should not teach that one race is superior to another," said Texas Republican state House Rep. Steve Toth in an interview with ABC News. "We should not teach that one race is inferior to another."

"The law has played a substantially significant role in establishing what race and racism actually are in American society," Crenshaw told ABC News, pointing to the effect laws have had on Black people specifically.

She continued, "We can never forget that slavery was perfectly legal and constitutionally protected. ... Law has played a mixed role in our history. It has enslaved us. It has justified disenfranchising us. It has justified segregating us. It has justified marginalizing us, criminalizing us."

Crenshaw, who is also a Columbia Law School professor, believes the concept of critical race theory is being misrepresented and used as a political tool.

What is critical race theory?

Academic experts, including Crenshaw, say critical race theory is not what is being taught in K-12 education curriculums.

Critical race theory is a study in academia based on the concepts of systemic and institutional racism. Systemic racism refers to how the government has discriminated against Black, Indigenous and other people of color through unjust policies concerning housing, employment, criminal justice, education and more.

From the conception of slavery in America, to the Jim Crow laws that segregated Black people, to the disproportionate criminalization and brutality against Black Americans, Crenshaw said racism and white supremacy have persevered in the U.S. through law.

Even if some discriminatory laws or policies are no longer in effect, she said, they can still impact families for generations.

"From who lives where to the disproportionate consequences of COVID," Crenshaw said, "these are all current ways in which racial disparities are produced."

The study also analyzes benefits white people have in society, which is sometimes referred to as "white privilege." This refers to the concept that white people continue to be protected from the effects of systemic race-based discrimination because of their skin color.

"In every aspect of our lives, we encounter race," Jane Bolgatz, the associate dean for academic affairs at Fordham University Graduate School of Education, told ABC News. "If we aren't talking about race, we aren't noticing the ways in which society pushes white people forward. And so then we're not noticing the fact that these winds are not only pushing them forward but pushing people of color backward."

Some educators across the U.S. expanded their curriculums on racial inequality in response to the turbulent year of protests against police brutality and disproportionate police violence against Black people.

Crenshaw said she believes the latest legislation on education and the teachings about structural racism are not about the curriculum itself, but about the power that education about racism can have on fixing systems of oppression.

"Not talking about [racial disparities] is simply a way of just naturalizing them, normalizing them and allowing these patterns to continue over and over again," Crenshaw said. "There has been a deep insecurity that politicians have weaponized from the beginning of our republic to convince those who are willing to listen that more racial justice means less for them."

Some curriculums now include more racialized historical events, such as the Tulsa race riot and the Rodney King case and the subsequent Los Angeles riots, that highlight the plight of Black and brown Americans in the United States.

But those educators say their efforts are in danger due to these potential new restrictions on education.

What are the critics saying?

Republican-majority state legislatures across the country have introduced or implemented restrictions on teaching about racial inequality in schools. These bills -- in Florida, Tennessee, Texas, Idaho, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Louisiana -- include almost the exact same language.

Many of the bills say include language that would ban teachers from teaching that "one race or sex is inherently superior to another race or sex," that "an individual, by virtue of the individual's race or sex, is inherently privileged, racist, sexist or oppressive, whether consciously or subconsciously," that "a meritocracy is inherently racist or sexist, or designed by a particular race or sex to oppress members of another race or sex" and that "this state or the United States is fundamentally or irredeemably racist or sexist."

Critical race theorists, analysts and educators say the discipline does not attack individual students for their privileges, but rather, it makes them aware of how different systems in the U.S. discriminate against others.

"If a kid is being taught that they're an oppressor, that means that the person who's doing the teaching is not explaining the difference between people and systems," Bolgatz said. "Racism is a system. ... People are prejudiced, and we can work on our own individual prejudice, but we have to also work on the systems that discriminate writ large."

Still, legislators are crusading against critical race theory -- as well as other programs that teach about oppression.

In his bid for the 2024 presidential election, former President Donald Trump promised to "eliminate federal funding for any school that pushes critical race theory or left-wing gender ideology."

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has also led the charge in his state against critical race theory -- as well as diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

The Stop WOKE Act, which took effect in July 2022, restricts lessons and training on race and diversity in schools and in the workplace, particularly anything that discusses privilege or oppression based on race, or whether someone "bears personal responsibility for and must feel guilt, anguish, or other forms of psychological distress" due to U.S. racial history.

The law is temporarily blocked from impacting colleges and universities, and is still being battled out in the courts.

This legislation and other policy changes have lead to the rejection of an Advanced Placement African American studies course in the state, local reports of the removal and strict vetting of race-related books in school libraries, and an effort to remove funding toward race-related or diversity, equity and inclusion-related programs in colleges and states.

Rep. Toth, who introduced a similar bill in his own state, told ABC News that he encourages race to be taught in classrooms "from a diverse and contending perspective without showing deference to one side or the other."

However, he said he believes the term "white privilege" blames children for actions of racism in the past and says critical race theorists believe if someone can't acknowledge the impact of white supremacy or white privilege, then they are racist.

His bill does not specifically name critical race theory in the text of the language, but Toth has been a staunch critic of the theory's teachings and has cited the theory as problematic. He did not answer what his definition of critical race theory is.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt HB 1775 shared similar sentiments with Toth about his state's own bill, which he recently signed into law. In a statement sent to ABC News, Stitt said that some forms of the curriculum "define and divide young Oklahomans" based on their race or sex. The Oklahoma bill has almost identical language to the Texas bill.

"We can and should teach this history without labeling a young child as an oppressor or requiring he or she feel guilt or shame based on their race or sex," Stitt said. "I refuse to tolerate otherwise during a time when we are already so polarized."

Educators weigh in on importance of teaching about race

Joy Hofmeister, Oklahoma's state superintendent of public instruction, has been outspoken about her concerns on the bill in her own state, especially concerning the history of the Tulsa race riot in her own state.

Hofmeister, along with the members of the Oklahoma City Public School Board of Education, have denounced the legislation.

"Students deserve an honest understanding of our history and its episodes of both greatness and shame if we hope to learn from our past," Hofmeister told ABC News in a statement. "I am confident our educators will teach the Oklahoma Academic Standards, which finally and explicitly includes the hateful tragedy that was the 1921 [Tulsa] race massacre."

Bolgatz believes that U.S. history is racialized "whether we are acknowledging or not" and said children need to talk about and understand racism in the history of the U.S. to end the current systems of racism.

The American Psychological Association reports that infants and toddlers are often aware of race and can display racist beliefs from their young age. Although most adults believe talk about race and discrimination should be stalled until the age of 5, according to the study, psychologists recommend helping young children navigate these ideas earlier than expected.

Bolgatz wrote the book, "Talking Race in the Classroom," which addresses education on racial inequality from a young age. Talking about race and teaching about the way it affects people differently can help children and teens navigate and understand these systems of oppression, she said.

Bolgatz said white children often don't experience racism or acknowledge race in their daily lives, whereas children of color are faced with the reality of their skin color every day. They said that when children are socialized without being exposed to historical understandings of race and discrimination, harmful ideas can be easily entrenched in their young minds.

"We think that the law is neutral, we think that in schools are neutral, but they're just not," Bolgatz said. "Now we have evidence for why the criminal justice system isn't neutral and how the educational system isn't neutral and how the medical systems aren't neutral."

"Why should we teach children? It's so that the children who are going to grow up and be doctors and teachers and police officers and judges have some understanding about what it means to be equitable," Bolgatz said.

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Critical race theory in the classroom: Understanding the debate

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Critical race theory is the academic study of how racism has been shaped by laws and legal systems in the U.S.

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University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education

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Educators today are working in an increasingly diverse world, which translates to an equally diverse classroom. Just look at the statistics: the 2020 U.S. Census found that the population of all minorities in the United States increased from 2010, and the multiracial population specifically grew 276% over a 10-year period. When you consider a previous Census Bureau report that forecasted that half of all U.S. students in public schools would be minority students by 2020, it becomes clear why culturally responsive teaching is becoming increasingly important.

However, knowing how to implement a culturally relevant pedagogy isn't inherently easy, and requires a balancing act on the part of you, the educator. To help you start to introduce these concepts and tactics into your classroom, here is a breakdown of culturally responsive teaching and 10 examples of CRT being implemented in schools.

What is Culturally Responsive Teaching?

According to Edutopia, culturally responsive teaching "attempts to bridge the gap between teacher and student by helping the teacher understand the cultural nuances that may cause a relationship to break down - which ultimately causes student achievement to break down as well."

When put into practice, teachers can develop culturally responsive pedagogies which are "student-centered approaches to teaching in which the students' unique cultural strengths are identified and nurtured to promote student achievement and a sense of well-being about the student's cultural place in the world."

Why Use Culturally Responsive Teaching?

There are numerous studies that point to the benefits of culturally responsive teaching (CRT). CRT has been shown to increase student engagement, cultivate critical thinking and problem solving skills, and ultimately improve a students' sense of belonging in the classroom. For educators, culturally responsive pedagogy has been critical for improving their ability to reach students, especially in the time of remote teaching and COVID-19. Reports show that teachers who use this teaching style are better able to respond to student needs, and is an effective way to combat educational inequities that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

From an overall educational perspective, the biggest benefits of culturally relevant teaching include:

Teachers and students are more actively contributing to the classroom environment and culture.

Students get to learn from more interactive, collaborative and culturally conscious activities.

This teaching style helps foster a sense of belonging for students of all backgrounds.

It has been proven to improve brain processing and student engagement.

10 Examples of Culturally Responsive Teaching in the Classroom

There is no one way to implement elements of culturally responsive teaching into your classroom. There are countless different tactics to try that align with your style - here are 10 of the most common:

1. Learn About Your Students: Kick the school year off with exercises that help you get to know your students. Distribute surveys or questionnaires that allow your students to share a bit more about their backgrounds, and their learning styles. With these responses you can go into the year with a complete picture of your classroom makeup.

2. Interview Students: This is a more personal approach to getting to know your students better. Face-to-face communication will help create an open dialogue between you and your pupils, and will encourage them to open up about things like their hobbies, favorite subjects and their preferred in-class exercises.

3. Integrate Relevant World Issues: There are many different ways to do this. Consider implementing a current events roundup into your morning meetings or classroom routine. You can also use culturally relevant terms in word problems that relate back to student interests and cultures.

4. Leverage the Power of Story: Many cultures have oral traditions, myths and stories that are passed down through the generations. These stories can be used as teaching tools about manners, morality and more. Use your students' diverse cultural stories to teach valuable lessons to your classroom, while also sharing some unique history of other groups.

5. Gamify Lessons: Gaming is hugely popular amongst school-aged children. Consider "gamifying" your lessons - popular tactics include offering reward badges or setting standards for new "levels" students can move up to for certain projects or proficiencies.

6. Use Media that Positively Depict a Range of Cultures: Find age-appropriate media outlets from different cultures and languages to use in your curriculum. These outlets can be used to teach a differing perspective on a current or historical event.

7. Encourage Students to Propose Ideas for Projects: Turning the tables and letting students propose ideas for projects is a great way to let students play to their strengths and get creative. Encourage them to use their cultural heritages or backgrounds as an inspiration, and support them in taking projects from concept to completion.

8. Experiment with Peer Teaching: It is suggested that teachers try allowing students to participate in peer-to-peer teaching. In this exercise, students are able to use their own vocabulary and cultural references to teach each other about a topic or subject.

9. Encourage Students to Leverage Cultural Capital: Empower your students that come from varying backgrounds to use their voices and speak about their diverse backgrounds. For example, if you teach an English class that includes ESL students, try to find ways to include them in lessons and allow them to share experiences they have had.

10. Involve Parents by Using Take-Home Letters: Open the door to parent participation at the start of the school year, when starting a new unit or trying an education tool for the first time. Parents can provide cultural context and support, and will appreciate being kept in the loop regarding their child's education.

How to Implement Culturally Responsive Teaching in the Classroom

There isn't a step-by-step process that every teacher must follow to introduce culturally relevant teaching into their classroom. Instead, here are some elements of a culturally inclusive classroom, and some choices you can make to begin this exciting process:

Gather demographic information on students such as background, languages spoken, etc.

Identify students' assets and their cultural capital.

Create a welcoming classroom environment and develop authentic, caring relationships with your students.

Examine the curriculum to identify where you can tie in cultural elements.

Explore CRT resources to deepen your own understanding of the concept.

Share your own background and experiences with students to open lines of communication.

Encourage students to talk in pairs or small groups before sharing their own experiences with the whole class.

Learn about your students' traditions, holidays and family or other cultural activities, and try incorporating some of these traditions or activities into classroom activities.

Choose media, like stories or poems or video, that reflects the culture of the students so they can relate to the topic or characters, and teach their classmates about their heritage.

How Does Culturally Responsive Teaching Apply to Parents & Families?

Students' parents and guardians can be one of your most valuable resources when it comes to building a culturally relevant pedagogy. Because they are your students' resource when it comes to learning about their own cultural backgrounds. As such, you should be sure to engage with families from the beginning, inviting parents and guardians into the classroom community. They can share books from their native cultures or country, or participate as a guest speaker to tell their own stories. This helps them actively participate in their child's learning and share a bit about what makes them unique.

Resources for Culturally Responsive Teaching

Some easily accessible CRT resources available to teachers include:
Mathematica Education Northwest ChangeKidsLives Inclusive Schools Network Culturally Responsive
Professional Development for Culturally Responsive Teaching

There are a number of introductory resources available online for educators interested in culturally responsive teaching. However, these articles and eBooks provide a surface-level overview of CRT. While this information is hugely valuable, for educators who seek to have a more comprehensive understanding of this practice, there are other options.

Consider the Teaching for Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity in the Classroom Series offered by the University of San Diego. This program is available through the school's Division of Professional and Continuing Education, meaning each course in this series is available completely online. Through the Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity program, learners will learn how to celebrate diversity, and also strategize how to promote inclusivity, equity and anti-racism in the classroom. To learn more about this program, please contact us.

FAQs

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University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education

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Culturally Responsive Teaching Guide (+10 Examples) - University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education

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Culturally Responsive Teaching Guide (+10 Examples). Advance your career with professional and continuing education from the University of San Diego.

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Critical Race Theory (CRT) has been the subject of many headlines over the past year. Since January 2021, 36 states have taken measures to ban or restrict how educators can discuss race in the classroom. Out of these 36 states, 14 have successfully implemented these restrictions, with the rest working to have their own measures implemented.

These measures are unfortunately rooted in a deep misunderstanding about what Critical Race Theory is and its intended purpose. Despite becoming a household term within the past year, the concept has existed for more than 40 years and was created by legal scholars. The practice, which has been primarily taught in law schools and in higher education, can be applied to many areas in life and is a valuable tool in helping students understand inequities in their society.

Unfortunately, the root of what Critical Race Theory is has been misconstrued in recent months and this misinformation has led to unnecessary fear and anger. The challenge, as Brookings states below, is separating individual identity from the systems that bias is rooted in.

"Sociologists and other scholars have long noted that racism can exist without racists. However, many Americans are not able to separate their individual identity as an American from the social institutions that govern us-these people perceive themselves as the system. Consequently, they interpret calling social institutions racist as calling them racist personally. It speaks to how normative racial ideology is to American identity that some people just cannot separate the two."

In education, Critical Race Theory is beneficial to both educators and students. Educators can better understand students of diverse backgrounds when they apply Critical Race Theory to their practice, and students of those backgrounds feel seen when the theory is incorporated into learning.

This blog post exists to clarify the purpose of Critical Race Theory, highlight its importance in American society and address harmful myths so that we can all work toward a more equitable society.

What Critical Race Theory Is

Critical Race Theory is an honest, factual look at the United States' relationship with race - a relationship that can be extremely uncomfortable to confront. Because racial bias is embedded in America's systems, the theory can also be applied to multiple sectors, including education, to help teachers provide a more equitable experience for their students.

In the book Critical Race Theory: An Introduction, authors Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic identify six beliefs that are universally held by Critical Race Theory scholars:

1. Racism in the United States is the common, ordinary experience of most people of color.

2. Legal advances (or setbacks) for people of color tend to serve the dominant group's interests.

3. Race is not biological but socially constructed to benefit dominant groups.

4. Dominant groups stereotype minority groups to favor their needs and interests.

5. No one has a single identity, i.e., Black people can also identify themselves by their gender, religion, sexual orientation, etc.

6. The experiences of members of minority groups qualify them to speak out against racism.

These beliefs help break down the purpose and values within Critical Race Theory, which helps reduce the generalization of the term.

Critical Race Theory is a connection between past and present

America's history is rooted in colonization, which brought disease, death and mass extermination to the country's indigenous people. That violence extended to other people of color when the slave trade was brought to the 13 colonies in 1619. When the United States was officially founded in 1776, slavery was still legal and most of the men who formed the U.S. Constitution owned slaves. This early bias has trickled down into today's American society, and while slavery has long been abolished, the views and attitudes connected to America's early origins are internalized by its systems like criminal justice, education, labor and health. For example, a person can participate in a racist act based on internal bias while not being racist themselves.

When students understand bias in systems past and present, they can identify bias and choose to address it head on and not participate in it. By understanding America's shortcomings, its citizens are better able to make sense of their modern society, as well as recognize and address repeated behaviors and trends.

Critical Race Theory is a way to increase empathy

When educators study and understand Critical Race Theory, they are better able to serve students from various backgrounds. Being in a system that has its own inequities, educators can use the tenets of Critical Race Theory to identify and address those inequities throughout the district. Educators working with students of different backgrounds that utilize Critical Race Theory are given the tools they need to have a deeper understanding of the systemic challenges they face in and outside the classroom. As a result, they are better able to meet students' diverse needs.

Additionally, incorporating equity-focused learning within the American system helps all students understand what it's like in someone else's shoes, increasing empathy toward individuals affected by discriminatory systems.

What Critical Race Theory is not

What often gets lost in translation during Critical Race Theory discussions is the true origins of the practice: A framework developed by legal scholars to pinpoint the ways American institutions systemically show bias toward non-white individuals. Over the years, that framework has shown success when applied to other institutions, like education.

While Critical Race Theory is not a curriculum, students can benefit from understanding its principles, which is why clearing up myths around the practice is important. And just as important as understanding what Critical Race Theory is, it is just as important to understand what it is not.

Critical race theory is not currently being taught in schools

A survey conducted by the Association of American Educators found that Critical Race Theory bans are not even necessary. Out of the more than 1,100 teachers surveyed, more than 96 percent of respondents said their schools did not require them to teach Critical Race Theory. Nearly half (45 percent), however, said they would like the option to incorporate the theory into their lessons and the majority (78 percent) said the current discussion on Critical Race Theory is "interfering with a productive and necessary discussion regarding race in America."

In fact, many educators are asking for a seat at the table before legislators act to ban Critical Race Theory.

"I really wish we could all just sit at a roundtable and have teachers talk this over with all the educational stakeholders: the community, parents, lawmakers and researchers who really know this topic before we made sudden decisions," Lynn Daniel, a ninth-grade English teacher in Arizona, told NBC News.

Critical Race Theory is not anti-American

Constructive criticism is a valuable tool in our relationships, and that includes the relationship between a person and their country. Being a proud American is not mutually exclusive with wanting America to do better. For citizens who want a more equitable society, the first step is to recognize areas in their country that need the most support. This can easily be uncovered with a healthy, critical lens.

This is exactly what Critical Race Theory does - it examines the systems in place to highlight and address inequalities within. Its critics often view the theory as an attack on America, when it is really a framework that leaders across various sectors utilize to create equity. Part of that framework is confronting a country's difficult past and how that past is embedded in current times.

Resources to introduce Critical Race Theory principles into your classroom

Race is a sensitive subject and can be challenging to navigate as a classroom leader. Luckily, there are many online resources that offer lesson plans, reading, activities and more to help guide educators.

If you're considering following your dream of teaching, Rutgers Alternate Route can offer you the support and training you need to succeed. Be sure to follow Rutgers Alternate Route on Twitter and sign up for Alternate Route's monthly newsletter for more information and stories from the field of education.

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Understanding Critical Race Theory and How to Incorporate its Principles in the Classroom

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Critical Race Theory (CRT) has been the subject of many headlines over the past year. Since January 2021, 36 states have taken measures to ban or restrict how educators can discuss race in the classroom. Out of these 36 states, 14 have successfully implemented these restrictions, with the rest working to have their own measures implemented.

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As instructors, you can have a great impact on the classroom climate through the very language you use. Yet it can be hard to recognize in one's own speech that some of the most basic idioms and examples are often not inclusive, for they are actually very specific to one group in society (e.g. men/women, Christians, whites, heterosexuals, etc.). This tendency can inadvertently marginalize minority groups. For instance, research has shown that using gender-exclusive language (e.g., using he to indicate he or she ) in professional settings affects women's sense of belonging and lowers motivation (Stout and Dasgupta, 2011; Sczesny, Formanowicz, & Moser, 2016).

Ask your students what their pronouns are and follow-up by using the correct ones identified by your students.
For instance, at the beginning of the semester, have students fill out a short "get to know you questionnaire" either on paper or via email that includes questions such as: "What should I call you? What are your pronouns? What is your major?..." (NOTE: you can model this by sharing your answers to these questions with your students, so they can get to know you!)

Use language that is truly generic:

When addressing mixed gender groups: "Hey folks/all/everyone" instead of "Hey guys."

Spouse/significant other instead of husband/wife (particularly if you do not know someone's sexual orientation)

Winter/holiday break instead of Christmas Break.

House of worship instead of church.

When you use American idioms, explain them for the benefit of non-native English speakers. This is particularly important when writing exam prompts as some students will lose time trying to decipher language rather than using that time to answer the question.

Be careful about overgeneralizing your students' experiences. It is natural to assume that experiences you have had (e.g. living in a house, flying on an airplane, taking family vacations) are shared by others, but when that is not the case, it can marginalize students whose experiences differ.
Use language to acknowledge different lived experiences: "For those of you who have studied abroad/seen Field of Dreams/been on a ferry..."

Sczesny, S., Formanowicz, M., & Moser, F. (2016). Can gender-fair language reduce gender stereotyping and discrimination? Frontiers in psychology, 7.

Stout, J. G., & Dasgupta, N. (2011). When he doesn't mean you: Gender-exclusive language as ostracism. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 37(6), 757-769.

GO TO: Stereotype Threat | Imposter Syndrome

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Model inclusive language - Eberly Center - Carnegie Mellon University

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Inclusive language is language that acknowledges diversity, promotes equality and instills the importance of respect toward all people.
Examples of inclusive language include using gender-neutral phrases when talking to groups, acknowledging first-nations people in a speech, and using modern medical descriptors rather than outdated ones with negative connotations.

This helps to ensure people are free from negativity, microaggressions, and subtle discrimination.

See below for examples of how to use inclusive language terms and expressions.

Examples of Inclusive Language

Religious Inclusion: A principal of a private religious school welcomes people "of all faiths and backgrounds" into the school on an open day.

Saying 'Everyone' instead of 'Guys': Using the phrase "everyone" instead of "guys" when referring to a group of people (e.g. Survivor Season 41).

Gender Neutral Anthems: Changes to the Canadian national anthem to make it gender-neutral.

Renaming Waitress to Server: Putting out advertisements for people in the service industry that refer to them as servers rather than waitresses to be inclusive of all genders.

Not Assuming a Person's Orientation: Asking a woman "are you dating anyone?" rather than "do you have a boyfriend?" in case they are LGBT.

Gender Pronouns: Using the pronouns "they/them" for a person who identifies as non-binary.

Referring to Disabilities: Saying "a person with a disability" rather than "a disabled person" in order to ensure their identity isn't defined entirely by their disability.

Medical Terminology: Using the modern phrase "autism spectrum" rather than "Asperger's" to refer to a person on the autism spectrum.

Pronoun Normalization: Calling someone "they" instead of by a gendered pronoun until they have told you their pronouns.

Trans Inclusion: Increasingly, medical professionals are saying "people who can give birth" rather than "women" because many trans men have wombs and can still give birth.

Renaming Football Clubs: Changing the name of a football club to avoid insulting indigenous peoples (e.g. Washington Redskins were renamed Washington Commanders).

Community-Inclusive Pamphlets: Providing pamphlets and brochures in multiple languages to include minority populations with first languages other than English.

Acknowledging Indigenous Lands: Providing an acknowledgment of country to Indigenous people before giving a speech on their land.

Language on Bathroom Doors: Changing signs on bathroom doors to ensure Trans people feel they have a bathroom they can go into that will be safe for them.

Renaming Locations for Inclusion: Renaming schools, streets, and parks so they are not named after colonizers or invaders. For example, in Australia, Ayers Rock was renamed Uluru because that's it's real name whereas Ayers was the white explorer who renamed it during colonization.

Common Inclusive Language Scenarios

1. Abilities & Disabilities
Keeping in mind that 1 billion people in the world experience some form of disability, it is important to rectify past descriptor words and phrases that are hurtful in nature, and instead take a person-first approach with our language.
That is, putting the focus on the person, instead of their unique condition.

While each individual has their own preferred terminology that relates to their experience, the following are suggestions on how to use inclusive language:

A. Describing someone as "a person with loss of vision or a visual impairment", instead of "blind."
B. Communicating that a person "uses a wheelchair" instead of describing them as "wheelchair-bound."
Mental health disorders affect 13% of the world's population. Medical professionals are increasingly trying to avoid stigmatization of people with mental health disorders.
2. Mental Health
Using gender neutral language is an excellent way to use inclusive language.
As we continue working on de-stigmatizing language, being mindful of how those around us may be affected by our choice of words is top of mind as it relates to mental health.

Moving away from casual discriminatory descriptors (e.g. "spaz", or "psycho") of someone when behaviours are minor, in comparison to actual mental health disorders is being inclusive.

This helps to provide a safe space for those diagnosed with mental health disorders to not feel ostracized or less-than based on their health concerns.
Ageism pertains to discrimination or prejudice solely on the grounds of a person's age.
Rather than defaulting to commonly used phrases and nouns that often include the word "man," or words that are masculine in nature (i.e. "guys"), it's good practice to be more neutral in our communications so as not to segregate people.

By upholding the values of gender equality in our communications, it encourages the alteration of language that is based on stereotypes.

For example: Rather than describing someone as ladylike or a gentleman, cut out the gender associations and define them as polite or kind. Similarly, refer to a group as "folks" instead of "guys" if they are of mixed company.
Socioeconomic language refers to language that is associated to class, with an emphasis on monetary income.
In order to use more inclusive language, the focus should be highlighting someone's individuality instead of their perceived age group or generation. The following suggestions move away from generalizing and grouping people together based on perceived associations or ages:

1. Rather than stating that someone is "old", instead focus on describing them as experienced or effective.
2. Instead of classifying someone by an age category (i.e. Boomer, Middle-aged) refer to them as their specific age or as a "person born between x year and x year."

5. Socioeconomic Status
In the sentiment of words holding a strong meaning and affirming biases, it's important that we utilize inclusive language in a manner that also allows for people to change and grow.
When talking about folks from different socioeconomic situations, inclusive language ensures that respect and dignity is being given to these individuals and communities regardless of the place they grew up in or currently live. This can be accomplished with the following modifications:

1. Instead of saying someone is from the "inner city" or "homeless", refer to them as "under-resourced" or as a "person experiencing homelessness."
2. Rather than stating someone is from a "disadvantaged neighbourhood", instead describe them as "inhabiting in a neighbourhood with access to fewer opportunities."

6. Criminal Justice System

In the case of criminal justice, for instance, the intention is for those in the system to seek repentance and reform of their person during long periods of reflection.

By speaking about people involved in the prison system in derogatory terms such as "felons or predators," there is an unfair label being placed on someone, which prevents them for pursuing all types of opportunities.
Visible minority groups and communities have been addressed in a manner that was systemically decided upon by governments and social policies.
While we may not always agree with a particular person's actions, showing empathy is how we evolve inclusive language and social cohesion, and allow for others to change.

7. Race & Ethnicity
Beyond reflecting on how our words hold weight, it is equally important to recognize the contexts in which our language is impactful.
As we embody and support more inclusive language, this means discussing and addressing groups in the way they prefer to be identified. This could look like using preferred spellings of culturally significant phrases and words, as well as avoiding idioms and phrases with problematic origins.

This also means moving away from generalized descriptor words such as "alien, foreigners, and ethnics" in favour for "people of colour, persons, and immigrants."

Similar to the criminal justice system, the medical industry is a great place to practice inclusive language.
Learning spaces where large groups of people congregate also provide excellent opportunities to put inclusive language into practice.
By using person-centred language in tandem with person-centre care, health care providers and participants in the industry can better support the dignity of patients.

A change in this context could look like this:

Moving from classifying someone as a "sufferer" and instead saying they are "living with or being treated for" a particular disease.

9. Educational & Workplace Settings

Acknowledging that many different types of people occupy educational institutions and workplaces also means it's imperative that inclusive language is top of mind.

Providing professional and educational materials to employees and students, such as lectures and business reports, that include inclusive language ensures individuals feel part of the team and not "othered."
Another approach to using inclusive language is utilizing culturally significant alphabets and pronunciation references, when referring to different cultures in writing.
Similarly, meeting titles and email subjects, as well as internal and external promotional materials should refrain from language that segregates to promote inclusion among all groups and communities that may make up these spaces.

10. Pronunciation & Typography

This would involve utilizing fonts with diacritical marks, which are markings placed above or below a letter to indicate a particular tone or accent, as well as providing guidance of pronunciation for names, places, and phrases.

Visually, this may look like:

Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish, as spelled on bilingual BC road signs)

Word: Skagit
Associated Press: SKA'-jiht
IPA: /ˈskædʒɪt/

Conclusion

Through inclusive language, there is an intentional avoidance of expressions and words that may be perceived as exclusionary to some groups, which in turn promotes social cohesion.

The implementation of inclusive language as a new standard for communication must be taken seriously due to how deeply language can impact how we view gender, race, and other cultures throughout society.

The purpose of inclusive language is to allow folks from all walks of life and diverse backgrounds, identities, and communities to feel accepted by society, no matter where they are or who they associate with. Rather than feeling segregated for perceived differences, inclusive language allows all individuals to exist as they are, freely in all spaces. By recognizing how biases and stereotypes have shaped our language, and actively working towards replacing them with inclusive language, we will become a more empathetic society that celebrates differences rather than compares and judges.

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Dalia Yashinsky (MA, Phil) and Peer Reviewed by Chris Drew (PhD)

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15 Examples of Inclusive Language (2023)

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Inclusive language is language that acknowledges diversity, promotes equality and instills the importance of respect toward all people.

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1. Kate DePalma (2019). “Let's Celebrate: Special Days Around the World.” BAREFOOT BOOKS, retrieved on 31 Jan 2024,

https://www.amazon.com/Lets-Celebrate-Special-Around-World/dp/1782858342/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2J3EB2DEB4HIN&keywords=lets+celebrate+special+days+around+the+world&qid=1707004132&sprefix=lets+celebrate%3A+spe%2Caps%2C185&sr=8-1

Age range: 4-10 years old.

1. Whitney Stewart (2019). “What Do You Celebrate?: Holidays and Festivals Around the World.” Union Square Kids, retrieved 31 Jan 2024,

https://www.amazon.com/What-Do-You-Celebrate-Festivals/dp/1454932139/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3POPIGP7CB924&keywords=what+do+you+celebrate+book&qid=1707004411&sprefix=what+do+you+ce%2Caps%2C152&sr=8-1

Age range: 5-9 years old.

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Favoring cultures over other cultures or acting as thought a certain culture needs to change there belief system.

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CRT is an environment in a classroom that is in a multicultural setting and represents diverse groups of of cultures. The teacher in this classroom uses their knowledge about diverse cultures and spread their knowledge throughout the classroom.