Resistance, Performativity, and Fragmentation: The Relational Arena of EDI/D in Canadian Higher Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53967/cje-rce.6071Keywords:
equity, diversity, inclusion, ethical-relationality, higher education, case studyAbstract
Equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonizing (EDI/D) have gained discursive centrality in Canadian higher education (HE) yet are criticized as performative. Donald’s work on “ethical relationality” understands colonialism as a denial of relations. Drawing on this work I analyze EDI/D in HE through a lens of relationship building. The study maps three institutional layers of EDI/D. The external layer is centred on confronting overt critique, with discourses about EDI/D as threatening academic freedom becoming more prevalent. The second layer focuses on the “mainstream” adoption of EDI/D. EDI/D became central in terminology, but HE culture is more resistant to change. The inner layer includes those engaged with EDI/D. It is grounded in collaboration, but also in containment and fragmentation of EDI/D initiatives. These layers reveal institutional gaslighting tactics that derail meaningful engagement with EDI/D. For EDI/D to be transformative, HE institutions must ground EDI/D in the difficult process of relationship building.
Metrics
References
Acosta, C. (2014). Huitzilopochtli: The will and resiliency of Tucson youth to keep Mexican American studies alive. Multicultural Perspectives, 16(1), 3–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/15210960.2013.867239
Ahmed, S. (2012). On being included: Racism and diversity in institutional life. Duke University Press. https://read.dukeupress.edu/books/book/2209/On-Being-IncludedRacism-and-Diversity-in
Ahmed, S. (2017). Living a feminist life. Duke University Press.
Akena, F. A. (2012). Critical analysis of the production of western knowledge and its implications for Indigenous knowledge and decolonization. Journal of Black Studies, 43(6), 599–619.
A letter on justice and open debate. (2020, July 7). Harper’s Magazine. https://harpers.org/a-letter-on-justice-and-open-debate/
Al Shaibah, A. (2023). EDI leadership and change agency in Canadian academe: An analysis of democratic discourses of senior leaders. Canadian Ethnic Studies, 55(1), 101–124. https://doi.org/10.1353/ces.2023.0004
Al Shaibah, A. (2020, August 11). How to mobilize and sustain EDI change in the academy. University Affairs. https://www.universityaffairs.ca/opinion/in-my-opinion/how-to-mobilize-and-sustain-edi-change-in-the-academy/
Anderson, L. (2006). Analytic autoethnography. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 35(4), 373–395. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891241605280449
Anthym, M., & Tuitt, F. (2019). When the levees break: The cost of vicarious trauma, microaggressions and emotional labor for Black administrators and faculty engaging in race work at traditionally White institutions. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 32(9), 1072–1093. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2019.1645907
Applebaum, B. (2019). Remediating campus climate: Implicit bias training is not enough. Studies in Philosophy and Education, 38, 129–141. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11217-018-9644-1
Axelrod, P. (2021). Academic freedom and its constraints: A complex history. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 51(3), 51–66. https://doi.org/10.47678/cjhe.vi0.189143
Baker, J., & Vasseur, L. (2021). Inclusion, diversity, equity & accessibility (IDEA): Good practices for researchers. Canadian Commission for UNESCO. https://brocku.ca/unesco-chair/wp-content/uploads/sites/122/ReflectionPaperIDEA.pdf
Battiste, M. (2000). Maintaining Aboriginal identity, language, and culture in modern society. In M. Battiste (Ed.), Reclaiming Indigenous voice and vision (pp. 192–208). University of British Columbia Press. https://mikmawarchives.ca/documents/maintaining-aboriginal-identity-language-and-culture-in-modern-society
Ben-Porath, S. R. (2017). Free speech on campus. University of Pennsylvania Press.
Bhopal, K. (2023). ‘We can talk the talk, but we’re not allowed to walk the walk’: The role of equality and diversity staff in higher education institutions in England. Higher Education, 85(2), 325–339. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-022-00835-7
Bill 32, An Act Respecting Academic Freedom in the University Sector, 42nd Legislature, 2nd Session (2022). https://perma.cc/2UGL-L8KR
Blain, C. B. (2022). How Canadian universities fail black non-binary students. In S. Thobani (Ed.), Coloniality and racial (in)justice in the university: Counting for nothing? (pp. 330–358). University of Toronto Press. http://books.scholarsportal.info/en/read?id=/ebooks/ebooks7/upress7/2021-12-09/1/9781487505332
Bloor, M., & Bloor, T. (2007). The practice of critical discourse analysis: An introduction (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203775660
Bradley, J. (2023, February 16). Ontario teacher regulator drops case against teacher opposed to critical race theory. Western Standard. https://www.westernstandard.news/news/ontario-teacher-regulator-drops-case-against-teacher-opposed-to-critical-race-theory/article_d50a5086-ae2e-11ed-b177-db7c67960020.html
Brayboy, B. M. J., Solyom, J. A., & Castagno, A. E. (2015). Indigenous Peoples in higher education. Journal of American Indian Education, 54(1), 154–186.
Bunjun, B. (2022). Interrogating white supremacy in academia: Creating alternative spaces for racialized students’ scholarship and well-being. In S. Thobani (Ed.), Coloniality and racial (in)justice in the university: Counting for nothing? (pp. 359–386). University of Toronto Press. https://books.scholarsportal.info/en/read?id=/ebooks/ebooks7/upress7/2021-12-09/1/9781487505332
Campbell, C. (2021). Educational equity in Canada: The case of Ontario’s strategies and actions to advance excellence and equity for students. School Leadership & Management, 41(4–5), 409–428. https://doi.org/10.1080/13632434.2019.1709165
Canada Research Chairs. (2019). Institutional equity, diversity and inclusion action plans: A best practices guide. https://www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca/program-programme/equity-equite/index-eng.aspx
Canadian Commission for UNESCO. (2021). Indigenous perspectives on higher education. https://en.ccunesco.ca/-/media/Files/Unesco/Resources/2022/05/IndigneousPerspectivesHigherEducation.pdf
Casado Pérez, J. F. (2019). Everyday resistance strategies by minoritized faculty. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 12(2), 170–179. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000090
Castañeda, M., & Hames-Garcia, M. (2014). Breaking through the associate professor glass ceiling. In S. A. Fryberg & E. J. Martínez (Eds.), The truly diverse faculty: New dialogues in American higher education (1st ed., pp. 265–292). Palgrave Macmillan. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/9781137456069
Chaudry, I., & Kennedy, M. (2020, March 1). Should universities “deplatform” speakers? Alberta Views. https://albertaviews.ca/universities-deplatform-speakers/
Chemerinsky, E., & Gillman, H. (2017). What’s at stake? In E. Chemerinsky & H. Gillman (Eds.), Free speech on campus (pp. 153–160). Yale University Press. https://doi.org/10.12987/9780300231861-008
Chinnery, A. (2016). Epistemic humility and generosity across religious difference [Conference paper]. Annual meeting of the Canadian Philosophy of Education Society, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Collins, P. H., & Bilge, S. (2016). Intersectionality. Polity Press.
Congress Advisory Committee on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Decolonization. (2021). Igniting change: Final report and recommendations. Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences. https://www.federationhss.ca/sites/default/files/2021-10/Igniting-Change-Final-Report-and-Recommendations-en.pdf
Cooper, I. (2023, March 30). Ian Cooper: Activists have burned down my child’s school. National Post. https://apple.news/AeVyqoTspTS6cgB5QzqGuWg
Crenshaw, K. (1991). Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color. Stanford Law Review, 43(6), 1241–1299. https://doi.org/10.2307/1229039
Daigle, M. (2019). The spectacle of reconciliation: On (the) unsettling responsibilities to Indigenous peoples in the academy. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 37(4), 703–721. https://doi.org/10.1177/0263775818824342
Davis, L., Denis, J. S., Hiller, C., & Lavell-Harvard, D. (2022). Learning and unlearning: Settler engagements in long-term Indigenous-settler alliances in Canada. Ethnicities, 22(5), 619–641.
Dea, S. (2018, November 21). Free speech and the battle for the university. Academic Matters. https://academicmatters.ca/free-speech-and-the-battle-for-the-university/
Delgado, R., & Stefancic, J. (2017). Critical race theory: An introduction (3rd ed.). New York University Press. https://muse.jhu.edu/book/59009/
DiAngelo, R. (2011). White fragility. International Journal of Critical Pedagogy, 3(3), 54–70.
Dickson, C., & Watson, B. (2021, May 27). Remains of 215 children found buried at former B.C. residential school, First Nation says. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tk-eml%C3%BAps-te-secw%C3%A9pemc-215-children-former-kamloops-indian-residential-school-1.6043778
Donald, D. (2009). Forts, curriculum, and Indigenous Métissage: Imagining decolonization of Aboriginal-Canadian relations in educational contexts. First Nations Perspectives: The Journal of the Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre, 2(1), 1–24.
Donald, D. (2021). We need a new story: Walking and the wâhkôhtowin imagination. Journal of the Canadian Association for Curriculum Studies, 18(2), Article 2. https://doi.org/10.25071/1916-4467.40492
Donald, D. (2022, September 19). A curriculum for educating differently: Unlearning colonialism and renewing kinship relations. EdCan Network. https://www.edcan.ca/articles/a-curriculum-for-educating-differently/
Douglas, D. D. (2022). Access denied: Safe/guarding the university as white property. In S. Thobani (Ed.), Coloniality and racial (in)justice in the university: Counting for nothing? (pp. 245–265). University of Toronto Press. http://books.scholarsportal.info/en/read?id=/ebooks/ebooks7/upress7/2021-12-09/1/9781487505332
Dummitt, C. (2019, July 4). Canadian universities have a viewpoint diversity problem. We should all be worried. National Post. https://nationalpost.com/opinion/canadian-universities-have-a-viewpoint-diversity-problem-we-should-all-be-worried
Employment Equity Act, SC § c. 44. (1995). https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/e-5.401/index.html
Fairclough, N. (2013). Critical discourse analysis and critical policy studies. Critical Policy Studies, 7(2), 177–197. https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2013.798239
Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences. (2021). Charter on equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization in the social sciences and humanities. https://fhss.swoogo.com/edid-charter
Freire, P. (2000). Pedagogy of the oppressed (M. Ramos, Trans.). Continuum. https://envs.ucsc.edu/internships/internship-readings/freire-pedagogy-of-the-oppressed.pdf (Original work published 1970)
Freire, P., & Macedo, D. (1995). A dialogue: Culture, language, and race. Harvard Educational Review, 65(3), 377–403. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.65.3.12g1923330p1xhj8
Gorski, P. C., & Pothini, S. G. (2018). Case studies on diversity and social justice education (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Government of Canada. (2023). Diversity and inclusion in the public service. https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/wellness-inclusion-diversity-public-service/diversity-inclusion-public-service2.html
Grant, J. (2021). No, I’m not crazy: A Black feminist perspective of gaslighting within doctoral socialization. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 34(10), 939–947. https://doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2021.1930258
Green, J. (2020). Enacting reconciliation. In G. Starblanket & D. Long (Eds.), Visions of the heart: Issues involving Indigenous peoples in Canada (5th ed., pp. 239–552). Oxford University Press.
Hamel, J. (1992). Introduction: New theoretical and methodological issues. Current Sociology, 40(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/001139292040001002
Henry, A. (2015). “We especially welcome applications from members of visible minority groups”: Reflections on race, gender and life at three universities. Race, Ethnicity and Education, 18(5), 589–610. https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2015.1023787
Henry, F., Dua, E., James, C. E., Kobayashi, A., Li, P., Ramos, H., & Smith, M. S. (2017). The equity myth: Racialization and Indigeneity at Canadian universities. University of British Columbia Press. http://books.scholarsportal.info/viewdoc.html?id=/ebooks/ebooks3/upress/2017-07-24/1/9780774834902
Henry, F., & Kobayashi, A. (2017). The everyday world of racialized and Indigenous faculty members in Canadian universities. In F. Henry, E. Dua, C. E. James, A. Kobayashi, P. Li, H. Ramos, & M. E. Smith (Eds.), The equity myth: Racialization and Indigeneity at Canadian universities. University of British Columbia Press. http://books.scholarsportal.info/viewdoc.html?id=/ebooks/ebooks3/upress/2017-07-24/1/9780774834902
Henry, F., & Tator, C. (Eds.). (2009). Racism in the Canadian university: Demanding social justice, inclusion, and equity. University of Toronto Press.
Henry, F., & Tator, C. (2012). Interviews with racialized faculty members in Canadian universities. Canadian Ethnic Studies, 44(1), 75–99. https://doi.org/10.1353/ces.2012.0003
Jewell, E., & Mosby, I. (Eds.). (2022). Calls to action accountability: A 2022 status update on reconciliation. Yellowhead Institute.
Jiwani, Y. (2006). Discourses of denial: Mediations of race, gender, and violence (pp. xxiii–xxiii). University of British Columbia Press.
Joyce, F. (2015, March 9). “You calling me a racist?” Why it’s so hard for whites to confront their own failings. AlterNet. https://www.alternet.org/2015/03/you-calling-me-racist-why-its-so-hard-whites-confront-their-own-failings/
Kaufmann, E. (2021). The crisis of academic freedom in Canada, and how to address it: Eric Kaufmann for inside policy. Macdonald-Laurier Institute. https://macdonaldlaurier.ca/crisis-academic-freedom-canada-address/
Ladner, K. L., & Tait, M. J. (Eds.). (2017). Surviving Canada: Indigenous peoples celebrate 150 years of betrayal. ARP Books.
Ladson-Billings, G. (2021). Three decades of culturally relevant, responsive, & sustaining pedagogy: What lies ahead? The Educational Forum, 85(4), 351–354. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131725.2021.1957632
Lawson, E. S. (2020). Anti-Black racism on the sidelines: The limits of “listening sessions” to address institutional racism at Canadian universities. Canadian Review of Sociology, 57(3), 491–494. https://doi.org/10.1111/cars.12296
Lévesque, C. (2022, June 21). Poilievre promises to protect freedom of speech on campus, appoint a “Free Speech Guardian.” National Post. https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/poilievre-promises-to-protect-freedom-of-speech-on-campus-appoint-a-free-speech-guardian
Li, G., Anderson, J., Hare, J., & McTavish, M. (Eds.). (2021). Superdiversity and teacher education: Supporting teachers in working with culturally, linguistically, and racially diverse students, families, and communities (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003038887
Lonas, L. (2023, April 4). Cornell leaders reject student resolution demanding course trigger warnings. The Hill. https://apple.news/AD79UVGYPRJ-OEtFY27SDOA
Lukianoff, G., & Haidt, J. (2018). The coddling of the American mind: How good intentions and bad ideas are setting up a generation for failure. Penguin Books.
MacKenzie, M., Sensoy, Ö., Johnson, G. F., Sinclair, N., & Weldon, L. (2023). How universities gaslight EDI&I initiatives: Mapping institutional resistance to structural change. International Journal of Education Policy & Leadership, 19(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.22230/ijepl.2023v19n1a1303
McLeod, M. (1998, January 1). “There’s no place to go but up”—bell hooks and Maya Angelou in conversation. Lion’s Roar. https://www.lionsroar.com/theres-no-place-to-go-but-up/
McWhorter, J. (2020, September 1). Academics are really, really worried about their freedom: Some fear for their career because they don’t believe progressive orthodoxies. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/09/academics-are-really-really-worried-about-their-freedom/615724/
McWhorter, J. (2021). Woke racism: How a new religion has betrayed Black America. Portfolio/Penguin.
Merriam, S. B., & Tisdell, E. J. (2015). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation (4th ed.). Jossey-Bass.
Mohamed, T., & Beagan, B. L. (2019). “Strange faces” in the academy: Experiences of racialized and Indigenous faculty in Canadian universities. Race, Ethnicity and Education, 22(3), 338–354. https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2018.1511532
Norris, P. (2020). Closed minds? Is a ‘cancel culture’ stifling academic freedom and intellectual debate in political science? (SSRN Scholarly Paper No. 3671026). https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3671026
Payne, Y. A., & Suddler, C. (2014). Cope, conform, or resist? Functions of a Black American identity at a predominantly White university. Equity & Excellence in Education, 47(3), 385–403. https://doi.org/10.1080/10665684.2014.933756
Reynolds, V. (2010). Fluid and imperfect ally position: Some gifts of queer theory. Context, 13–17. https://www.suu.edu/pridealliance/pdf/reynolds.pdf
Rideau, R. (2021). “We’re just not acknowledged”: An examination of the identity taxation of full-time non-tenure-track Women of Color faculty members. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 14(2), 161–173. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000139
Rosenblith, S., & Bindewald, B. (2012). Challenging students’ religiously informed truth claims: Epistemological and ethical considerations for discourse in public school classrooms. Philosophy of Education, 68. https://doi.org/10.47925/2012.394
Ross, A. (2022). Don’t cry, fight! Vs. Deference to the corporate state: Abrogation of Indigenous rights and title, civil rights, and social and environmental justice at the imperialist university. In S. Thobani (Ed.), Coloniality and racial (in)justice in the university: Counting for nothing? (pp. 47–135). University of Toronto Press. https://books.scholarsportal.info/en/read?id=/ebooks/ebooks7/upress7/2021-12-09/1/9781487505332
Ruíz, E. (2020). Cultural gaslighting. Hypatia, 35(4), 687–713. https://doi.org/10.1017/hyp.2020.33
Seidman, I. (2006). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and the social sciences (3rd ed.). Teachers College Press.
Simpson, L. (2014). Land as pedagogy: Nishnaabeg intelligence and rebellious transformation. Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education & Society, 3, 1–25.
Smith, M. (2010). Gender, whiteness and “other Others” in the academy. In S. Razack, S. Thobani, & M. Smith (Eds.), States of race: Critical race feminism for the 21st century (pp. 37–58). Between the Lines.
Smith, M. (2017, March 16). The state of the academy: Issues, policy and effects on people [Panel presentation]. Racial (In)justice in the Canadian Academy Conference, UBC Faculty Association, Vancouver, BC.
Spence, A. (2021). The responsive diversity worker: Emotional labour in academia. The Canadian Society for Study of Practical, 7. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/csspe/vol7/1/3
Spooner, M. (2022, September 14). Criticisms of academic freedom miss the mark and risk the integrity of scholarship. University Affairs. https://www.universityaffairs.ca/opinion/in-my-opinion/criticisms-of-academic-freedom-miss-the-mark-and-risk-the-integrity-of-scholarship/
Srinivasan, A. (2023). Cancelled. London Review of Books, 45(13). https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v45/n13/amia-srinivasan/cancelled
Tamtik, M., & Guenter, M. (2019). Policy analysis of equity, diversity and inclusion strategies in Canadian universities – How far have we come? Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 49(3), 41–56. https://doi.org/10.47678/cjhe.v49i3.188529
Thobani, S. (2022a). Colonizing critical race studies/scholars: Counting for nothing? In S. Thobani (Ed.), Coloniality and racial (in)justice in the university: Counting for nothing? (pp. 163–195). University of Toronto Press. https://books.scholarsportal.info/en/read?id=/ebooks/ebooks7/upress7/2021-12-09/1/9781487505332
Thobani, S. (2022b). Introduction: Present pasts: The anxieties of power. In S. Thobani (Ed.), Coloniality and racial (in)justice in the university: Counting for nothing? (pp. 3–46). University of Toronto Press. https://books.scholarsportal.info/en/read?id=/ebooks/ebooks7/upress7/2021-12-09/1/9781487505332
Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. (2015). Honouring the truth, reconciling for the future: Summary of the final report of the truth and reconciliation commission of Canada. https://deslibris.ca/ID/218849
Turk, J. L. (2020). Universities, the charter, Doug Ford, and campus free speech. Constitutional Forum, 29(2), 31–44. https://doi.org/10.21991/cf29398
Universities Canada. (2019). Equity, diversity and inclusion at Canadian universities: Report on the 2019 national survey. https://www.univcan.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Equity-diversity-and-inclusion-at-Canadian-universities-report-on-the-2019-national-survey-Nov-2019-1.pdf
University of Toronto. (2022). Scarborough charter on anti-Black racism and Black inclusion in Canadian higher education: Principles, actions and accountabilities. University of Toronto: Scarborough. https://www.utsc.utoronto.ca/principal/sites/utsc.utoronto.ca.principal/files/docs/Scarborough_Charter_EN_Nov2022.pdf
University of Windsor. (n.d.). How are different universities addressing Indigenization? https://www.uwindsor.ca/ctl/556/universities-addressing-indigenization
van Dijk, T. A. (1993). Principles of critical discourse analysis. Discourse & Society, 4(2), 249–283. https://doi.org/10.1177/0957926593004002006
White-Lewis, D. K. (2020). The facade of fit in faculty search processes. The Journal of Higher Education, 91(6), 833–857. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221546.2020.1775058
Wijesingha, R., & Ramos, H. (2017). Human capital or cultural taxation: What accounts for differences in tenure and promotion of racialized and female faculty? Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 47(3), 54–75. https://doi.org/10.47678/cjhe.v47i3.187902
Yin, R. K. (2017). Case study research and applications: Designs and methods (6th ed.). SAGE. https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/case-study-research-and-applications/book250150
Zeichner, K., & McDonald, M. (2009). Social justice teacher education. In W. Ayers, T. Quinn, & D. Stovall (Eds.), Handbook of social justice in education. Eribaum.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Canadian Society for the Study of Education
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The Canadian Journal of Education follows Creative Commons Licencing CC BY-NC-ND.
