Race-Conscious Pedagogy Research Internship Program
Summer 2020
Isaac Leshok
Summer 2020 Internship Cohort
Sameeha Hossain
Isaac Leshok
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PERFORMATIVE GESTURES:
A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF PUBLIC STATEMENTS ABOUT INHERENT RACISM IN POLICING AND OTHER AMERICAN INSTITUTIONS, AND WHETHER THOSE STATEMENTS BENEFIT BLACK AMERICANS
August 17, 2020
Citation: Mealy, Todd M. (2020). Performative Gestures: A Content Analysis of Public Statements about Inherent Racism in Policing and Other American institutions, and Whether Those Statements Benefit Black Americans. Lancaster, Pennsylvania. RCP Publishing, Equity Institute for Race Conscious Pedagogy, LLC.
Naisha Lamour
Gabriella Abreau
Sameeha Hossain, 19
Franklin & Marshall College
Sophomore, Public Health Biology, Pre-Med
Isaac Leshok, 17
University of Virginia
Freshman, Mechanical Engineering
Jane Tumanga, 19
George Washington University
Junior, International Affairs, Global Public Health
Jordan Schucker
Gabriella Abreau, 19
The King's College NYC
Junior, English Major
Jordan Schucker, 18
Penn Manor High School
Senior
Olivia Nicastro, 17
Penn Manor High School
Senior
Jane Tumanga
Makda Araya
George Washington University
Junior, Public Health Major with a Business Administration Minor
Jolie Haertter, 18
University of Pittsburgh
Freshman, Psychology Major with Minors in Neurology and Spanish
Anmol Goraya, 20
George Washington University
Majoring in International Affairs with a Minor in Law & Society
Max Bushong,
Penn Manor High School
Junior
Internship Abstract
It is common that political figures and other social archetypes as well as school districts and institutions of higher education issue public statements expressing sympathy for an act that physically and psychologically devalues Black lives. Public remarks routinely express either compassion or empathy for individuals and communities that have been wronged. This was certainly the case after the lives of George Floyd, an African American male, and Breonna Taylor, an African American female, were taken by law enforcement officers in May 2020. Institutions, in particular, both in the past and present, too often dismiss its history of oppressing Black and non-Black People of Color while attempting to address an injustice in question. Moreover, institutions commonly miss the opportunity to explain a new path forward for progress. This internship, spanning June 8 through July 31, 2020, examines whether trite public statements by educational institutions, athletic organizations and social and civic leaders predict failure to implement systemic change while also doing more to offend Persons of Color.
Internship Objectives
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To provide an opportunity to engage students, educators, and persons with an interest in social justice scholarship in data collection related to the Black Lives Matter protests of the killing of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor in the spring of 2020.
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To compile a database that rates public statements about the May/June 2020 Black Lives Matter protests.
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To help researchers turn quantifiable data into written analysis that can be used in race-conscious scholarship.