Names Will Never Hurt Me?

Abstract

In this article, Manju Varma-Joshi, Cynthia Baker, and Connie Tanaka examine the impact of racialized name-calling on a group of twenty-six "visible minority" youth from New Brunswick, Canada. Through one-on-one interviews and focus groups, the authors compare views held by visible minority students and their parents to the views of White authority figures regarding the significance of racism and racialized namecalling at school. While White authority figures often view name-calling — even that of a racialized nature — as common adolescent behavior, the visible minority participants equate such name-calling with a serious form of harassment and violence. The authors contend that much of the disparity in these views is the result of White authority figures' perception of racialized name-calling as isolated incidents rather than part of a continual pattern of harassment encountered by visible minority students. As a result of this disparity, the authors identify three responses to racism that the youth participants typically enact: splintered universe, spiraling resistance, and disengagement. These responses are often destructive to visible minority students and negatively affect their school experiences. The authors recommend increased attention by school authorities to the everyday racist assaults that visible minority students have to endure.