Resisting anti-Black linguistic racism and building linguistic justice

Join us in-person or online for a hybrid seminar on Resisting anti-Black linguistic racism and building futures of linguistic justice in schools by Dr April Baker-Bell and Dr Davena Jackson.

The location of the seminar is room GM 222 in the Geoffrey Manton Building at Manchester Metropolitan University.

11.30 Arrivals

11.45 Lunch

12.10 Talk 1 by Dr April Baker-Bell (details below)

12.45 Talk 2 by Dr Davena Jackson (details below)

1.15 Discussion

1.30 End

Talk 1

Dr April Baker-Bell, University of Michigan

Freedom Dreaming Beyond Anti-Black Linguistic Racism: Linguistic Justice Freedom Schools as Liberatory Possibility

This talk explores the Linguistic Justice Freedom School as a response to anti-Black linguistic racism and the oppressive linguistic systems that continue to discipline, police, and attempt to annihilate Black language speakers. Building on the historical traditions of Black Freedom Schools in the United States and Black supplementary school traditions in the United Kingdom, I will share how the Linguistic Justice Freedom School functioned as an act of what Kimberlé Crenshaw calls “backtalk,” challenging oppressive linguistic structures while creating space for educators to imagine worlds beyond the here and now, beyond anti-Black linguistic racism, and toward more liberatory possibilities for language, learning, and Black life.

Dr. April Baker-Bell is an award-winning teacher-researcher-activist whose scholarship transcends disciplinary and geographic boundaries. She is an Associate Professor of Language, Culture, and Justice in Education in the Educational Studies Program and the Joint Program in English and Education at the Marsal Family School of Education, University of Michigan. Internationally recognized for her leadership in Black Language education, Dr. Baker-Bell examines the intersections of Black Language, literacy, anti-Black racism, and antiracist pedagogies. Her groundbreaking, multi-award-winning book, Linguistic Justice: Black Language, Literacy, Identity, and Pedagogy, introduced the concept of Anti-Black Linguistic Racism and provides an influential framework for dismantling linguistic inequities and advancing linguistic and racial justice. The book’s impact is evident both nationally and globally—inspiring educational and institutional change and serving as a touchstone for educators, scholars, and activists in dialogue about language and justice. Dr. Baker-Bell’s public scholarship and collaborative work extend far beyond traditional academic boundaries. She has delivered more than 150 keynote, invited, and featured talks at leading universities, professional organizations, and interdisciplinary venues across the United States and internationally, including in sectors such as healthcare, environmental protection, and the tech industry. Her recent research, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, includes collaborations to develop and study antiracist medical curriculum interventions with healthcare professionals. Through her research, public engagement, and cross-sector partnerships, Dr. Baker-Bell continues to shape broader discourse on language rights and equity—pushing the field to reimagine educational and societal practices in pursuit of linguistic and racial justice.

Talk 2

Dr Davena Jackson, Boston University

Designing for Justice: Cultivating a Black Ethos through Justic-Oriented Solidarity as Educational Transformation Toward Black Futures

A justice-focused approach to teaching and learning plays a crucial role in disrupting systemic barriers and reimagining more inclusive literacy spaces within the ongoing fight for equity, justice, and love and care for Black students’ humanity. Designing for justice calls on educators to interrogate and dismantle antiblackness in curriculum and pedagogy. By combining the justice-oriented solidarity (JOS) framework with social design experiments (SDE), this presentation underscores teachers’ commitments to understanding how antiblackness, white supremacy, and social realities shape pedagogy and practice, aiming to redesign curriculum and teaching strategies toward antiracist, humanizing, and transformative approaches. JOS emphasizes four main commitments: (1) a Black Space, (2) Mutuality, (3) Reflexive Praxis, and (4) Humanization. This presentation aims to emphasize the importance of centering Blackness and cultivating a Black ethos that affirms and values Black students’ humanity.

Dr. Davena Jackson is an assistant professor of urban education in the Teaching & Learning Department at Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development. Her work focuses on English education, language, and literacies, building on over 20 years of experience as an English Language Arts (ELA) teacher. Through research-practice partnerships, she centers Blackness while challenging and disrupting anti-Blackness and white supremacy in secondary English classrooms.

As an interdisciplinary scholar and critical, qualitative humanizing researcher, Dr. Jackson examines how teachers’ justice-oriented commitments shape curricular and pedagogical choices that can lead to the transformation of English language arts classrooms. Her research and collaborations aim to contribute to the fields of language and literacy studies, English education, writing studies, and urban and Black education. Extending her commitment to justice in education, she also incorporates antiracist, culturally responsive, and sustaining pedagogies, as well as humanizing frameworks, into her teaching. This prepares educators to support their students’ full humanity and reimagine English classrooms as transformative and liberatory spaces.

Dr. Jackson is the Co-Director of the Center for Educating Critically and a 2023 National Academy of Education (NAEd) Spencer Postdoctoral Fellow. She also serves on the English Language Arts Teacher Educators (ELATE) Executive Committee of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) from 2022 to 2026. Furthermore, Dr. Jackson is a faculty affiliate at the Center on the Ecology of Early Development (CEED) at Boston University’s Wheelock College and was a former Research Affiliate at the Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University.

Finally, her research has been published in the following journals: Urban Education, Reading Research Quarterly (RRQ), Research in the Teaching of English (RTE), Journal of Literacy Research (JLR), Teachers College Record (TCR), and the International Review of Qualitative Research (IRQR).

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