Addressing Racelighting on Community College Campuses

Racelighting Black, Indigenous and People of Color in education: a conceptual framework

“…Like gaslighting, racelighting is the doubt, disorientation and questioning that often ensues when BIPOC receive racial messages that have them second guessing their lived experiences with racism. Racelighting messages are systematically delivered, sometimes intentionally and can lead BIPOC to question their own thoughts, feelings and actions (Wood and Harris, 2021). As Wilson (2021) noted, racial microaggressions and racelighting – along with other challenges facing students of color – have lasting negative impacts on the mental well-being of students (i.e.…”

“…Wood and Harris (2022a, b) identified two types of racelighting: active racelighting and passive racelighting. Active racelighting involves intentional efforts to sow doubt and disorientation in the minds of BIPOC (Wood, 2021).…”

“…To contribute to understanding the byproducts and long-term consequences of chronic racial microaggressions, researchers Wood and Harris (2021) proposed the concept of “racelighting,” and defined it as “an act of psychological manipulation where BIPOC receive racial messages that lead them to second-guess their lived experiences with racism” (Wood and Harris, 2022a, para. 1).…”

“…1). Wood and Harris (2021) argued that racelighting is an outgrowth or consequence of BIPOC experiencing persistent racial microaggressions within social contexts (e.g. work, school, neighborhood, etc.…”

Guest editorial: You can't racelight CRT!

“…In this special issue of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, we explore a critical juncture in the domains of education, policy and social justice: the strategic misrepresentation and undermining of critical race theory (CRT) and the consequent defensive posture forced upon its proponents. This phenomenon, partly encapsulated by what Wood and Harris (2022) term "racelighting," mirrors the concept of gaslighting. Racelighting is described as "an act of psychological manipulation where Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) receive racial messages that lead them to second-guess their lived experiences with racism" (Wood and Harris, 2022, para.…”