Tales from the Ivory Tower: Women of Color’s Resistance to Whiteness in Academia

Abstract

Whiteness in the academy has so impacted the lives of women of color such that the stories, identities, and experiences of women of color are often silenced, minimized, and chastised. Notwithstanding the deliberate erasure and marginalization of these stories, this article pays homage to critical auto ethnography by boldly presenting the stories of women of color in the academy. Particularly, this article draws from the stories of three women of color in the academy: a Pinay/Filipina assistant professor, a Black female doctoral student, and a Mexican American female researcher. These stories reveal how whiteness in the academy continues to wreak havoc in the lives of those most marginalized while also presenting how women of color resist. In the end we present some recommendations that institutions of higher education can apply to truly honor diversity and inclusivity.