LU-MRRL Lecture Series: White Elephant: Race and Entrenched Whiteness in How We Think About Communication and Language

In this lecture, Dr. Mick B. Brewer, associate professor of communication studies and coordinator of undergraduate research, will explore how the field of communication, specifically, and institutions of higher education, more broadly, are informed by sociocultural constructions of race and racial hierarchies, including whiteness. Themes explored will include white language, colonialism, positivist logic, individualism, dominance over theories of dialogue and difference, and strategic erasure. Discussion will focus on historical context, implications, and future directions related to the subject matter. Q&A afterward. Warning: adult themes and language. Brewer is the author of Critical Interpersonal and Family Communication Pedagogy: Charting New Futurities.