Hiring Instructors from Diverse Backgrounds Helps Dismantle Power Structures in Class

In the ceaseless struggle to achieve societal equality, the increasing number of university courses on the past and present oppression of marginalized groups is immensely helpful. When it comes to who should be teaching such courses, is it acceptable to have people in the highest position of privilege—straight, white men—standing at the head of these classrooms?

“I don’t think you can fully endeavor to reduce inequity by having white male settler profs talk about inequity,” says Tawahum Justin Bige, a Lutsel k’e Dene and Plains Cree activist and creative writing major at KPU. “I often feel like I am the one teaching the class about the oppression that impacts Indigenous people. I have the lived experience that most profs don’t, so they tend to be more hesitant. Lived experience is crucial, especially in creating a more conducive and motivating environment for students who share that identity.”

Although my own interaction with such course content is from a position of privilege, I can personally attest to the difference made by whether your instructor identifies with the oppressor or the oppressed.

In a class I took on Victorian poetry, instructor Kiran Toor made a point of focusing on feminist literary movements of the era. The semester offered a captivating look into how women challenged and overcame sexist power structures which had blatantly favoured males, not just in literature but in society. The passion with which Kiran showed us the power of poets such as Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Christina Rossetti was crucial to my understanding of the anti-patriarchal themes that permeated the literature of the era.

I had a different experience with an American Literature course taught by one of the qualified, but in many ways, wholly interchangeable, white male professors. While there was an attempt to focus on inclusive content such as Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin In The Sun, I mostly remember being on my phone instead of following along with readings of Gatsby, which took up more space than any piece of literature in our curriculum. Upon reflection and comparison with Kiran’s class, I recall American Literature being taught to us with the enthusiasm of someone whose academic position had not been challenged throughout his entire career.

In Kiran’s case, I couldn’t help but think that she taught Victorian Poetry feeling empowered by the feminist writings she lectured on, and how they historically paved the way for her to be able to receive an Oxford education and ultimately become an esteemed English professor. For me, her personal connection and identification with the course material made for an intellectually stimulating and socially enlightening semester.

Having professors who identify with the issues of oppression covered in the curriculum they teach is important for creating representation in positions of status and a more engaging learning environment.

Tawahum feels that “there should be more BIPOC [Black, Indigenous and People of Colour] in the institution—not just as professors, but making decisions as well. You’ll find these issues coming up less and less if we have them at the top, too.”

Perhaps, from day to day, the way your instructor identifies is less concerning than their score on ratemyprofessors.com. But ask yourself these questions: If the majority of classes on social issues and oppression are taught by straight white males in positions of privilege, isn’t the university perpetuating the harmful structures that these classes teach about? And if our university—named after the Kwantlen First Nation—does not make efforts towards more inclusive representation in positions of power, how progressive can it really claim to be?