Current research on ethnic-racial identity (ERI) development among Black youth derives primarily from studies that focus on the impact of parental racial socialization from a racial/monoidentity perspective without accounting for the roles of youth’s other worlds (i.e., schools, classrooms, and peers) and the intersection of their social identities in their identity development experiences. In using Phelan, Davidson, and Cao’s Multiple Worlds model as a framework as well as Black girls’ own words, we explore the beliefs and attitudes Black girls hold about race and their own racial categorization, as well as the processes that contribute to their learning about race (and racism) during early adolescence. We find that the Black girls in the present study are making meaning of their ERI, in part, in response to stereotypical and biased messages about their identities within their multiple worlds (i.e., schools, classrooms, families, and peers). The findings support the need for an expanded view of the messages and experiences that influence the ERI development process by illustrating that schools, classrooms, peers, and families are important socializing environments that influence the ERI development process for Black girls.

As the research on mindfulness expands to include school-based interventions, middle school educators across the country have implemented mindfulness in the classroom. However, similar to other social-emotional learning approaches, when implemented in the absence of cultural context and trauma-informed care, mindfulness can be weaponized. In this paper we describe how educators can facilitate mindfulness practice in the classroom in affirming, culturally responsive and trauma-informed ways. In doing so, we propose a new vision for how mindfulness can further equity work in schools.

A growing number of scholars have considered how young Black women develop their identities within and against White supremacist ideologies of Black womanhood. The current study offers an analysis of how the ongoing socialization of respectability politics in some Black family contexts can contribute to the vilification of the ‘the wrong type’ of Black girls and women. Using Black feminism as a theoretical and methodological lens, we explored how 33 Black college women (18-24 years) described and interpreted familial socialization messages on ‘poor examples of Black womanhood.’ Four themes, consistent with prior literature on controlling images, emerged: the Gold Digger/Jezebel, the Welfare Queen/Teenaged Mom, the Angry, Black woman, and the Hoodrat/Ratchet Chick. Participants described how these stereotypes of Black women were framed as cautionary tales to avoid during their journey into adulthood. The findings also illuminated how the young women internalized, negotiated, or rejected certain socialization messages, as they worked towards their own self-definitions of Black womanhood. Authors discuss how Black families can resist socialization practices that reinforce classist and misogynistic notions of Black womanhood.

Traditional definitions and assessments of creativity often neglect to identify the complexity surrounding Black students’ brilliance, leading to lack of access and funding. Further, even when recognized, Black students are often funneled into programs that do not facilitate positive development of their racial-ethnic identity. Through our systematic review of 155 publications, we developed the BlackCreate Framework to illustrate how effective Black creative educational experiences (BCEEs) create fugitive spaces for creative expression and education. Within these spaces, both societal oppression and community assets are explicitly discussed as a part of the creative process, providing students methods for adaptive coping and for addressing systemic inequities. Given these findings, we advocate for consistent funding and support for fugitive spaces to promote Black students’ creativity.

The current study explores Black undergraduate women’s friendships using in-depth interview data from 47 women (18–24 years) attending predominantly white institutions (PWIs) in the United States. Drawing on consensual qualitative research methods, we considered the nature and importance of Black female friendships among Black undergraduate women. We identified the following themes: (a) friendship as a tool to mitigate bias and discrimination; (b) affinity groups as a gateway to friendship; and (c) friendship as a way to navigate intersectional identity development. Two subthemes within the final theme highlighted how Black female friends (1) affirmed their self-image; and (2) honored their unique, intersectional experiences. Our findings demonstrate how Black female friendships are “homeplaces” for Black undergraduate women, particularly in regards to identity development during emerging adulthood. We discuss how friendships with other Black women offer unique forms of support during Black undergraduate women’s journeys in PWI environments that may challenge their wellbeing.