Civic and Community Engagement Commons^™

Teaching About Organized Racism, Kathleen Blee, Kelsy Burke

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The challenges of teaching about organized racism are different than those found in teaching about other aspects of American race relations. On the one hand, it can be quite easy to engage students in the topic of organized racism, at least on a surface level, as the vile propaganda and violent actions of racist groups and movements are sensational and provocative. Students across racial lines, like the general public, for the most part have strong negative opinions about the Ku Klux Klan, neo-Nazis, and racist skinheads and are eager to share these (Nelson et al. 1997; Schuman et al. 1997). …