Discourse, Power, And The Language Of Racism: The Establishment Of The Racial Contract In New Mexico, Jesse A. Romero

Language, Literacy, and Sociocultural Studies ETDs

Abstract

Words are not neutral. Language, and the meaning and legal implications attached to it, are politically and ideologically driven. The manipulation of discourse are hallmarks of white supremacy. In a historical context, language has been used to frame the colonial legal discourse establishing white supremacy and racially defining the white polity who established it. This unearned power to establish legal discourse and a common narrative for whites as the superior racial group and people of color as inferior racial groups is pervasive in society. The trajectory this placed on people racially, politically, socio-economically, and educationally can still be seen …