To be Black and Tired (Black burnout in higher education)

In 2008, Critical Race Theorist William Smith coined the term Racial Battle Fatigue to describe the experiences of African American men. However, the term has since gained momentum and is now used to describe the snowballing effects of microaggressions and other negative racially charged experiences of people of colour. Smith defines Racial Battle Fatigue as the “cumulative result of a natural race-related stress response to distressing mental and emotional conditions. These conditions emerged from constantly facing racially dismissive, demeaning, insensitive and/or hostile racial environments and individuals” (Smith et al. 2011).

In this workshop, we will explore the effects of Racial Battle Fatigue on Black students, faculty and staff in higher education, and consider how might work collectively to mitigate these experiences

The meeting link will be shared with registered participants via email.