Introduction
In April of this year I had the opportunity to hear a speech by Dr. James Banks, a pre-eminent professor of multicultural education. In response to Trump administration’s attack on a subject matter to which he has dedicated his career, Dr. Banks shared that he had reached out to “a stellar group of contributors to push back on the national and cogent attacks on diversity and multicultural education both of which have been intensified since the 2024 presidential election.” I had the privilege of hearing several of those scholars share their ideas on pushing back on the administrations executive orders Thes ideas have now been collected in a book entitled, Standing Strong in Undemocratic Times: Supporting Diversity and Enhancing Democracy in Education. In the weeks ahead I will be sharing the insights found in this book. While the focus of the authors is on education, particularly higher education, their analyses, and proposed responses go far beyond the classroom, to the halls of power and the streets where those concerned about the state of our democracy can and must let their voices be heard. I begin with the chapter by Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings entitled “Surviving a Second Nadir.”
A Racial Justice Nadir
Dr. Ladson- Billings is professor emerita in Urban Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She tells the story of a conversation she had with her students the day after the election of President Barack Obama in 2008. Her students were “excited” and “jubilant,” while Lawson-Billings herself was noticeably subdued. Her students ask her why. While the election of Obama was cause for celebration, she knew from history and personal experience that because of the election of the first African American president, “we were likely to experience a time that could be worse.” Eight years later her fears were confirmed with the emergence of the Tea Party and the election of Donald Trump.
From her reading of African American history she knew that the advances of freedom and human rights gained by African Americans during the Reconstruction era following the end of the Civil War were short lived. The period of 25-50 years following the end of Reconstruction saw a huge rise in anti-Black racism. Civil rights gains following the war were turned back. White backlash was characterized by anti-Black violence, lynchings , segregation, legalized racial discrimination, and the formation of white supremacist organizations like the Ku Klux Klan. She refers to this period as a “nadir” in life for African Americans in United States.
A nadir is a low point, in this case a low point in African American History. The post-Reconstruction era was a time of struggle, oppression, broken promises, and fractured hopes. It was a time when the basic human rights and civil liberties gained through decades of struggle were crushed by white supremacist practices and actions.
Are We Entering Second Nadir?
Even though Ladson-Billings celebrated Obama’s rise to power, she wondered if it would be followed by a second nadir, like the first one following Reconstruction. The re-election of Donald Trump in 2024 confirmed her fears. Trump’s election led to a number of executive orders banning Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts in schools , companies, and other organizations, and the removal of courses in African American history, Women’s history, LGBTQ history and other BIPOC history. BIPOC persons and women serving in positions of leadership in government and the military were fired or demoted. Out of fear of reprisals from the president for not abiding by his executive orders, many schools, companies, and organizations got rid of their diversity-related programs. School programs in Black history and Civil Rights were removed from school curriculums. Instructors who pushed back on these orders lost their jobs. School boards ordered libraries to get rid of books parents and governments considered too controversial.
Ladson-Billings’ concerns that a nadir for BIPOC citizens were confirmed last week when The Supreme Court (SCOTUS) handed down a ruling in essence that rendered the 1965 Voting Act as void. That act passed by Congress required formerly outlawed discriminatory voting practices in many southern states after the Civil War. By providing Federal oversight of certain states’ voting procedures, the Voting Rights Act enforced the 15th amendment of the Constitution, which gave African Americans the right to vote. It also prevented those same states from creating obstacles to voting such as literacy tests, poll taxes and other bureaucratic barriers. SCOTUS with a 6-3 vote eradicated the Voting Rights Act . Justice Samuel Alito wrote the majority opinion saying that racial discrimination in voting is no longer an issue of concern,, and therefore the Voting Rights Act is not necessary any more.
The Lessons of the Past
Ladson-Billings reminds us that the way African Americans and other demographic minorities climbed out of the nadir by fighting back for their rights and privileges as American citizens. The concerted efforts of groups like the NAACP, the Civil Rights movement, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Black Power Movement, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X and many more helped African Americans push back on the forces of white supremacy. Today groups like Black Lives Matter, the No Kings marches, and the Southern Poverty Law Center are doing the continuing work of advocated for equal rights and access for all people regardless of race or economic status.
Ladson-Billings calls to mind the work of W.E.B. Dubois, an African American scholar and co-founder of the NAACP who stressed that “the only way for African American citizens to gain full citizenship was to participate in the life of the nation.” In addition he stressed that people should join together and provide the means for social, cultural, political and that racial disparities economic advancement.” Organizations like NAACP and many others who participate in the Civil rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s were able to bring about many of the advances DuBois called for. However, the executive orders of the Trump administration and decisions by SCOTUS are pushing back on the progress that has been made.
A New Call to Action
Ladson-Billings concludes with these words: “The United States has been moving in the direction of conservative (indeed reactionary) politics and policy for several decades. This trend will not be reversed by another election cycle. The battles being waged against the principles of justice and equity are long standing and entrenched. We must preserve and strengthen the intellectual, artistic , economic, social, and cultural traditions we have built … if we hope to survive this second nadir.” We must go back to the lessons of the Civil Rights Movement and the efforts of groups like the NAACP, the Rainbow Coalition, and the Urban League. We must not allow the denial of rampant racism in our government agencies and leaders to carry the day. Just as the leaders during the last historical nadir led the way and pulled us out of injustice, so too we must organize, march, act and speak out against the injustice of these recent racist policies and work toward “Liberty and justice for all.”
Professor Ladson-Billings’ call to resistance is my call too. We who are progressive whites cannot stand by, we must join hands and hearts with our sisters and brothers of color, until diversity, equity and inclusion are achieved, celebrated, and enforced again
Voting Rights Acthttps://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/voting-rights-act
Finishing off the Voting Rights act – https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/finishing-voting-rights-act-supreme-court