When we’re talking about society, when we’re talking about the world we live in — and I have students from all sorts of backgrounds — when we’re telling stories, it’s messy. And when we talk about race and identity, it’s always going to be messy. Race as a social construct continues to be at the messy root of who this country is. It’s in the institutions; it’s in the philosophy of thinking; it’s in the very fibers of this country. We’re always going to find it in our society and we’re going to find it in our students when they walk into the classroom. And it’s a mistake to not address it.
