Critical Race Theory and Brown vs. Board: An Afro-Pessimistic Intervention in Communication Studies

Abstract

Critical Race Theory (CRT) has become ever more prevalent in contemporary discourse as we continue to experience the aftershocks caused by ineffective school integration policies. Communication scholars have taken up the project of CRT in rhetorical studies, suggesting that our research would be positively augmented by critical reflections on the relationship between the law and racism. Afro-pessimism, a theoretical framework produced out of Black studies, represents another such structural analyses that may expand our understanding of the fundamental role played by slavery in the contemporary world order. In this thesis, I compare and contrast CRT with afro- pessimism by discussing both theory’s approach toward analyzing the context of the Brown vs. Board Supreme Court decision and communication studies. This analysis will demonstrate the utility and necessity of constructing grammars beyond the constraints of political discourse.