"Let's do this!": Black women teachers' politics and pedagogy

Historically, African American teachers have been actively involved in political movements that sought to improve the material conditions of African Americans. More contemporary examinations of African American teachers' pedagogy and, in particular, African American women's pedagogy, have found that these teachers have a decidedly political mission to their teaching. Some researchers have described these teachers' pedagogy as culturally relevant. Notwithstanding, there is a growing body of research that seeks to highlight how Black women, in various contexts, have participated in political activities and how their participation is part of a Black feminist activist tradition. This article examines how contemporary African American women teachers continue the tradition of political involvement and situates their activities in a Black feminist activist tradition. The data are taken from a qualitative study of two African American women elementary school teachers. The findings reveal that among other things, the teachers' pedagogy was inherently political.