‘What colour is your English?’ Linguistic racism’s impact on faculty of colour

Previously, I wrote about the harmful effects of linguistic racism on the mental well-being of international students, in a resource titled Linguistic racism can take a high toll on international students. Linguistic racism refers to a race/racism-based understanding of linguistic discrimination, making the combination of both racial and linguistic factors particularly important. Writing with fellow academic Vander Tavares, I’m hoping to continue the discussion on linguistic racism targeted at faculty of colour with non-Western linguistic, ethnic and racial backgrounds, working in Western higher education.

The effects of linguistic racism on faculty of colour

Donald L. Rubin and his colleagues conducted an experiment in the 1980s among undergraduate students at a university in Florida. The researchers audio-recorded a science lecture, delivered by a native speaker of American English with a standard American English accent. Two groups of undergraduate students listened to the lecture recording. In the first scenario, a picture of a Caucasian woman was shown during the lecture. In the second, a picture of an Asian woman was shown. These scenarios were intended to create an impression that a Caucasian woman was reading the lecture in the first scenario and an Asian woman in the other. 

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Afterwards, the students who had seen the picture of an Asian woman affirmed that they heard a “foreign” and “Asian” accent, despite this accent being completely absent in the auditory signal. The students further rated the perceived “foreign” accent of the Asian lecturer as causing low comprehension. Overall, the students rated the lecture quality much lower, assuming that an Asian speaker had delivered it. 

By viewing the subjects addressed in this experiment through a historical lens, we can see that little has changed over the past three decades in regard to linguistic racism targeted at faculty of colour. Many university lecturers of colour experience linguistic racism, especially from their students, according to most recent studies. White faculty had the highest student evaluations, while faculty of colour consistently received the lowest scores, research found. 

In our own interactions, a lecturer of an African background at an Australian university explained that she often feels “anxious” and “fearful” when receiving students’ evaluation feedback at the end of the semester. This is due to condescending comments, such as “I didn’t understand her lecture because she doesn’t speak English properly,” or alternatively, “Her English is good for someone not from Australia!” 

Another lecturer at an Australian institution, with an Asian background but whose first language is English, shared that she has experienced a loss of self-esteem because of her Asian appearance. She observed that when teaching alongside a white Anglo-Australian unit coordinator in the same classroom, she was often ignored by students. In contrast, they frequently approached her white colleague.

Linguistic racism includes a widespread belief that the English spoken by people of colour is of lower linguistic and social status than that spoken by white speakers. Regardless of having acquired English as a first or additional language, English speakers of colour are often considered “almost but not quite white” or “not quite” the same. 

However, linguistic racism does not sustain discrimination only toward faculty of colour’s language, but by extension also their intelligence, work ethic and professional skills. This may be questioned solely on their race or appearance, with race having more of an impact than actual English language skills. So, the main question of linguistic racism is: “What colour is your English?” 

But what can we do to combat linguistic racism? The solution is not simple, but it is necessary.

Hire diverse staff

The first step is to enhance faculty diversity to create linguistically and culturally inclusive environments. Having a higher number of faculty members from diverse backgrounds can significantly impact the campus culture, leading to reduced prejudice, improved learning outcomes, greater acceptance of diverse identities and backgrounds, and increased activism for social justice. 

Additionally, a more diverse faculty helps to attract a more diverse student body, as students of colour are more likely to thrive when they can connect with mentors who share their language, race, ethnicity and gender identity. In the Canadian context, for example, a student of an Asian background, who learned English as an additional language, was studying to make her dream of becoming a psychologist come true. However, after experiencing little linguistic diversity on the part of the faculty in her programme, she began seeing herself from a deficit perspective and decided to make other career plans. 

Re-examine existing processes

Universities should also take steps to eliminate linguistic racism in their hiring process. Diversify search committees, provide mentorship and professional development programmes to support diverse faculty members, and take effective measures to ensure they feel welcomed and supported. 

It is also essential that pedagogy be diversified. What values are communicated to students when the curriculum does not present content from and through the voices and perspectives of diverse communities? 

When combating the linguistic racism that originates in a monoglossic understanding of the English language, start with measures that embed multilingualism and multiculturalism into the fabric of higher education institutions, instead of simply as a goal for discrete institutional areas.

Sender Dovchin is a professor at Curtin University; Vander Tavares is associate professor at Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences.

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