Unselling the Classroom: Confronting History and Ourselves
The Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory
March 3, 2026
College educators have a duty to confront the lived realities of white supremacy and settler
colonialism as they present themselves in the classroom, the historical record, and the academy
at large. This response paper engages with the ideas and experiences presented by the fellow
panel authors, and it contemplates the necessary steps needed to counteract the persistence of
settler colonial and white supremacist ideologies in post-secondary education from the
perspective of a junior historian. By devoting ourselves to the accessibility of educational
materials, including diverse interpretations and accounts of the past in our courses, and not
shying away from the discomfort that confronting these systems will cause, educators in
college settings can work against white supremacy and settler colonialism.
Discussion in the ATmosphere