Black (Gifted) Joy: A Critical Race Theory Perspective
This article presents a theoretical question: what is giftedness, but an expression of Black joy? This is presented with relevant real-world examples and #BlackVoices through youth poetry. The framework of critical race theory is used as a lens, to situate the world in which Black joy is found. The author argues that this manifestation, situated within the structural racism ever present in the system of education, has the unfortunate impact of igniting educators’ anti-blackness, resulting in the missingness (Gentry et al., 2019) of gifted Black students from gifted programs and services. The author delves into constructs of white supremacy, white rage, and antiblackness as the foundational concepts that contribute to this missingness, using research and more youth poetry to substantiate the claims. #BlackVoices are featured throughout, as emic perspectives, giving voice, heart, soul, and joy to the research, the words on the page.