Still outside the classroom: black women in higher education

Abstract

Affirmative policies such as Law 12,711/2012 - known as quota law - and the black women’s presence in the labor market may suggest that race and gender discrimination are minimized. However, social and educational inequalities continue to show significant effects on black women. In this way, the present exploratory and qualitative approach were developed from the case study perspective addressing a black university teacher's professional career. The interviewee reveals that investing in education was a strategy used to overcome the barriers experienced, and university teaching became a professional objective after entering the graduate program. The teacher mentioned the racial discrimination episodes in the university environment and the constant need to demonstrate her competence in the professional spaces she occupies. In the academic context, black teachers’ presence is still seen with strangeness by society but valued by colleagues and afro-descendant students, establishing itself as a reference for other black professionals and students. She evaluates that her work at the university can enhance students’ reflection about the black population's presence and empowerment in different social contexts.