Race war in Arizona: Reflections on the ethnic studies ban and white hegemony

This essay discusses how a racist ideological undercurrent, supported by the Arizona Department of Education, pushed the state to ban ethnic studies. This undercurrent was fed by the desire to redefine racial categories to promote a postracial color-blind dominance. The ethnic studies ban reveals how the blending of racist ideology focused on white supremacy and common sense constructed around individualism maintains white hegemony over people of color. Contrary to popular belief, the ethnic studies ban was not necessarily implemented to prevent the teaching of culturally and historically relevant content but rather to block any discussion or analysis of race and racism in public education, revealing how superiority and inferiority are social constructs.