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‘My skin is ha d’ - adul lea ne s’ esis ance o acializa ion and acism
© 2021 The Au ho (s). Published by In o ma UK Limi ed, ading as Taylo & F ancis G oup.
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Ennse -Kananen, Johanna
Ennse -Kananen, J. (2021). ‘My skin is ha d’ - adul lea ne s’ esis ance o acializa ion and
acism. No dic Jou nal o S udies in Educa ional Policy, 7(3), 179-189.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/20020317.2021.2008113
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‘My skin is ha d’ - adul lea ne s’ esis ance o
acializa ion and acism
Johanna Ennse -Kananen
To ci e his a icle: Johanna Ennse -Kananen (2021) ‘My skin is ha d’ - adul lea ne s’ esis ance
o acializa ion and acism, No dic Jou nal o S udies in Educa ional Policy, 7:3, 179-189, DOI:
10.1080/20020317.2021.2008113
To link o his a icle: h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/20020317.2021.2008113
© 2021 The Au ho (s). Published by In o ma
UK Limi ed, ading as Taylo & F ancis
G oup.
Published online: 21 Dec 2021.
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RESEARCH ARTICLE
‘My skin is ha d’ - adul lea ne s’ esis ance o acializa ion and acism
Johanna Ennse -Kananen
Depa men o Language and Communica ion S udies, Language and Communica ion S udies, Uni e si y o Jy askyla, Finland
ABSTRACT
This a icle analyzes expe iences o acializa ion in s o ies o adul lea ne s wi h e ugee
expe ience who a end a basic educa ion p og am a a Finnish communi y college.
Th oughou a wo-yea e hnog aphic s udy, se e al s uden s sha ed s o ies and hough s
on acializa ion and acism wi h he whi e esea che on si e ( he au ho ). This a icle ells and
heo izes hei s o ies o gain a deepe unde s anding o he wo kings o e e yday acializa-
ion and acism in a Finnish educa ional con ex . Theo e ically, he a icle d aws on a C i ical
Race Theo y (CRT) amewo k, which ecognizes he inhe ence o acializa ion and acism in
socie y and unde lines he impo ance and legi imacy o BIPOC's ”expe ien ial knowledge”
(Sol zano, 1997, p. 7). Speci ically, I use Yosso's (2005) amewo k o communi y cul u al
weal h o unde s and h ee in e ac ions ha add ess acializa ion and e e yday acism. As I
examine he da a exce p s, I am guided by he ques ions, How do s uden s expe ience acism
and acializa ion? and Which capi als/knowledges do hey display in hei dealing wi h acism
and acializa ion? Findings illus a e how acializa ion is unde s ood and esis ed in in e ac-
ion, o e new esea ch a enues o expanding Yosso's amewo k, and ha e implica ions o
se ing s uden s om mino i ized g oups, pa icula ly s uden s o colo .
ARTICLE HISTORY
Recei ed 25 Feb ua y 2021
Accep ed 15 No embe 2021
KEYWORDS
Adul basic educa ion;
acializa ion; e ugee
educa ion; communi y
cul u al weal h; esis ance;
capi als
In oduc ion
Wha a e he expe iences o acism and acializa ion
young adul s wi h e ugee backg ounds sha e a
school? Asking such ques ions, o seeking answe s
o hem, challenges a gene al e hos o colo -e asi e-
ness and excep ionalism, bo h o which pe sis in
educa ional discou ses in Finland (Alemanji, 2016).
My use o colo -e asi eness d aws on wo k by
Annamma e al. (2017), who ha e poin ed o he
ableis conno a ions o ‘colo -blindness’ and explain
ha colo -e asi eness mo e accu a ely depic s he
‘ acial ideology o denying he signi icance o ace’
(p. 154). Acco ding o Ras as (2012), excep ionalism
cons i u es he ‘idea ha some people o coun ies –
o some phenomena – a e en i led o excep ional
ea men ’ (p. 89) and ce ain ules do no apply o
hem. In Finland, his kind o ‘mo al supe io i y’ (p.
89) is pa icula ly salien in ega ds o he school
sys em, which has gained in e na ional acclaim as
globally unique and excellen , an image ha has
been os e ed no leas as a p o i able commodi y (,
in p epa a ion). Pa adoxically, such pe pe ua ion o
cons uc ed innocence and excellence, pa icula ly in
he con ex o sys emic acism ha has been shown
o be a wo k in Finland (e.g. FRA/EU Midis II,
2018) and i s schools (e.g. Hummels ed e al.,
2021), is in i sel a mechanism o Empi e in
Mo ha’s (2014) sense. In e e ence o Ha d and
Neg i (2000), she de ines Empi e as ‘con empo a y
… powe ela ionship, one ha is less will ully
in en ional [ han impe ialism] and mo e subjec o
economic a he han o e go e nmen al o ces’ (p.
31). I is he less in en ional o less o e ly in en-
ional cha ac e o Empi e ha allows o ideologies
o innocence. Challenging ideologies ha aim o
uphold Finland’s image as ‘innocen and pu e –
disconnec ed om p ac ices o colonialism, acism,
and exclusion’ (Kallio-Ta in & Ta in, 2018, p. 70),
his a icle unde s ands acializa ion based on
Hochman (2019), as he p ocesses by which people
a e ‘unde s ood o cons i u e’ (p. 1248, emphasis
emo ed) a acial g oup. Al hough such p ocesses
lack any biological basis, hei social, cul u al, and
poli ical implica ions a e as and pe sis en .
Racializa ion ‘can be applied o g oups, indi iduals,
social s uc u es, and o he phenomena’ such hai -
s yles and dance (Hochman, 2019, p. 1251). This
pape uses acializa ion o desc ibe p ocesses ha
occu a he le el o indi iduals and g oups and
include o he phenomena, such as he wea ing o
hijabs (see Go anda, 2011).
I ollow Alemanji (2016) in his de ini ion o ace as
a ‘socially cons uc ed concep bo n om he ac i -
i ies o o he ing based on skin colo , in pa icula , as
well as o he social ac o s like eligion, gende and
sexuali y’ (p. 7). As he poin s ou , acializa ion, he
p ocess o cons uc ing such ca ego ies and iden i y-
ing people wi h hem, is in e wined wi h p ocesses o
o he ing based on a a ie y o social ac o s. The
CONTACT Johanna Ennse -Kananen [email p o ec ed] Uni e si y o Jy askyla, PL 35, 40014 Finland
NORDIC JOURNAL OF STUDIES IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY
2021, VOL. 7, NO. 3, 179–189
h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/20020317.2021.2008113
© 2021 The Au ho (s). Published by In o ma UK Limi ed, ading as Taylo & F ancis G oup.
This is an Open Access a icle dis ibu ed unde he e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion-NonComme cial License (h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by-nc/4.0/),
which pe mi s un es ic ed non-comme cial use, dis ibu ion, and ep oduc ion in any medium, p o ided he o iginal wo k is p ope ly ci ed.
impo ance o add essing acializa ion and acism as
pa o Empi e has been unde lined by many schola s
in Finland and, mo e b oadly, he No dic con ex (e.
g. Alemanji, 2016; Hübine e, 2012; Keskinen, 2019;
Keskinen e al., 2021; Seikkula, 2020; Vuo ela, 2016).
This s udy builds on his body o wo k.
Da a o his pape come om a wo-yea e hno-
g aphic s udy in a Finnish communi y college ha
o e s a basic educa ion p og am which is popula ed
by e ugee-backg ound adul s om mos ly Wes Asian
and A ican coun ies. Th oughou he wo yea s, se -
e al s uden s sha ed s o ies and hough s on acializa-
ion and acism wi h he whi e esea che on si e ( he
au ho ). This pape ells and heo izes hei s o ies and
con e sa ions o gain a deepe unde s anding o he
wo kings o e e yday acializa ion and acism in a
Finnish educa ional con ex . The a icle is si ua ed
wi hin C i ical Race Theo y (CRT), which, as some o
i s main ene s, cen alizes ace and acism and unde -
lines he impo ance and legi imacy o BIPOC
1
‘s
‘expe ien ial knowledge’ (Soló zano, 1997, p. 7), pa i-
cula ly o he ‘li ed expe iences o S uden s o Colo ’ (p.
108), which ake cen e s age in his a icle. I analyse
hese expe iences h ough a heo e ical lens o commu-
ni y cul u al weal h (Yosso, 2005), which iden i ies
knowledges/capi als o mino i ized communi ies ha
a e no ypically ecognized a school.
Theo e ical backg ound and con ex ualiza ion
C i ical ace heo y – he cen ali y o
acializa ion and p ope y
D awing on c i ical legal s udies (CLS) and adical
eminism, CRT o igina ed in he US o he 1970s in
he con ex o legal s udies (e.g. Bell, 1995; C enshaw
e al., 1995; Delgado & S e ancic, 2013) and ex ended
o an in e disciplina y schola ly communi y. In he
1990s, educa ional schola s, (e.g. Ladson-Billings &
Ta e, 1995) used CRT o push o a deseg ega ion o
US Ame ican schools, an elimina ion o acis con-
en om cu iculum and educa ional heo y, and a
cen ing o he expe iences o BIPOC in educa ion,
among o he hings. As h ee ounda ional p inciples
o CRT, Ladson-Billings and Ta e (1995) p opose ha
(1) ace is cen al o inequi y in he US, (2) he US
socie y is o ganized a ound p ope y igh s, and (3)
he in e sec ion o ace and p ope y is a use ul lens
o unde s and inequi y in educa ion. (In a simila
ein, Delgado and S e ancic (2017) la e ou lined
hei 4 ene s o CRT.) As a con ibu ion o he
g owing body o li e a u e on ace and acializa ion
in Finland, I use hese h ee p inciples o show ha
CRT, al hough i o igina ed as a coun e -mo emen
o US libe al ci il igh s legal discou ses, is applicable
o he Finnish con ex . Adop ing and adap ing CRT
(and o he amewo ks) o Eu opean/Finnish schola -
ship is an impo an p ac ice o make ela ed
dynamics isible (Möschel, 2014). In he case o
Finnish educa ion, he applica ion o CRT and o he
powe -sensi i e heo ies can unco e inequi ies ha
emain o he wise obscu ed.
I a gue ha he main ene s o CRT ela e o he
Finnish con ex in (a leas ) he ollowing ways: (1)
Cen ali y o ace: While Finland has a long his o y o
unde s anding i sel as cul u ally homogeneous and
acially neu al o innocen (Keskinen e al., 2019;
Ras as, 2012), he e is ample esea ch ha shows
ha Finland is in ac a acially s a i ied socie y.
The my h o cul u al homogenei y (Keskinen e al.,
2019) as well as widesp ead colo -e asi eness (Ras as,
2012) a e symp oms o wha Ras as has e med
‘Finnish excep ionalism’. Ou o a la ge body o
esea ch challenging such excep ionalis ideologies, a
pa icula ly powe ul one is he EU-MIDIS II (FRA/
EU Midis II, 2018) s udy, which iden i ied Finland as
one o he EU coun ies wi h he highes a e (63% o
esponden s) o expe ienced acis ha assmen and
iolence mo i a ed by acism (14%). In addi ion,
esea ch on e hnic and acial p o iling has shown
ha acializa ion plays an impo an ole in how
BIPOC na iga e he public spaces o u ban Finland
Table 1. Ope a ionalizing communi y cul u al weal h: analy-
ical ques ions and examples.
Analy ical ques ion Example
Aspi a ional
capi al
How a e hopes and plans
alked abou ? How a e
pe spec i es o he
u u e opened up
implici ly o explici ly?
Pa icipan s men ion hei
plan o g adua e.
Linguis ic
capi al
Wha linguis ic (and o he
semio ic) p ac ices a e
used in he in e ac ion?
Wha language
ideologies a e add essed
(di ec ly o indi ec ly)?
Pa icipan s d aw on a
a ie y o linguis ic and
semio ic esou ces
when hey in e ac ,
including se e al
languages, egis e s,
and ges u es.
Familial
capi al
Wha amilial esou ces,
esponsibili ies, and
knowledges su ace in
he in e ac ion?
Pa icipan s who a e
siblings di ide up hei
homewo k
assignmen s.
Social capi al Wha social ne wo ks,
esou ces, and
knowledges su ace in
he in e ac ion?
Pa icipan s o ganize hei
way o school so hey
do no ha e o wai o
o ide he bus alone.
Na iga ional
capi al
How do he pa icipan s
na iga e social con ex s
and ins i u ions as pa
o hei in e ac ion?
Pa icipan s a e in o med
abou es da es and
plan hei a endance
s a egically.
Resis ance
capi al
How is esis ance
exp essed in in e ac ion
explici ly and implici ly?
Wha la ge socie al
discou ses a e e u ed/
challenged?
Pa icipan s e use o
espond o ques ions
ha a e based on
s e eo ypes.
180 J. ENNSER-KANANEN
(Keskinen e al., 2018), he job ma ke has p o en o
be biased agains people wi h names ha a e pe -
cei ed o be non-whi e (Ahmad, 2020), and sys emic
acism is deeply ing ained in o he Finnish socie y,
ex ending in o schools and eache educa ion con-
ex s (Alemanji, 2017; Alemanji & De in, 2016;
Alemanji & Ma i, 2018). In all, ample esea ch exis s
ha documen s he cen al ole acializa ion plays in
social injus ices ha exis in p esen -day Finland,
hus making CRT applicable o his con ex .
(2) P ope y igh s: As Ladson-Billings and Ta e
(1995) s a e, ‘ he abili y o de ine, possess, and own
p ope y has been a cen al ea u e o powe in
Ame ica’ and ‘social bene i s acc ue la gely o p op-
e y owne s’ (p. 53). They go on o explain how
p ope y igh s shape educa ional ad an ages, o
ins ance, h ough he a ailabili y o absence o
oppo uni ies o acc ue in ellec ual p ope y depend-
ing on socioeconomic s a us o an indi idual o com-
muni y. In Finland, simila ends can be obse ed.
Fo ins ance, al hough on pape all s uden s in public
schools should ha e he same access o educa ion,
esea ch has shown ha choices ha lead o ad an-
ages in college accep ance p ocesses a e made mos ly
by socioeconomically ad an aged amilies (Kosunen
e al., 2020). In o he wo ds, educa ional access is also
s a i ied in Finland (Kyckling e al., 2019) and he
comp ehensi e school sys em ha is o en p aised o
p omo ing educa ional equi y has se e e sho com-
ings ha ha e sys ema ically ailed s uden s om
mino i ized popula ions, including child en and
you h wi h mig a ion backg ound (No dbe g, 2017).
These a e no ecen de elopmen s bu a he mani-
es a ions o an ongoing his o ical p ocess o exclu-
sion ha has been an in insic pa o Finnish iden i y
o ma ion, including, o ins ance, he sys ema ic e a-
su e o Sámi, Romani, and Ka elian languages om/
h ough educa ion (e.g. Nyyssönen, 2019; Pulma,
2006; Sa himaa, 2017; Sii ikko, 2019). Al hough he
nea -absence o p i a e schools in Finland helps
cushion he e ec o social inequi ies seeping in o
he educa ion sys em, di e ences in wha schools
(can) o e (e.g. esou ces hey a e alloca ed by hei
municipali ies) and how hey (can) suppo s uden s
and eache s pe sis . Thus, he ollowing s a emen
also applies o Finland: ‘[I]n ellec ual p ope y mus
be unde gi ded by “ eal” p ope y, ha is, science
labs, compu e s and o he s a e-o - he-a echnolo-
gies, app op ia ely ce i ied and p epa ed eache s’
(Ladson-Billings & Ta e, 1995, p. 54).
(3) Following om he i s wo poin s, I a gue
wi h Ladson-Billings and Ta e ha he educa ional
inequi ies in Finland can be unde s ood h ough an
in e sec ion o acializa ion and p ope y, pa icula ly
in ellec ual p ope y. I ope a ionalize such p ope y
as legi ima e knowledges (Ennse -Kananen, 2019), in
his case in he o m o s o ies and exchanges o
young adul lea ne s wi h e ugee backg ounds in a
Finnish basic educa ion con ex . To do his, I d aw
on Yosso’s (2005) heo y o communi y cul u al
weal h, which is si ua ed wi hin CRT and unde -
s ands i sel as a c i ique o Eu ocen ic, e hnocen ic,
classis in e p e a ions o cul u al capi al (Bou dieu &
Passe on, 1977), which diagnose mino i ized commu-
ni ies wi h a de ici o cul u al and social capi al.
Ins ead, Yosso (2005) o e s 6 ypes o capi al as a
ool o unco e he ple ho a o knowledges ha exis
in mino i ized communi ies, such as communi ies o
colo and mig an communi ies: 1. Aspi a ional capi-
al, which e e s o he abili y o main ain esilien
hopes e en in he ace o ad e sa ies; 2. linguis ic
capi al, which acknowledges he as esou ces o
languages and linguis ic p ac ices ha exis in he
communi y (including, o ins ance, s yles, egis e s,
and me alinguis ic awa eness); 3. amilial capi al,
which poin s o he ex ended amily as an impo an
sou ce o knowledge, including building nu u ing
connec ions, assuming esponsibili ies, and eligious,
mo al, and p o essional lea ning ha spans mul iple
gene a ions; 4. social capi al, which ex ends beyond
he amily and e e s o he abili y o build a social
ne wo k ha o e s, o ins ance, emo ional and aca-
demic suppo ; 5. na iga ional capi al, which speaks
o he ‘skills o maneu e ing h ough social ins i u-
ions’ (p. 80) such as schools, which a e o en inhe -
en ly acis ; and 6. esis ance capi al, which ‘ e e s
hose knowledges and skills os e ed h ough opposi-
ional beha io ha challenges inequali y’ (p. 80).
This a icle expands on his amewo k by applying
i o an adul educa ion con ex in Finland and poin -
ing o new ypes o knowledges o u he
in es iga ion.
Racializa ion in Finnish schools
The e is a g owing body o li e a u e on acializa ion
and acism in Finnish schools ha esis s discou ses
o excep ionalism and pe cei ed educa ional excel-
lence and aims o challenge p oblema ic ideas,
including ha ‘ ace’ alk is o should be aboo
(Alemanji, 2016; A nesen e al., 2007; Mansikka &
Holm, 2011), and ha acism is a ma e o indi idual
ac s a he han sys emic (Alemanji & De in, 2016).
Fo ins ance, Lappalainen (2006) has s udied he cul-
u al p ac ices in p eschools o claiming and es ab-
lishing Finnishness, which was closely ela ed o
whi eness, gende , and lexibili y in adap ing o pe -
cei ed ‘Finnish’ discou ses and beha iou s. In addi-
ion, in hei s udy in a 6 h g ade o a Finnish
elemen a y school, Hummels ed e al. (2021)
obse ed ha acializa ion as non-whi e was an
obs acle o s uden s’ agency, belonging, and pe cei ed
Finnishness, bu was also esis ed and ejec ed by
some. Al hough acializa ion p ocesses played an
NORDIC JOURNAL OF STUDIES IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY 181

impo an ole in school and class oom in e ac ion,
he eache e amed and mi iga ed hese p ocesses,
o ins ance, by e e ing o s uden s’ ‘choice’ and his
conce n wi h o he ‘pedagogical asks’ (p. 12).
Impo an wo k on acializa ion and an i acism in
Finnish educa ion has been implemen ed and ana-
lysed by Alemanji. The i le o his disse a ion
(Alemanji, 2016) ‘Is he e such a hing?’ e lec s he
sca ci y o wo k a ound acializa ion and an i acism
in Finnish schools, bu also he impo ance o his
pionee ing e o s. Based on hei s udy o discou ses
ha su ound an an i acism wo kshop a a Finnish
school, Alemanji and Ma i (2018) wa n agains
wa e ed-down and celeb a o y app oaches o mul i-
cul u al educa ion, and ins ead p opose a powe - and
his o y-sensi i e app oach o an i acism wo k,
which, o example, wo ks h ough he connec ions
be ween p esen -day sys emic acism and Finland’s
colonial complici y. Pa o an i acism wo k in
Finnish educa ional con ex s is also a ecogni ion o
whi eness and he associa ed ha m i s discou ses and
p ac ices do in educa ional con ex . Fo ins ance, I
ha e analysed he discou ses o whi eness I ep o-
duced while eaching English o adul lea ne s
(Ennse -Kananen, 2020). In all, p io esea ch shows
ha ‘ he mul icul u al educa ion augh in Finnish
eache educa ion needs a s onge c i ical and social
jus ice-o ien ed app oach’ (Hummels ed e al., 2021,
p. 156).
An unde s anding o mul icul u al ( eache ) edu-
ca ion ha aims o an equi able dis ibu ion o
powe and esou ces among all membe s o socie y
has o cen e he expe iences o hose who ha e
his o ically been excluded and ma ginalized in edu-
ca ional spaces. This g oup includes membe s o
BIPOC communi ies, amilies wi h mig a ion expe i-
ence, and lea ne s whose o mal schooling and lea n-
ing has been in e up ed and he e o e does no align
wi h he iming o he public school sys em ha is
conside ed he no m in Finland. This piece o e-
g ounds he expe iences o indi iduals om exac ly
hese g oups: adul lea ne s a a communi y college
who came o Finland as e ugees and whose school-
ing was ei he no ecognized by Finnish au ho i ies
o inhibi ed by wa s, con lic s, o hei amilial si ua-
ion. As such, i aims o con ibu e o c i ical and
an i-opp essi e pe spec i es on Finnish educa ion.
Me hodology and con ex
The da a o his a icle s em om a la ge e hno-
g aphic p ojec ha in es iga ed he linguis ic legi i-
macy (Ennse -Kananen, 2018) o adul lea ne s wi h
mig a ion backg ounds a a communi y college in
Finland. Designed as a c i ical e hnog aphic s udy, i
sough o ‘enuncia e and cla i y he obscu i ies o
injus ices’ (Madison, 2011, p. 109) and o e
di ec ions owa ds inc eased equi y, speci ically lin-
guis ic equi y. The s uden s ypically s ayed a he
school o wo yea s o comple e hei basic educa ion
deg ees, which would enable hem o go o p o es-
sional o seconda y school. The wo coho s ( i s and
second yea ) I wo ked wi h consis ed o abou 25
s uden s each (numbe s luc ua ed), mos ly young
adul s om A ghanis an, Somalia, I an, and I aq
who had been in Finland o 1–4 yea s and we e
admi ed o he school based on w i en applica ions
and in e iews. I collabo a ed wi h ou eache s a
he school, h ee o whom we e language eache s
(Finnish and English). As a pa icipan obse e , I
engaged in school and class oom ac i i ies in a a i-
e y o ways, including as eache aid, ellow lea ne ,
lunch company, and cul u al b oke . When gi en
pe mission by my pa icipan s, I audio- eco ded
in e ac ions, and ook no es whene e i seemed
app op ia e o cap u e con ex ual in o ma ion includ-
ing desc ip ions o places, mo emen , body language,
and oice.
As men ioned abo e, he la ge s udy I conduc ed
examined linguis ic legi imacy, which I unde s and as
he alue and accep ance o a linguis ic p ac ice ha
is discu si ely nego ia ed. My p io wo k examined
how legi imacy o linguis ic p ac ices is claimed,
wi hheld, g an ed, ejec ed – in sho , discu si ely
nego ia ed. Fo his a icle, I apply he amewo k o
legi imacy o knowledge by b inging oge he Yosso’s
amewo k o communi y cul u al weal h, Ladson-
Billings and Ta e (1995) no ion o in ellec ual p op-
e y, and my concep o legi imacy. In o he wo ds, I
examine how he legi imacy o knowledge is discu -
si ely nego ia ed in he con ex o one communi y
college. I collec ed ieldno es o abou 190 obse ed
hou s and abou 90 hou s o audio eco dings. Fo
his pape , I selec ed he exce p s ha explici ly spoke
o he opic o acializa ion as old om he s uden s’
pe spec i e. I included only ins ances ha led o a
s o y o con e sa ion be ween s uden s, eache s,
and/o mysel . These c i e ia applied o h ee da a
exce p s, which I p esen in his a icle.
I applied Yosso’s amewo k o communi y cul-
u al weal h o deeply unde s and he h ee s uden
in e ac ions ha sha e and make sense o he s u-
den s’ expe ienced acializa ion and e e yday acism.
Du ing mul iple close eadings o each ansc ip
agains Yosso’s 6 ypes o communi y capi al, I
no iced how hese capi als ea u ed in he da a, o
we e implica ed in indi ec ways. To his end, I posed
analy ical ques ions ha I de i ed om Yosso’s a-
mewo k and applied o he con ex o my school
(deduc i e app oach). The examples in he able 1
below s em om si ua ions ha occu ed in my ield-
wo k bu se e a solely illus a i e pu pose he e. In
addi ion o iden i ying he capi als ha cons i u e
communi y cul u al weal h in my da a, I also asked
182 J. ENNSER-KANANEN
‘How is he alue o his ype o capi al nego ia ed?’ in
o de o iden i y ins ances o epis emic legi imacy. In
addi ion o his deduc i e app oach, I also no ed
ins ances in he exce p s ha did no i wi hin my
analy ical lens (induc i e app oach) .
In eading his a icle, i is impo an o keep my
posi ionali y as a whi e, ela i ely weal hy, edu-
ca ed, Eu opean woman in mind. All he exce p s
ha e o be unde s ood as sociocul u al spaces
which a e pe mea ed by powe dynamics ha , o
some deg ee, can be discu si ely nego ia ed (e.g.
Anyan, 2013), bu ye ne e escape he sys emici y
o opp ession ha su ounds hem. Al hough
esea che posi ionali ies always ma e (Ennse -
Kananen, 2020b) and ‘a e in ica ely and inex ic-
ably embedded in he p ocess and ou comes o
educa ion esea ch’ (Milne , 2007, p. 389), hey
play an especially impo an ole when he opic
is acism/ acializa ion, and he esea che is whi e.
The ac ha acial, ci izenship, linguis ic, educa-
ional, and socioeconomic p i ilege was une enly
sha ed among pa icipan s, and especially be ween
he esea ch pa icipan s and me, shaped he way in
which we in e ac ed (e.g. wha was said and wha
emained unsaid), ela ed o each o he (e.g. as
mo he s, mig an s, o as people in e y di e en
p o essional si ua ions), and made sense o ou
li ed expe ience (including ha o school). As I
examine he ollowing h ee da a exce p s, I am
guided by he ques ions, How do s uden s expe i-
ence acism and acializa ion? and Which capi als/
knowledges do hey display in hei dealing wi h
acism and acializa ion?
Findings and discussion
The i s inciden is an exchange ha ook place
du ing a Finnish class be ween wo second-yea s u-
den s who I call Tahiil and Fa imeh. Tahiil, a young
male adul om Somalia had been in Finland o
3 yea s a he ime o his exchange. Fa imeh, a
young emale adul , had a i ed om I an 2 yea s
p io o his con e sa ion.
My skin is ha d: A s o y o esis ing and su i ing
The eache passes ou a handou wi h in o ma ion
abou a p ac icum s uden s pa icipa e in wi h he
goal o expe iencing wo k li e. A he bo om o
he handou , he e is a pic u e o i e in e locking
igh a ms wi h di e en skin colo s ha o m a
pen agon. The black-and-whi e copies do no b ing
ou he colo s e y well, and he da kes skin one
looks almos black. The copying p ocess seems o
ha e a ec ed he quali y o he image, so ha he
da kes a m looks somewha blo chy and dis o ed.
Fa imeh, who si s in he i s ow, in on o Tahiil
and me, begins o laugh when she sees he pic u e.
She u ns a ound when he eache is in he o he
hal o he oom, poin s a he pic u e, and he
ollowing exchange begins. (R=Resea che , unde -
lined = ansla ed om Finnish)
F: This is bad, look, e y bad pic u e.
[laughs, co e s he mou h wi h he
hand] This is like you hand.
[poin s a Tahiil, poin s a he pic-
u e. Bo h laugh.] So bad, so ugly.
[laughs] […]
R [ o Fa imeh]: Hey bu his isn’ nice.
T [no laughing
anymo e, wi h
empha ic and
se ious oice]:
You know, I ha e da k skin. My
skin is ha d, ha d. The e is i e
skin g oup, i s , i s , e y black,
black, so, maybe like [looks a ound,
poin s a ano he s uden , looks a
eache , lowe s oice], hen me, me,
look [ akes some skin om his a m
be ween his inge s], e y ha d,
ha d, ough, you know [looks a
me]. No sun, wa e can make i
b oken, e y ough. Ve y ha d.
Then h ee is h ee so is like you
[poin s a Fa imeh].
F [wi h eyes
wide open]:
Ahh.
T: [Wi h com o ing oice, smiling] Is
okay, p e y good.
R: And me?
T [laughs]: You s is e y whi e, no ha d,
o ally uhm uhm so - so , e y
so . [All laugh quie ly] Bu [open
hand ges u e] okay [smiles].
(Reco ding and ieldno es, Feb ua y, 2017)
Seen h ough Yosso’s (2005) amewo k, Tahiil’s
and Fa imeh’s exchange, p obably he mos di ec
incidence o acializa ion ha I wi nessed du ing my
ime in he ield, is a ex book example o esis ance
capi al. In he middle o class, on he sidelines o he
main a ena o he class oom, Tahiil p oposes a acial
hie a chy ha is in con as o he socie ally domi-
nan one, whe e ligh ness and whi eness end o be
associa ed wi h powe and p i ilege. When Tahiil
u ns acial hie a chies on hei head, sugges ing
ha ‘ he Blacke he be e ’, he is doing his in an
ideological con ex whe e Black male bodies a e
o en imes conside ed a dis up ion (Milne e al.,
2013) o a h ea (Wilson e al., 2017), ace sys emic
disc imina ion a school ( o he US con ex , e.g.
Fashola, 2005; Nogue a, 2009) and ou side o school
(Keskinen e al., 2018). In his con ex , using his own
body as an example o pe sis ence and esilience has
implica ions beyond ha exchange. He is esis ing
no only Fa imeh’s acializing mocking bu also he
NORDIC JOURNAL OF STUDIES IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY 183
la ge discou ses and iolences ha he na iga es and
su i es.
In addi ion, Tahiil esponds o Fa imeh’s a he
hu ul and acialized commen o ‘ugly’ by acializ-
ing he , which, judging om he acial exp ession,
ook he by su p ise. He goes on o explici ly acialize
se e al s uden s in he class oom, based on pe cei ed
ca ego ies o skin one, and consoling me and
Fa imeh o ou weak ligh /whi e skin. In his, he is
no only esis ing adi ional acial hie a chies, bu
also colo -e asi eness. In a na ional con ex whe e
eache s end o be unde p epa ed and uncom o a-
ble o add ess acializa ion a school (Hummels ed e
al., 2021), Tahiil’s e y physical ac s o acializa ion
can be conside ed a adical aboo b eak – i no o
him pe sonally, de ini ely in e ms o he class oom,
he school, and he la ge educa ional and social
con ex . Because o his b eak, i is possible o him
o enjoy a momen o p ide in his Blackness (equa ed
wi h esilience and oughness), a momen whe e hie -
a chies a e sub e ed. Thus, guided by he discou se
o a Black man, he non-Black women a ound him
(Fa imeh and me) a e o e ed a glimpse in o an
al e na e eali y.
His esilience and abili y o open his al e na i e
eali y in he ace o being mocked and acialized
could also be seen as poin ing o his aspi a ional
capi al. Be ween he lines, he exchange u he o e s
e idence o social and na iga ional capi al, e en
hough less explici ly: Tahiil shows how o keep a
con e sa ion in he ma ginal spaces o he ongoing
lesson, which enables him o un old his heo y wi h-
ou being cu o by he eache o his pee s. His
occupa ion and e icien use o he ‘o side’ o class
is an impo an aspec o na iga ing an educa ional
and socie al con ex whe e membe s o acialized and
ma ginalized g oups a e o en ba ed om access o
cen e s age posi ions. Las bu no leas , Tahiil bal-
ances his commen s abou Fa imeh’s and my skin as
in e io wi h consola ion and smiles, hus ensu ing
he main enance o posi i e social ela ions and dis-
playing his social capi al.
In e ms o linguis ic capi al, Tahiil’s anslangua-
ging, his s a egic d awing on mul iple linguis ic
esou ces o ge his poin s ac oss (Ga cía & Wei,
2014), is no ewo hy. Re e ing o Ga cía and Wei’s
g oundb eaking wo k, Celic and Sel ze (2013)
explain ha a he han imagining mul ilingual
speake s as ha ing a se o dis inc languages, ‘[ ]
anslanguaging posi s ha bilinguals [and mul ilin-
guals] ha e one linguis ic epe oi e om which hey
selec ea u es s a egically o communica e e ec-
i ely’ (p. 1). Tahiil does no only d aw on English
and Finnish, he also swi ches be ween oices ha
index di e en oles, including a se ious one o
au ho i a i e lec u es, a com o ing one o building
appo , and a quie and sec e i e one o a s uden
alking du ing class. To na iga e such complex in o -
ma ion and oles and ma ch hem wi h he app o-
p ia e linguis ic means is e idence o high-le el
linguis ic capi al.
I ’s no acism, i ’s he ule: a s o y agains
ic imhood
The second s o y is a con e sa ion wi h a young male
s uden om a Cen al A ican coun y ha occu ed
one a e noon while we we e wo king on he school
newspape e e y g adua ing class publishes. My da a
( ieldno es and ansc ip o he eco ding) om ha
day s a e:
Ma in [a pseudonym] old me [du ing class] ha he
wan ed o w i e an a icle abou acism and asked me
o help him wi h he w i ing pa . He added ha he
al eady knew wha o say bu ha he s uggled wi h
w i ing (“En osa ki joi aa” - I can’ w i e). I sug-
ges ed ha I could be his sec e a y and w i e down
wha e e he would ell me. A e class, we mo ed
in o he hallway o he school be ween some book-
shel es and couches, and I se my able on he able
and go eady o s a yping. He eminded me,
“Ki joi a mi ä minä sanon [w i e wha I say]” be o e
he began o speak. (Fieldno es, Ap il 2017).
M: Well, li e is good, is [unin el.] peace [unin el.],
wellbeing, you can do [wo k?], bu some imes
you canno ge good se ice [laughs] se ice.
Because some imes I don’ ge good se ice,
maybe because I ha e a g een passpo , I am a
e ugee because I don’ ha e ci izenship. No he
igh ID. Bu soon i will come.
R: Is acism a p oblem?
M: Some imes i ’s he ule and some imes i ’s
acism. You know wha I no iced abou acism
some imes? I I go o a s o e, I wan o buy o
example, a phone, I wan o pay, someone says
ha ‘you can’ ’. Why? “Because in you passpo
i says ha you a e no g adua e and you can’ , i
is no an ID. I say okay. I wen o ano he s o e
and I can pay. Well wha is ha ? Tha is acism,
ha is no a ule. […] Bu some imes, o exam-
ple, one g andma ell om he bus and I ied o
help bu she said ‘God dammi !’ [li e ally ‘De il’,
Finnish swea wo d]. I didn’ know wha i
means I ha en’ hea d his wo d and she yelled
a me he bad wo d. I didn’ know ha I can’
ouch. I is he ule ha you can’ ouch, you
can’ do any hing, jus call an ambulance.
R: Ahhjaah.
(Reco ding and ieldno es, Ap il, 2017)
Ma in’s i s s o y shows how he in e wines esis-
ance wi h na iga ional capi al, speci ically ega ding
s a egies he has de eloped o nego ia e ways o
belonging and legi ima e knowing in he social
184 J. ENNSER-KANANEN
con ex o public spaces. His in e p e a ion
o he inciden allows him o posi ion he olde
woman as non- acis , he eby shielding himsel
om an iden i y as a ic im o acism. F aming he
woman’s agg ession as his own lack o knowledge o
he law enables him o ejec ic imhood and ins ead
main ain an agen i e posi ion as someone who has
no iced and illed his knowledge gap, which, in con-
as o po en ial mic o-agg essions, a e wi hin he
ealm o wha he can con ol. Fo he de ini ion o
na iga ional capi al, Yosso (2005) d aws on S an on-
Salaza and Spina (2000) de ini ion o esilience as ‘a
se o inne esou ces, social compe encies and cul-
u al s a egies ha pe mi indi iduals o no only
su i e, eco e , o e en h i e a e s ess ul e en s,
bu also o d aw om he expe ience o enhance
subsequen unc ioning’ (p. 229, as ci ed in Yosso,
2005, p. 80). Ma in displays such esilience h ough
his ejec ion o ic imhood and his ocus on his own
lea ning a he han he hos ili y he encoun e ed. In
his si ua ion, his na iga ional capi al ela es o he
sphe e o public li e a he han o a speci ic social
ins i u ion.
Ma in o e s qui e a di e en in e p e a ion o his
s o y o buying a cellphone. Gi en ha he was able o
buy a phone wi hou showing he ‘ igh kind’ o ID in
he second s o e, he concludes ha acism was wha
kep him om pu chasing one in he i s one. Also
his s o y is e idence o na iga ional capi al.
Iden i ying and naming ins ances o acism may
enable him o emo ionally de ach himsel om he
expe ience, make u u e pu chases in s o es ha he
us s, and hus ‘d aw om he expe ience o enhance
subsequen unc ioning’ (S an on-Salaza & Spina,
2000, p. 229). Ma in’s posi i e commen ‘Bu soon
i will come’, e e ing o his hope o ‘ he igh kind’
o ID, may poin o his aspi a ional capi al, and he
way he app oached me and in ol ed me in his s o y-
elling p ocess is e idence o his social capi al, which
allows him o use exis ing esou ces and ela ionships
o achie e his (e.g. communica i e and academic)
goals. This social capi al was ampli ied by his high
p o iciency in English (linguis ic capi al), which
allowed us o ha e luen con e sa ions in a sha ed
language. In addi ion, his abili y o e lec on his
expe iences, and analyse hem as e idence, om
which he d aws a conclusion, may poin o ano he
o m o capi al ha su aces in his s o y ( e lec i e/
analy ical capi al).
I is impo an o no e ha while he i s men-
ion o he wo d ‘ acism’ in his in e ac ion came
om me, he esea che , his ha ks back o Ma in’s
explici desi e o sha e expe iences o acism ea lie
ha day. While my ques ion likely shaped ou con-
e sa ion, he way Ma in app oached ou in e ac-
ion sugges s ha he sha ed his s o ies qui e
in en ionally.
We jus laugh and speak Da i: a s o y o
solida i y and legi imacy
The hi d exchange occu ed du ing a b eak in he
school day, when se e al s uden s an ou o hei
class oom and school building du ing hei b eak o –
li e ally – ai ou some us a ion. In he ieldno es o
his day, I w o e:
Jus e [ he eache , a pseudonym] had ba ely said he
wo d “ auko” [b eak] when se e al s uden s jumped
up, opened he class oom doo , and pushed each
o he in o he hallway. I ollowed hem as hey
we e unning h ough he en ance doo , laughing,
hugging, and moaning excessi ely. Ou side he g oup
came o a s op on a li le pa io, whe e I ended up
s anding wi h Fa imeh and Ma iam, wo second yea
s uden s om I an. I had had se e al lunches and
a e -lunch co ees wi h hem and we had bonded
o e i ness ad ice hey ga e me and music ideos
hey liked. As we we e ca ching ou b ea hs, we we e
joined on he pa io by Ma iam’s younge sis e
Zah a, a i s -yea s uden . (Fieldno es, Ap il 2017)
F: Aaahhh, so bo ing, bo ing. [ esea che ’s name],
he only alks, he only s ands and alks!
[laughing, dancing, hugging each o he ]
Z [joins he
g oup wi h he
backpack, looking
eady o lea e]:
I’m going home. [ o Ma iam]
A e you coming wi h?
R: You a e going home?
[con e sa ion in Da i]
R: A e you going home? Is school ou ?
Z: Yeah bu he lesson is he lesson is -
M: Bo ing, i is bo ing! […]
[con e sa ion in Da i]
Z: I don’ like he o he bus because
because [con inues in Da i]
M: uhm [d i ing mo ion]
F: d i e, o d i e?
R: D i e ?
Z: D i e ?
M: Yes, yes, d i e .
M [ ansla es
o Zah a]:
This d i e , his d i e , bad is bad
[laughs, holds hand o e nose and
mou h].
R: Ahh, i smells bad?
Z, M: Yes! [laugh, nod]
R: Is i he bus o he d i e ?
M: The d i e , he is a ! [laughs]
R: Ha e o say, say o him, hey, go ha e a
showe .
[laughing, speaking in Da i]
NORDIC JOURNAL OF STUDIES IN EDUCATIONAL POLICY 185