How to Talk about Education and Race

To achieve justice for people who are Black, Hispanic, Latino, and Native American through increased learning after high school, we must help people understand why that’s important, what systemic barriers exist, and how they can make a difference.

We can’t enter the conversation at an advanced stage of the journey—we must meet people where they are. This means we shouldn’t confuse them with terms such as “equity,” which means different things to different people. Or alienate potential allies by putting them on the defensive.

At Lumina, we recognized that we needed to equip ourselves—and our partners—to have these conversations. And now we’re sharing what we’ve learned in the form of research and tools you can take and apply to your own efforts.

We believe that everyone has a right to real opportunity. No matter where you come from, what you look like, or how much money your family has, everyone should have what they need to learn, grow, and thrive. But opportunity is not yet equal in America: It’s still decided by who you are and where you come from.

Policies, practices, and beliefs—rooted in history and still affecting people today—keep many people of color from receiving the education and building skills they need to become informed citizens and succeed in a global economy. These systemic barriers unfairly hold back people who simply want a better education and a better life.

We can make opportunity for them real by taking real action together to remove obstacles these students encounter and make education work better for everyone. When we ensure real outcomes for every individual, we can right wrongs and realize just and fair outcomes for all.