Institutionalization of racism: some reflections from child care contexts

Abstract

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.14244/198271991088

The text aims to reflect how racism is institutionalized in social relations. Based on sociological references, it proposes a dialogue inspired by the readings of some texts on early childhood education and ethnic-racial relations in day care centers, with the intention of approaching the ways to understand how racism is perpetuated and structured from the base, that is, since the formation of little children. The text from the area of early childhood education, which serves as the main basis for reflection and analysis, is Oliveira and Abramowicz’s (2010) Infância, raça e “paparicação” (Childhood, race and “pampering”). The sociologically based reflections seek to understand how racist concepts that dwell in the unconscious and psychological level of individuals in Brazilian culture interfere in the social actors’ pragmatic social relations. It also aims to shed light on how these social relations are established and how they are socially and culturally diseminated to the newly introduced individuals (children and babies) into society. Finally, it seeks to reflect how these ‘templates’ of social structures act on the individual and, on the other hand, how these individuals react to them.

Keywords: Childhood, institutionalization of racism; Brazilian context.