Chapter 14: School Counseling From a Stance of Black Male Liberation

Freedom and belonging are some of the most essential needs for any human, and yet Black male students have these needs unmet in education through practices such as the lack of faculty of color, the presence of school resource officers (SROs), the devaluing of relevant sociopolitical curriculum (e.g., African American history, Black History month only being a month long), and the everyday racism experienced by peers in the form of microaggressions and stereotypes. To support Black males, school counselors need to reflect on themselves and their own worldview, build knowledge, challenge assumptions about Black males, and encourage freedom dreaming amongst Black males. This chapter is aimed at preparing preservice school counselors to assess their cultural identities by staying woke and then to engage in liberatory practices that illuminate Black educology and fostering community for Black males.