Shut Up and Dribble

Covert racism and intersectional identities: Sexual Orientation, disabilities,  funding, and educational outcomes 

Approximately 40 percent of LGBTQ+ individuals within the United States are members of various racial groups.  This includes 21 percent who are Latino/a, 12 percent who are Black, and 58 percent who identify as White.  A more significant percentage of LGBTQ students who were either White or Latino/a were less likely to complete High School (58 percent vs. 63 percent and 34 percent vs. 35 percent, respectively, for Latino/a and White).  Alternatively, Black LGBTQ high school completion rates exceeded those of cisgender Blacks (49 percent compared to 43 percent).     When we consider higher levels of educational attainment, the only group that stands out are Latino/a students, where cis-gendered identifying students are slightly more likely to attend and complete college.  (The highest differences exist among those with some colleges, where 3 percent more cis-gendered Latino/an identifying students participated in some college.  For the other categories, those completing the bachelor’s and with some post-graduate training, cis-gendered individuals were 2 percent higher than their LGBTQ peers.  (Williams Institute 2019)

Latino/a education attainment by Sexual Orientation

 

These statistics may obscure other important differences experienced by students.  For example, higher levels of sexual orientation are linked to peer victimization among racial and ethnic group members.  Sexual minority youth experience higher rates of school-based victimization based on race and sexual orientation.  (Diaz and Kosciw 2009)  As students enter middle and high school, sexual minority youth witness higher victimizations than their cis-gendered peers.  And sexual minority males are most at risk.  (Toomey and Russell 2016)

Finally, Black and Hispanic children are less likely than their White peers to be diagnosed with autism and to have their autism diagnosed significantly later.  Long-term educational outcomes are evident as undiagnosed individuals lack intervention at earlier ages.  Even worse, as demonstrated in one state, the amount of money spent on White children with autism was nearly 20% higher than that allocated for Black and Hispanic children.  (Leigh, Grosse, et al.  2016)

One of the most obvious impacts of these various inequities is that the cost of educating our diverse students is significantly higher than that of our White students.  Yet, racially segregated schools still produce racial disparities in per-pupil expenditures that disadvantage both Black and Latin/a student populations.  These disparities are associated with various resource constraints (such as access to computers, broadband, etc.), instructional support, and other related services.  (Sosina and Weathers, 2019).  The obvious link between these disparities and educational outcomes is well documented.  (Conlin & Thompson, 2017; Goncalves, 2015; Hong & Zimmer, 2016)

Educational outcomes impact every other institution within our nation.  It is both a cause and effect of racial inequities.  As we proceed, we should remember that these racial disparities are intertwined and exist systemically across multiple institutions.  Although we shall return to this point in the conclusion, let us consider the economy and the hidden mechanisms of covert racism.