Critical Race Theory and Social Justice Perspectives on Whiteness, Difference(s) and (Anti)racism: A Fourth Wave of Race Research in Leisure Studies

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At the close of another decade on race and ethnicity research we are pleased to introduce this special issue on critical race theory and social justice perspectives on whiteness, difference(s) and (anti)racism in leisure studies. When we sent out the call for papers for this special issue of the Journal of Leisure Research (JLR), it seemed that leisure studies was entering more fully into a fourth wave of race research. At the 2008 George Butler Lecture, Mary McDonald's keynote address critiqued whiteness as it operates in the study and practice of leisure, noting the contribution of this critical perspective for understanding racism in leisure. This critique was subsequently published at the start of this year (JLR volume 41, issue 1). McDonald (2009) explained that whiteness constitutes "institutional discourses and exclusionary practices Seeking social, cultural, economic and psychic advantage for those bodies racially marked as white" (p. 9). Responses to McDonald's lecture were provided by Nina Roberts, Kim Shinew and Corey Johnson. To continue this dialogue we invited manuscripts that would address issues of social justice and antiracism, and shed light on emerging perspectives on whiteness. We invited responses to McDonald's (2009) paper that would raise questions and interrogate the production of identities and interactions within leisure that further ideologies of whiteness and de-center or marginalize people of color. We also sought insights into the use of emerging theoretical frameworks--whiteness, critical race theory--that in combination with shifting research paradigms might better address issues of race and social justice. Our hope was that the papers would take up issues of difference(s) including questions concerning how leisure affords a space for resistance and the mobilization of power in the lives of people of color, and how issues of racism intersect with other markers of identity--sexuality, gender, class and disability-to influence leisure experiences. Working within a social justice framework and with an eye on social change, we also hoped that the papers would also address issues of public policy, and/or managerial policies and practices that shape leisure spaces. We also challenged leisure scholars to consider the implications of race and racism for leisure spaces (i.e., spaces as racialized and/or segregated), leisure service provision and resources (who is privileged, how that influences the distribution of programs and types of services), policies, and research (how it reifies racial essentialism).

In total, we received 11 manuscripts in response to this call for papers. We were buoyed by the wealth of scholarship around race that is being conducted in leisure studies. It also takes a community to see a special issue move into print. We would like to thank everyone who assisted us with the peer review process including: Lisbeth Berbary, Drew Cavin, Fern Delamere, Rudy Dunlap, Beth Erickson, Brett Lashua, CoreyJohnson, Steve Lewis, Susan Hutchison, Harvey Lemelin, Heather Mair, Mary McDonald, Rasul Mowatt, Trent Newmeyer, Don Reid, Diane Samdahl, Erin Sharpe, Greg Shaw, Sue Shaw, Susan Tirone, Dawn Trussel, and Felice Yuen. Some of the reviewers are also authors, but we felt it was important to identify a mix of scholars for this special issue. The reviewers all possessed a particular area of expertise in relation to the manuscripts submitted, with some having a longer history in leisure studies and others contributing to the emergence of new voices. We would also like to thank Kim Shinew and the editorial board of JLR for their support of this special issue.

As we began to review previous research, we looked to Floyd (2007), who had reviewed the history of race in leisure studies and identified three distinct waves of research emerging in the 1970s, 1980s and late 1990s respectively. Floyd argued that we are anticipating a "fourth wave" of scholarship on race. In this special issue we contend that we are moving more fully into this fourth wave of race research in leisure studies. Reflecting this fourth wave, the contents of this special issue challenge some of the ways race has been conceptualized in leisure studies and brings issues previously held implicit or invisible into the light for additional conversation. Drawing on the work of Kesler (2000) on healthy communities, we posit that if philosophy and practices within leisure studies are to fully reflect the diversity of our community then it is imperative that we work through our discomfort, and perhaps even encounter conflict as we approach our own learning edges. As Kesler cautioned, if we dialogue only on topics for which we have consensus, we "may leave a lot of unhealthy kindling in a community still ready to ignite and explode" (p. 275). Democracy, Kesler argues, occurs where we are able to dialogue through conflict. This special issue may trigger discomfort, challenge belief systems and/or spark disagreement as one reads through our colleagues' analyses of race and racism; this, we believe, contributes to healthy conversations and the opportunity for difference to be explicit within leisure studies.

Three Waves on Race in Leisure Studies, Looking Back on 40 Years ...

According to Floyd (2007), the first wave of race research in leisure studies occurred during the 1970s and focused on concerns about racial inequality and policy issues connected to the civil rights movement in the United States. The 1980s and 1990s were identified as the second wave - this era included studies with greater "theoretical and methodological innovation" (Floyd, p. 247) and focused on a greater variety of populations including Latina/o and Asian. While these studies described similarities and differences between groups; this research, did not, however, offer theoretically satisfying explanations of why these differences exist. Further, Floyd argued that "research failed to capture specific aspects of race or ethnicity associated with racial/ethnic differences ... previous approaches (e.g., marginality-ethnicity) were not able to deal with emerging issues related to race and ethnicity" (p. 247). The third wave, emerging by the late 1990s, continued to be "diverse in origins and theoretic and methodological approaches" and included a more direct focus on multiethnic comparisons and these "studies included a greater number of diverse groups, including white ethnic groups" (Floyd, p. 247). A noted marker of this third wave was the examination of the intersection of race or ethnicity with other markers such as gender and sexuality (cf. Allison, 2000; Kivel, 2000). A summary of the special issues and articles on race and ethnicity in the third wave reveals that while research projects on this topic increased in number and scope, there were common foci among these projects.

In a 1998 special issue of JLR on race and ethnicity, Stodolska and Jackson examined discrimination in leisure and work experienced by a "white" ethnic minority group; Shaull …