Posthumanities

Downed by Friendly Fire: Black Girls, White Girls, and Suburban Schooling
Signithia Fordham

Most Americans would never willingly revisit their high school experiences; the nation s school systems reflect the broader society s hierarchical emphasis on race, class, and gender. While schools purport to provide equal opportunities for all students, this rarely happens in actuality particularly for girls.In "Downed by Friendly Fire," Signithia Fordham unmasks and examines female-centered bullying in schools, arguing that it is essential to unmask female aggression, bullying, and competition, all of which directly relate to the structural violence embedded in the racialized and gendered social order. For two and a half years, Fordham conducted field research at Underground Railroad High School, a suburban high school in upstate New York.