Black Language in students’ lives can inform teacher practices for linguistic justice and affirmation while amplifying academic rigor.

This article makes a case for why Black Language (BL) must be a part of teachers’ conceptualizations of multilingualism in U.S. contexts. BL is a living linguistic legacy, an embodiment of Black culture, and much more than simply a list of distinct grammatical features. For teachers to move toward dispositions and language and literacy pedagogical practices that are inclusive, just, and anti‐racist, they must become aware of and interrogate their real trouble with BL through guided and continuous critical, introspective, and reflexivity. After providing a brief linguistic understanding of BL, the author describes what happens when Black adolescents and adults discover that their language has a name, a rich history, and global influence‐‐it marks the onset of their Black Linguistic Consciousness‐raising (Baker‐Bell, 2020). The article ends with recommendations and resources for how teachers can start and continue to stand for anti‐racist linguistic justice in the classroom contexts and beyond.

Historically, language instruction involving Black Language (BL) assumes a goal of eradication, particularly in school‐sanctioned literacy practices. Language arts education for Black students must be liberatory, that is, antiracist and artful. The opportunities for English Language Arts (ELA) teachers to create, augment, and change the course of traditional ELA methods are abundant. In this article, the author takes up “inquiry as a stance” to provide a retrospective analysis of the implementation of two Artful Language Learning Opportunities (ALLOs) from an uncritical code‐switching unit plan designed for 11th‐grade students in 2011, and to offer ways that the ALLOs were (and could be) modified to center the dynamism that BL and thus disrupt White linguistic hegemony. This study's implications highlight the need to shift language instruction toward exploring critical concepts, embracing cultural pride, and incorporating equitable frameworks to empower students and transform teaching practices. By prioritizing the study of BL, educators can create inclusive learning environments that recognize and celebrate linguistic diversity, and, in doing so, understand that mastery in standardized English(es) is an inevitable outcome.

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