“You trying to make me feel stupid or something?”: Countering dehumanization of Latin@ youth through a liberating pedagogy of praxis

This ongoing ethnographic study examines how a counter-space, La Libertad, introduces Latin@ students to a liberating pedagogy of praxis which counters dehumanization they experience in their high school. The researcher spent 180+ hours over 14 months in the field collecting data through participant observation, field notes, and personal reflection essays. Observational data were collected in high schools, during activities, and during youth presentations on college campuses. Tentative results reveal a liberating pedagogy guided by three principles: youth as knowledge holders, co-construction of knowledge, and shared knowledge, offering Latin@ youth the opportunity to engage in both forms (internal and external) of transformational resistance.