Enduring and thriving: migrant teachers’ counter-narratives in racialized educational spaces

As global migration reshapes school demographics, migrant teachers often face symbolic racism, subtle yet pervasive exclusion through deficit framings, epistemic violence, and the devaluation of non-Western knowledge. This article examines how migrant teachers navigate (c)overt forms of racialization within systems shaped by colonial and white supremacist ideologies. Grounded in the principles of Critical Race Theory (CRT), the study reveals how racialized norms of “proficiency” and legitimacy impact teachers’ positioning. However, rather than focusing solely on their marginalized experiences, the study highlights migrant teachers’ agency, resistance, and resilience toward dominant ideologies and practices. Through qualitative methodology, the article explores how they challenge dominant discourses, create affirming pedagogical spaces, and assert themselves as capable educators and transformative leaders. The study contributes to broader conversations on racial justice in education by centering the counter-narratives of migrant teachers who both endure and reshape the institutional boundaries that seek to confine them.