An unspoken truth: faculty (in)equity in the context of invisible violence: virtual exchange case studies

Abstract

International Virtual Exchange (VE) can be a valuable addition to the AIDE (Access, Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity) toolbox, particularly at higher education institutions in the Global North. However, an interesting dynamic emerged in certain partnerships created by faculty from Venezuela, Yemen, and the USA. With benefits to the students rightly being the main goal of the exchange, the issue of faculty inequity, created by the forces of invisible violence in the Global South participants’ societies, was brought to light only much later. The inconvenient truth is that traditional power structures and invisible privileges can easily color a VE, particularly when faculty from the Global North are not fully cognizant of the sociopolitical realities being experienced by their partners in the Global South. The solutions should go beyond practicing cultural humility. VEs should be grounded in the ethical responsibility of honoring the human capital that both partners bring to the partnership.