An Indigenous and arts-influenced framework for anti-racist practice in nursing education

In this article, we share an innovative framework using Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed along with Indigenous sharing circles as a pedagogical approach to explore racism with nurses, nurse educators and allied health professionals. Theatre of the Oppressed is an umbrella term that encompasses a variety of participatory and improvisational theatre techniques and games to facilitate dialogue about the problems and oppression that people face in their own lives and to rehearse solutions for acting on these problems (Boal, 2002). The purpose of this article is to detail the methodology of our Indigenous and arts-influenced framework. Using select dialogue that emerged from participants in the workshop, we illustrate how Theatre of the Oppressed, along with Indigenous sharing circles facilitated conversations and raised awareness and consciousness regarding racism, and provided opportunities for health care providers to reimagine race and confront racism within their own practices.