Countering the Pedagogy of Forgetting through Language awareness

In a global context marked by the resurgence of authoritarian ideologies, the censorship of historical narratives, and the dismantling of public education, this co-authored article offers a critical reflection on the intersection between language, memory, and democracy. The text examines the rise of a pedagogy of forgetting, understood as a systemic and ideological device aimed at erasing collective memory, silencing dissent, and neutralizing critical discourse. This is evident in the removal of historical content from curricula, the repression of critical theories, and the media-driven spectacle of disinformation (Giroux, 2004). In this scenario, Language Awareness is proposed as a pedagogical, political, and ethical response to the erosion of historical consciousness. Conceived as a critical understanding of language in its social and ideological dimensions, it allows for the deconstruction of hegemonic narratives, the exposure of hate speech, and the recovery of language as a generative and transformative act. As James and Garrett (2010) argue, Language Awareness fosters students’ capacity to analyze the discursive mechanisms that shape reality and power relations. Language is not a neutral medium, but a political practice that distributes visibility, legitimacy, and agency (Chomsky, 1989). Educating through language thus entails cultivating historical responsibility, pluralist imaginaries, and ethical listening (Freire, 1970). In this view, language education becomes a site of democratic formation, not just of grammatical instruction. It enables learners to name the world in plural, inclusive, and just terms