Equity Resources for Home
Equity Resources for families & Caretakers
Foundational CSD Resources
It's Not an Achievement Gap - It's an Education Debt
Are you wondering why we are always talking about the education debt that CSD owes to our marginalized students? The philosophy comes from Gloria Ladson Billings - a simply phenomenal scholar who first coined the phrase. Learn more about the incorrect way we have defined the insistent achievement and discipline separations between the races of students in our classrooms.
EXPLAINED: The Truth About Critical Race Theory and How It Shows Up in Your Child’s Classroom
This engaging and informative article discusses what CRT is, from whence it originates, and how it shows up in your child's classroom. It's really not the big bad wolf that some would like you to believe it is.
Courageous Conversations About Race
The District has embarked on a multi-year professional development program. From students to administrators and board members, our anti-racism work has been guided by the Pacific Education Group (PEG). Pacific Educational Group’s (PEG) theory of change states, Courageous conversation precedes courageous action, and courageous action leads to racial equity transformation in our district, resulting in the elimination of racial achievement disparities (Singleton, 2014). For more information about CCAR, click the link below.
https://courageousconversation.com/about/
Culturally-Responsive Teaching & The Brain
Culturally responsive pedagogy can be a game-changer in a school’s pursuit of educational equity, but. CRT is more than just a set of activities, social justice lessons, or kinesthetic learning strategies. CSD educators studying CRT are building the capacity to discover the critical connections between student learning, culturally responsive practices, and neuroscience - thereby allowing them to customize CRT strategies, identify current mindsets that need to change in classrooms or schools, and practice Hammond's Ready for Rigor framework. for more information about CRT & The Brain, click the link below.
https://crtandthebrain.com/about/
Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain Webinar
by Zaretta Hammond
Discover from Zaretta Hammond how to use culturally responsive teaching to re-ignite authentic student engagement and accelerate learning - 57 min. (Start @ 1:50)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2kzbH7ZWGg
CSD's "Do 4" Culturally Responsive Education Framework
The Do 4 framework is a research-based compilation of best practices from multiple frameworks. The bibliography at the end of the document shares the primary work upon which the framework is based.
The framework has 4 quadrants. Each quadrant is further unpacked through four choices that educators, who are striving to employ a culturally responsive praxis, will intentionally make.
Quad One - Do for Self
Quad Two - Do for Students
Quad Three - Do for Curriculum and Assessment
Quad Four - Do for Instruction
In the Do 4 Framework, Intentionality is key - educators must make intentional choices and do intentional work to be (or become) effective educators for all students.
One-pager (seen above) discusses why children are never too young to learn about race.
http://www.childrenscommunityschool.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/theyre-not-too-young-1.pdf
Managing Strong Emotional Reactions to Traumatic Events: Tips for Families and Teachers
When a large-scale traumatic event, such as COVID-19 occurs, it can cause strong and deeply felt reactions in adults and children. How adults express their emotions will influence the reactions of children and youth. This website provides suggestions for modeling healthy coping strategies and closely monitoring your own emotional state as well as that of those in your care.
Things for Grownups to Read
At this moment in history, there are literally hundreds of reading lists floating around with the goal of espousing anti-racism, Black history, and issues of social justice. Yet, just reading without acknowledging historical context and your own personal experience is merely indulging a trendy topic, or assuaging your guilt. It's great that you want to make a change, but reading alone won't get you there.
§ Just reading - allows you to check a box and say, “all done, I’m anti-racist!” or “not all white people do that,” or “not all cops are bad.”
§ Just reading - gives you the false confidence to question the experiences of BIPOC colleagues, instead of accepting the painful truths about their experiences.
§ Just reading - absolves you from doing real work - it's only informing yourself regarding the key points and demands of anti-racism.
§ Just reading - encourages performative gestures of outrage and solidarity and perpetuates the actual problem of systemic oppression.
§ Just reading - allows you to remain emotional about racism.
To be sure, reading is an important first step, but, anti-racism is a long game. The author of this article challenges you to go the distance, to do the real work of becoming anti-racist. So, how can you approach the hard work of becoming anti-racist? Start by reading the article before (or as) you read the books listed below.
ADL (1997).Talking to Young Children about Bias and Prejudice. 1997. New York, NY & Chicago, IL: Anti-Defamation League and the National Parent Teacher’s Association.
This pamphlet, available in either English or Spanish, gives practical suggestions for parents to help their children appreciate diversity.
*Arnow, J. (1995). Teaching Peace: How to Raise Children to Live in Harmony – Without Fear, Without Prejudice, Without Violence. New York, NY: Perigee Books.
In this hands-on guide, the author explains to parents how to prevent prejudice and conflict while teaching children the importance of respecting all people.
Brooks, B.A., and Siegel, P.M. (1996). The Scared Child: Helping Kids Overcome Traumatic Events. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
This guide begins by introducing the concept of trauma and its effects on people. The second section consists of a four-step debriefing process parents can use to help children cope with a traumatic event.
Bullard, S. (1996). Teaching Tolerance: Raising Open-Minded, Empathetic Children. New York, NY: Doubleday.
This is a guide for parents on ways to examine their own attitudes about diversity and foster tolerance and unbiased attitudes in their children.
Cohen-Posey, K. (1995). How to Handle Bullies, Teasers and Other Meanies: A Book That Takes the Nuisance Out of Name-Calling and Other Nonsense. Newark, DE: Rainbow Books.
This parent-child resource gives practical information and exercises on name-calling, prejudice, anger, and dangerous situations.
*Cohn, J. (1996). Raising Compassionate, Courageous Children in a Violent World. Atlanta, GA: Longstreet Press.
This book includes stories of children, parents, families, and communities overcoming fear and apathy to help others. Also included are research-based parenting techniques for fostering caring, helpful children.
Di Angelo, R. (2019). White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism. New York, NY: Penguin.
This book provides a rare and incisive examination of the system of white body supremacy that binds us all as Americans. . . . With authenticity and clarity, Dr. Di Angelo provides the antidote to white fragility and a road map for developing white racial stamina and humility.
*Hagerman, M. A. (2018). White Kids: Growing Up With Privilege in a Racially Divided America. New York, NY: NYU Press.
White Kids, based on two years of research involving in-depth interviews with white kids and their families, is a clear-eyed and sometimes shocking account of how white kids learn about race. In doing so, this book explores questions such as, “How do white kids learn about race when they grow up in families that do not talk openly about race or acknowledge its impact?” and “What about children growing up in families with parents who consider themselves to be ‘anti-racist’?”
*Kendi, I.X. (2016). Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. New Your, NY: Hachette.
With a primary focus on racism toward African-Americans and people identified as Black, this National Book Award Winner is a thoroughly researched, sweepingly comprehensive survey of racism from its first traceable roots in ancient Greece when Aristotle said Africans had “burnt faces” to the start of the African slave trade in 15th century Europe, to the first recorded slave ship arriving in colonial America in 1619, all the way through the Civil War, the Jim Crow laws, the 1960s Civil Rights movement, and up to the present day.
*Mathias, B., and French, M.A. (1996). 40 Ways to Raise a Non-racist Child. New York, NY: HarperCollins.
Divided into five age-related sections, ranging from preschool to the teenage years, this book provides helpful and practical ways parents can teach their children to value fairness and equity by modeling these principles themselves in their daily lives.
*Oluo, I. (2019). So You Want to Talk About Race. Seal Press.
Reddy, M. (1994). Crossing the Color Line: Race, Parenting, and Culture. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.
Moving from memoir to theory, to literary analysis, to interviews with friends, this author shares her thoughts and experiences raising African American children in a predominately White society.
*Reddy, M. (1996). Everyday Acts Against Racism: Raising Children in a Multicultural World. Seattle, WA: Seal Press.
Twenty essays in this book, written by women of various cultural backgrounds, provide practical suggestions for teaching children how to oppose racism.
*Saad, L. F & Di Angelo, R. (2020). Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor. Sourcebooks.
For readers of White Fragility, White Rage, So You Want To Talk About Race, The New Jim Crow, How to Be an Anti-Racist, and more, who are ready to closely examine their own beliefs and biases and do the work it will take to create social change.
Stern, C., and Bettmann, E.H. (2000). Hate Hurts: How Children Learn and Unlearn Prejudice. New York, NY: Scholastic.
A guide for parents, other caregivers, teachers, and children with advice for adults about helping children who have been targeted by hate and about raising and educating children to be respectful and caring citizens.
Please consider purchasing any of these books from one of our local bookstores including:
Brave + Kind Bookshop: https://www.braveandkindbooks.com/ (black-owned)
* Our Equity Director thinks this book is simply awesome!
Talking About Race With Your Child
100 Race-Conscious Things You Can Say to Your Child To Advance Racial Justice
In honor of Raising Race Conscious Children’s 100th post, this list lifts a quote from each and every blog post to date, modeling language that has actually been used in a conversation with a child regarding race (and other identity-markers such as gender and class).
Charis Books: BOOKS TO TEACH WHITE CHILDREN AND TEENS HOW TO UNDO RACISM AND WHITE SUPREMACY
Parents of white children often struggle to work conversations about race "naturally" into the flow of the day, believing that race, like sexuality or body development, is a topic that necessitates a "big talk" in a time carved out from the flow of normal life. One of the best ways to raise healthy, race-conscious white children is to talk to them early and often about racial injustice and racial differences in the course of your daily family life. Local bookstore Charis Books, recommends the following books for all families, but especially for parents of white children who may be struggling to talk about racial injustice with their kids and teens.
Children’s Books to Support Conversations on Race, Racism, and Resistance
https://www.embracerace.org/resources/childrens-books
Tip Sheets: For Talking with Kids About Race
https://www.embracerace.org/tip-sheets.html
16 Ways to Help Children Become Thoughtful, Informed, and BRAVE About Race
Resources for Talking about Race, Racism, and Racialized Violence with Kids
A list of links to multiple resources from The Center for Racial Justice in Education
The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture has a wonderfully rich website with information to help you talk about race if you are an educator, parent or caregiver, or simply a person committed to equity. It's well worth the visit!
Your 5-year-old is already racially biased. Here’s what you can do about it.
a lot of us believe that children, especially White children, are racial innocents — completely naive, curiously fragile with respect to the realities of race, or both. The truth is that well before their teen years, the vast majority of children are well aware of prevailing biases, and most kids, of all racial stripes, have taken on a bunch of their own.
The Top 5 Reasons Well-Meaning White Parents Do Not Discuss Race With Their White Children
This is a post for well-meaning white parents of white children, in which, the author cuts straight to the point. "The time to ask, “what can I do?” in response to the overt and insidious forms of racism and violence against Black and brown people is over. White silence = violence."
Sesame Workshop - Coming Together: Talking to Children About Race and Identity
Designed to provide families with the tools they need to build racial literacy, to have open conversations with young children, to engage allies and advocates to become upstanders against racism, and more, Coming Together is rooted in extensive research and consultation with experts to develop a groundbreaking Racial Justice educational framework and curriculum for young children. The site's new ‘ABCs of Racial Literacy’ resources, launched in March 2021, are designed to help all families celebrate their own unique identities while also providing age-appropriate language and strategies to answer sometimes-tough questions around race and racism. Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit media and educational organization behind Sesame Street. All Sesame Workshop resources are free and available in English and Spanish.
How to Talk About War With Your Child
How to Talk to Kids About What's Happening in Israel Right Now
This article from Kveller shares balanced scripts parents and family members can use with their children based on their age range.
https://www.kveller.com/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-whats-happening-in-israel-right-now/
How to Talk to Kids About Violence, Crime, and War
Common Sense Media gathers tips and conversation starters to help you talk to kids of different ages about the toughest topics.
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-violence-crime-and-war
Talking to Your Kids About War
VeryWell Family explores ways families can speak with young people about war, including tips on sharing information and restricting media coverage.
https://www.verywellfamily.com/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-war-4147597
How to Talk to Your Children About Conflict and War
UNICEF’s guide offers eight tips to support and comfort your children.
https://www.unicef.org/parenting/how-talk-your-children-about-conflict-and-war
Handle with Care: Supporting Young People During Crises
Learning for Justice offers recommendations and resources to help guide conversations with young people and to manage potential subsequent actions and reactions.
https://www.learningforjustice.org/magazine/handle-with-care-supporting-young-people-during-crises
Things to Read, Watch, Hear or Do With Your Child
READ
Books Matter
During this time of crisis and change, many are home with children of all ages. If you are looking for books to read, ADL’s collection address issues of identity, bias and bullying. Their featured books come with discussion guides for teachers and parents
Abolition is Love
What can abolition mean for a child? How can it help them dream a different future for their community?
This is an awesome book that you should procure if you can. In Abolition is Love, Amelie learns about collective care, mutual aid, and abolitionist ideas as they help their parents get ready for the annual Prisoners’ Justice Day. Amelie explores big concepts like love, justice, and care, and learns how we can build a different world together through the small choices we make every day. They learn to resolve a conflict with their cousin who plays differently than they do, they help their Papa plan a more accessible park for all, and collectively they create a beautiful banner. Amelie is also excited to hold their own candle at the rally, and they look forward to this big kid moment–to join the ranks of activists calling for justice and abolition. The book explores possibilities for hope and offers ideas for caring for each other and building communities rooted in social justice and safety for all people. Parents and teachers can engage young readers with expansive illustrations and prompts that suggest new ways of being in the world together.
Recommended for ages 3–7. https://www.akpress.org/abolition-is-love.html
Autobiographies Matter
“When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir" by Patrisse Cullors and ashe bandele
"Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card" by Sara Saedi
“Vernon Can Read!: A Memoir” by Vernon E. Jordan, Jr.
" How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana
“Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement” By John Lewis and Michael D’Orso
"March" (Graphic Novel Trilogy) by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin
"Turning Pages: My Life Story" by Sonya Sotomayor
"Counting the Stars: The Story of Katherine Johnson, NASA Mathematician" by L. Cline-Ransome and R Colón
"Emmanuel's Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah" by Laurie Ann Thompson
What Is The Difference Between a Refugee, a Migrant, an Immigrant, and an Asylum Seeker? - by Kim Mack
This is a brief but informative article explaining the differences and reminding us that names have meaning. Parents can discuss this information with both young children and teens and examine the ways in which different names have differing connotations.
https://preemptivelove.org/blog/refugees-asylum-seekers-and-migrants-three-reasons-people-flee-home/
Embrace Race: Raising a Brave Generation
Childrens' books filter that includes a variety of book lists:
https://www.embracerace.org/resources/childrens-books
Get Free - Hip Hop Civics Ed.: FEMINISM AND SOCIAL JUSTICE BOOKS FOR KIDS
This is an excellent book list curated by award-winning UGA scholar Bettina Love. Her suggestions are sorted by grade/age level.
http://getfreehiphopcivics.com/books/
WATCH
CNN/Sesame Street Racism Town Hall - Coming Together: Standing Up to Racism
CNN's Van Jones and Erica Hill partner with "Sesame Street" for Coming Together: Standing Up to Racism, a town hall for kids and families. Watch the town hall in its entirety at the link below.
A PBS Digital Studios series that celebrates Black culture, context, and history.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCk85otLk-ASsqPu0aXFGjzA/videos
An Unnoticed Struggle: A Concise History of Asian American Civil Rights
By the Japanese American Citizens League.
Beyond Activism: Four Decades of Social Justice
A documentary by Asian Americans for Equality.
A TED Talk: What Kids Should Know About Race
Learn how Angelica Dass is building tools for educators around the world to encourage inclusion and equality.
https://angelicadass.com/public-speaking/ted-talk-nyc-usa/
Structural Racism Defined
The Othering and Belonging Institute at Berkley helps us learn the difference between individual, institutional, and structural racism.
HEAR
NPR podcast created by “a multi-racial, multi-generational team of journalists” that covers overlapping themes of race, ethnicity, and culture and how they play out in our lives and communities.
https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/
A podcast series from New York Times journalist Nikole Hannah Jones that connects “past and present” by examining “the long shadow of American slavery.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/23/podcasts/1619-podcast.html
Nice White Parents
A limited-series podcast from the New York Times about building a better school system and how the most powerful force in shaping them, White parents, often get in the way.
https://nice-white-parents.simplecast.com/episodes/introducing-nice-white-parents-okTLLyXg
DO
Get Trained to End Harassment!
Hollaback is an awesome nonprofit working to end harassment — in all its forms. They believe that everyone deserves the resources to respond to, prevent, and intervene in instances of harassment. Therefore, they provide both customized and free anti-harassment training experiences.
https://www.ihollaback.org/harassmenttraining/
Workshop: Raising White Anti-Racist Children
The Center for the Study of White American Culture, which is a multi-racial anti-racist organization, offers an online workshop that they say is also appropriate for all children.
http://www.euroamerican.org/default.asp
The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum
Colloquially known as The Breman, this museum is a cultural center in Atlanta dedicated to Jewish history, culture, and arts with special emphasis on Georgia and the Holocaust. Open Sundays 11am - 4pm or by appointment.
The Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History
A special library within the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System, it opened in 1994 as the first library in the Southeast to offer specialized reference and archival collections for the study and research of African American culture and history and of other peoples of African descent. The library is open to the public.
https://www.fulcolibrary.org/auburn-avenue-research-library/
5 Ways to Raise Inclusive Kids Despite Living in Segregated Neighborhoods
Here are ideas about how to foster inclusive attitudes in children - from all racial backgrounds - who live and attend school with people who look just like them.
LGBTQ+ & Gender
LGBTQ+ Read Alouds
Check out the beautiful virtual bookshelves with read-aloud books that feature LGBTQ+ characters and storylines. (Created by two school librarians from Toronto)
Updated Glossary of LGBTQ+ Terms
The PFLAG National Glossary of Terms is a curated list of LGBTQ+ terms. This may be helpful as we think about ways to help children be accepting and inclusive. Although many students aren't yet comfortable being open about their sexualities or gender identities, it is important to be prepared should you find yourself in a situation where a child has questions or needs support. One way to demonstrate inclusive behavior and make conversations easier and more comfortable is by using the right terms. PFLAG (provides confidential peer support, education, and advocacy to LGBTQ+ people, their parents and families, and allies.)
Mother of Transgender Child Shares Powerful Message
Hearing multiple perspectives of varied experiences builds empathy and acceptance. Here, a mother of an elementary student details her family's journey during their son's transition.
The Genderbread Person
This resource provides a unique, visual, and memorable way to examine trans and transitioning identity.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PXmXpJPeezjTXUJBGm2Axg1Ur7nZUIRL/view?usp=sharing
The Gender Cool Project
The GenderCool Project is a youth-led movement introduced to the district by RMS students. The Project is 100% student-driven and its stated goal is, to bring positive change to the world. The Gender Cool Champions are students who are helping to replace misinformed opinions with positive experiences regarding transgender and non-binary youth.
Transgender Reading List for Adults
Questions about transgender issues, gender identity, and transitioning aren’t just for kids and young adults. Adults have plenty of questions about those issues, and several more besides: how best to help a child who’s questioning their gender, how to help a friend or family member in transition, how to be a good friend or ally, or how to navigate the many complex legal issues that surround being transgender. The answers to those, and many other, questions can be found in the books listed on the PFLAG website.
Information Related to Specific Races/Cultures
BLACK FOLK
Juneteenth
Are you looking for ways for your children to learn more about Juneteenth? The New York Times offers five teaching ideas for exploring the holiday and its significance via a variety of media, including photographs, recipes, art, and a podcast interview.
My Reflection Matters (MRM)
My Reflection Matters Village is a virtual community that provides the conversations, support, resources, & healing necessary for caregivers & educators choosing liberation-centered self-directed learning and living. While all are welcome, we are a space that centers the lived experiences of BIPOC unschoolers.
ASIAN-AMERICAN and NHPI FOLK
SAADA: The South Asian American Digital Archive
This group "invite[s] you to learn about a key part of American and global history and contribute to it."
The campaign is a photography and storytelling series which challenges negative perceptions of AAPI individuals surrounding the COVID-19 crisis. You can request an appointment to share your story, be photographed, or report a hate incident to the campaign.
https://www.iamnotavirus.info/
Anti-Asian Racism Guide for Asian Parents
It's ok if you don't know all the answers, know what to say, or even if you're scared to talk to your adolescent about racism. This guide will walk you through it.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Uv16tqm5cwNquDMA_y-TajvjTuuT1t5v/view?usp=sharing
OCA Summer Internship Program
Join the largest summer internship program for AANHPI students in Washington, D.C., and gain valuable paid work opportunities in congressional offices, government agencies, corporations, and nonprofits. The final deadline to apply is Tuesday, January 2, 2024 at 11:59 PM PT - but if you miss it - check back for the next year!
FOLK WHO ARE IMMIGRANTS/REFUGEES
SPLC - Protecting Immigrant Students’ Rights To A Public Education
Here you will find resources that can be used by families, advocates, educators, and school administrators to understand the responsibilities their schools and districts have to families. These resources can help you advocate for students facing language access or enrollment barriers in public elementary or secondary schools.
https://www.splcenter.org/plyler
NATIVE/INDIGENOUS AMERICAN FOLK
Blackhorse: Do You Prefer ‘Native American’ or ‘American Indian’? 6 Prominent Voices Respond
Amanda Blackhorse, Diné, speaks with prominent Native American voices about the discussion over the terms 'Native American' and 'American Indian.'
Why We Serve: Native Americans in the United States Armed Forces
Why We Serve is an online exhibition that honors the generations of Native Americans who have served in the armed forces of the United States—often in extraordinary numbers—since the American Revolution. (National Museum of the American Indian)
RED EAGLE - "STILL HERE" OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO - 7:42
Extremely powerful music video provides a modern-day perspective on the concerns of Indigenous people. Song written and performed by Red Eagle. This would be an awesome way to explore and unpack modern-day Indigenous concerns with students!
Proud To Be (Native American Mascots) - 2:00
Beautiful short video with a powerful message about the racism inherent in using Indigenous People as mascots.
From the Vault: The Story of the Muscogee Creek Nation - 8:56
A brief history of the Muscogee Creek Nation, their forced expulsion to Oklahoma, and their move toward self-governance.
City Schools of Decatur's Land Acknowledgement Statement
Discuss it with your students. What are their thoughts?
LATINO FOLK
Latina/o/x
Many student groups are changing their names to use "Latinx" instead of "Latino" and "Latina." The action is controversial, with detractors and supporters on both sides. While it successfully moves outside of a perceived gender binary - some Latinos feel that it's problematic in other ways.
Latina/o/x Racial and Class Formations
CSD Parent Nicole Guidotti-Hernández has created a podcast that explains the difference between Hispanic, Latina/o, and Latinx. She also offers some historical context for the different racial and class formations that exist amongst Latinx populations in the US.
DORA THE EXPLORER: CONSTRUCTING ‘‘LATINIDADES’’ AND THE POLITICS OF GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP
Do you watch Dora the Explorer with your kiddoes? Reading this may help. It's an academic article and thus a bit jargony, but it's an interesting take on the subject. Written by CSD Parent Nicole Guidotti-Hernández!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FHrdPR4X0Yjazn3K83X3XLJsibMq-7f9/view?usp=sharing
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES
What is Disability Justice?
During the 2020-2021 school year, the Commission on Disability Equity worked to implement the principles of “disability justice” into their new leadership structure. The Commission has shifted away from treating disability as a single-issue concern, and towards a vision where they hope to engage in cross-movement solidarity in community-building and self-advocacy efforts.
https://code.as.ucsb.edu/what-is-disability-justice/
The 10 Principals of Disability Justice
By Patricia Berne, with the support of Aurora Levins Morales and David Langstaff, on behalf of Sins Invalid. WSQ: Women's Studies Quarterly: The Feminist Press. Volume 46, Numbers 1 & 2, Spring/Summer 2018
How to be an Ally to Disabled & Neurodiverse Folks in Activist & Academic Communities
Here are a few thoughtful ideas that the Blog Access Culture has compiled on how to be a better Ally to folks who have been left out of social and political movements/communities
WHITE FOLK
Opportunities for White Folk in the Fight for Racial Justice: Moving from Actor, to Ally, to Accomplice
The ideas captured on this website, very much a work in progress, have been developed to support White people to act for racial justice. It draws from ideas and resources developed mostly by Black, Brown, and People of Color, and has been edited by Black, Brown, and People of Color. Hopefully, this chart challenges White folks to go outside of our comfort zones, take some bigger risks, and make some more significant sacrifices because this is what we’ve been asked to do by those most impacted by racism, colonialism, patriarchy, white supremacy, xenophobia, and hyper-capitalism.
How do I make sure I'm not raising the next 'Amy Cooper'?
EmbraceRace had a conversation with Dr. Jennifer Harvey, about what the parents of White children, in particular, can do to ensure they're not raising white children who are quick to call the police on Black and Indigenous people and people of color.
https://www.embracerace.org/resources/how-do-i-make-sure-im-not-raising-the-next-amy-cooper
Whiteness/White Privilege
Whiteness and white racialized identity refer to the way that white people, their customs, culture, and beliefs operate as the standard by which all other groups are compared. Whiteness is also at the core of understanding race in America.
https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/whiteness
The Invention of Whiteness: the Long History of a Dangerous Idea
Before the 17th century, people did not think of themselves as belonging to something called the white race. But once the idea was invented, it quickly began to reshape the modern world. This in-depth, revelatory article in the Guardian, by Robert Baird examines the origin and history of whiteness.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/apr/20/the-invention-of-whiteness-long-history-dangerous-idea
Developing a Positive White Identity
This article from the Unitarian Universalist Church describes actions white people can take to feel ok about being who they are.
https://www.uua.org/files/documents/gardinerwilliam/whiteness/positive_white_identity.pdf
Addressing Bias, Prejudice, Racism, & Hate
Beyond the Golden Rule: A Parent's Guide to Preventing and Responding to Prejudice
written by Dana Williams, illustrations by Vincent Nguyen, a Teaching Tolerance publication, Jan. 2010. https://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/general/beyond_golden_rule.pdf
Confronting Prejudice: How to Protect Yourself and Help Others
This resource from Pepperdine University educates readers on the prevalence of prejudice and implicit bias in society, including information about which marginalized groups are most likely to be harmed by prejudice. The resource features information about how one can be an ally and advocate for change, as well as how people experiencing discrimination can build resilience against these types of behaviors.
https://onlinegrad.pepperdine.edu/blog/prejudice-discrimination-coping-skills/
How to Talk to Your Children About Bias and Prejudice
Suggested ways to discuss bias and prejudice with children This article is from 2001 but still has several viable suggestions.
6 Reasons 'All Lives Matter' Doesn't Work
Trying to understand the difference between "Black Lives Matter" and "All Lives Matter"? Try one of these six metaphors.
The Surge in Asian American Violence
Asian-American Harassment related to the COVID-19 Outbreak - This page provides Resource Links to support AAPI students and/or other students who may be experiencing hate crimes.
10 Simple Ways White People Can Step Up to Fight Everyday Racism
For too long, White people have only heard about racism in the context of what not to do, but rarely, if ever, have they heard about how they can be proactive about the issue. This site provides information about steady, even simple steps for White people towards becoming allies in the fight against racial inequality, not merely bystanders — or worse, perpetrators.
Asian Americans Advancing Justice is a proud partner of Communities Against Hate, a diverse coalition coming together for the first time across communities to document hate and demand action.
https://www.standagainsthatred.org/
How to be a Real Ally to People of Color
Put down the performative allyship and get real.
https://forge.medium.com/performative-allyship-is-deadly-c900645d9f1f
What is Systemic Racism? (Race Forward Video Series)
A video series explaining how systemic racism shows up in institutions, structures, and systems across all sectors of our lives. Yes - it’s a real thing!
What is Structural Racism?
The Othering and Belonging Institute at Berkley helps us learn the difference between individual, institutional, and structural racism.
Floyd, Chauvin, and Trauma in Communities of Color
The murder of George Floyd. The Derek Chauvin trial. The recent rise in bias and violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. These are heavy, challenging times for us all, but particularly our communities of color. Education Minnesota has compiled the following lists of resources for educators and parents to help children and adolescents cope and process these and other traumatic events.
Supporting Kids through Racialized Violence
In order to create a manageable and useful set of resources for you, here we consider "racialized violence" only its overt forms, including but not limited to widespread police brutality against Black, Brown and Native communities, White nationalism and hate crimes, and verbal and physical assaults against Muslim Americans and Asian Americans. You'll also find insights about how you can "put on your own mask first," and why you must; how to be an effective ally or accomplice to others under duress; and especially how to help children push back against racialized violence.
https://www.embracerace.org/resources/topic/supporting-kids-through-racialized-violence
Don't Just Read or Watch - Reflect and Act!
As you explore the experiences on this resource page, simultaneously ponder these critical questions that will help you grow, process, and take action:
§ What does what I've learned have to do with me?
§ How can I explain these concepts to my children and other young people?
§ What emotions are conjured up as I read? What’s that about?
§ What can I change about my daily behavior, relationships, and policies?
§ How do I take this new learning past pontificating and theorizing?
§ How does this information connect with previous things that I’ve learned?
§ How much more is there to learn?
§ Who can I share this with?
§ How can I lead my friends, family, and peers in taking up this work?
This work is complicated and twisty and involves balancing a whole lot of stuff. But if things are going to change, if things six months from now are not going to look just like six months ago, then there is hard work to do.
-Peter Greene - Curmuducation: Six Months from Now