Actions for Racial Justice

Showing Up for Racial Justice


What everyone can do to show up for racial justice
  • address immediate harms, injustice, and inequities;*
  • push for long-term systemic change;*
*Consider what you can do in every level of this Wheel of Intervention. How can you show up in your actions, interruptions, responses, and daily behavior? Deciding ahead of time on the spheres where you can intervene is helpful and practicing is key to building courage and moving to more challenging spheres. 
*Racial Justice Strategies
from Jaime-Jin Lewis (2020)
Short Term
Long Term
  • Breathe
  • Inquire
  • Intervene
  • Continue the conversation
  • Name race / apply a racial equity lens
  • Name your racial identity
  • Follow up
  • Engage in ongoing conversation
  • Continually reflect on the impact of your own racial identity in relationships and spaces
  • Talk about race and the impact of systemic racism as a community 
  • Analyze company/institutional structures through a racial justice lens
  • Be proactive and build alliance

In addition to the above, what white people can do to engage in antiracism:
  • mobilize and educate ourselves and other white people; 
  • check in on friends who are PoC and ask how you can be supportive; and 
  • do our own unlearning/learning and changing. For People of Color, this might look like engaging in healing work and connecting with loved ones.

For White People and Non-Black People of Color Seeking to take Racial Justice Action and to Support Black Folx and QTPoC Right Now


Please consider taking some of these actions below and to commit to engaging for the long-term with your time, energy, hearts, and resources. Anti-racism work is everyone’s work.

List of 6 items.

  • 1. Donate to Black and QTPoC Organizations and/or Call and Write and/or Sign Petitions:

    1. Black Visions Collective is a Minnesota-based organization dedicated to healing and transformative justice and emerging Black leadership to lead powerful campaigns. Donate here. 
    2. Nationwide community bail funds: donate here.
    4. Sign the petition and/or donate to Reclaim the Block.
    5. Louisville Community Bail Out Fund: Support jailed protesters in Louisville, Kentucky following the murder of Breonna Taylor. The Action Network: donate here.
    6. Many more critical action steps to demand justice for George Floyd (petitions, phone calls, donations, etc.) can be found in this list compiled by Minneapolis organizers.
      1. Change.org petition for George Floyd
    7. Northstar Health Collective, a mutual aid group of organizers and street medics, is providing healthcare and other resources to activists and organizers on the ground. Donate here.
    8. The Twin Cities Recovery Project has been holding grief and trauma groups which are peer run and connected to licensed therapists. To help fundraise for community support, donate here.
    9. Centro de Trabajadores Unidos en La Lucha, a Minneapolis worker's center, is taking donations of food and money to support organizers and helping pressure local government. Donate here.
    10. Sign a petition for Justice for Tony McDade and/or donate to the “In Memory of Tony McDade” GoFundMe.
    11. Donate to organizations like Brown Boi Project and the National Black Justice Coalition. You can find QTPoC Organizations (by state) here to figure out how you can contribute and show support through petitions, calls, donations, etc.

  • 2. Show up for Rallies and Protests if it is safe for you to do so

    1. For those in the Boston and Providence area: 
      1. See this list of rallies calling for justice for Black lives and protests against police brutality
    Tips for safety during protests (compiled from Amnesty International, Rachel Elizabeth Cargle, + Jade Marks) 
    1. Hydrate and fuel up! Bring snacks, hand sanitizer, and a water bottle.
    2. Wear comfortable clothing and shoes and bring a face mask.
      1. Wear protective shoes (that cover your feet) that you are comfortable moving quickly/running in.
      2. Wear a hat to protect you from sun exposure and potential chemical vapors.
      3. Wear earplugs, or bring earplugs. 
    3. Consider what medications you need to have with you. Consider any hygiene products you might need to have with you (pads or Thinx are the best options for if you have your period). Consider bringing a basic First Aid kit.
    4. Go with a friend or a group of friends, and stick together.
    5. Try to maintain physical distancing protocol.
    6. Make a plan in case you or your friends are separated and a plan in case you or your friends are arrested. 
      1. Plan a rendezvous spot with your friends in case you are separated. Make sure everyone is clear on where this spot is.
      2. The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) provides legal support for activists. Look up your state’s chapter number, and write it somewhere you won’t lose it/on your body with Sharpie. Call for legal support if you or your friends are arrested.
      3. Know  your emergency contacts; consider using Sharpie to add these contact numbers to your body as well.
    7. Document: film or write down actions, brutality, and injuries if they occur.
    8. Do not bring: cell phone without first going on airplane mode and turning off data, jewelry, and/or contact lenses.
    9. If you do go out to protest, consider self-quarantining for two weeks after your contribution to the movement is finished. 
    10. Read more about safety during protests from Amnesty International.
      1. Know your rights:
        1. Freedom of Expression and Assembly: Everyone has the right to carry their opinion to the streets. + Protection of the Right to Freedom of Assembly: Law enforcement must facilitate and not restrict a peaceful public assembly. + Freedom from excessive use of force: In the policing of non-violent protests, police must avoid the use of force. + Right to Medical Assistance: If you are injured you have a right to medical assistance without delay. + Freedom from Arbitrary Arrest and Detention: If you are arrested you have a right to be told of the reason for your arrest, you also have the right promptly after your arrest to have access to a lawyer and to your family. + Right to Complain: If your rights have been violated you have a right to file a complaint and to be provided information on how to do so. 

  • 3. Attend Planning Meetings or Strategy Calls.

    • Join Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) National Phone Calls in Defense of Black Life to hear from organizers in Minneapolis, Louisville, and elsewhere. (Next one is scheduled for Friday, 6/5/20.)
    • Critical Resistance (national) has strategy calls/virtual meetings.
    • INCITE (national) has strategy calls/virtual meetings.

  • 4. Volunteer.

    Check with any of the above organizations about volunteer opportunities and/or check out the following: can you provide meals to organizers? Can you offer free childcare? Can you share other resources or skills?(from @southasians4blacklives).

  • 5. Find a Racial Justice Gathering/discussion group online to support, learn, heal, and take ongoing action.

    Showing Up for Racial Justice might be one place to start.

  • 6. If you are multilingual...

    ... inquire about translating documents, media, and support being circulated at protests to international press and other outlets (from @southasians4blacklives).
     

If you are in a position of privilege, here are some notes on “Allyship:”

List of 5 frequently asked questions.

  • - WHAT IS AN ALLY?

    From https://guidetoallyship.com/ by Amélie Lamont 

    T[his] definition of an ally comes from Roxane Gay in her article for Marie Claire, “On Making Black Lives Matter.” In it, she notes:

    Black people do not need allies. We need people to stand up and take on the problems borne of oppression as their own, without remove or distance. We need people to do this even if they cannot fully understand what it’s like to be oppressed for their race or ethnicity, gender, sexuality, ability, class, religion, or other marker of identity. We need people to use common sense to figure out how to participate in social justice.

    Being an ally doesn’t necessarily mean that you 100% understand what it feels like to be oppressed. It means you are taking on the struggle as your own.

    A marginalized individual cannot easily cast away the weight of their identity through oppression on a whim. They must carry that weight every single day, for better or for worse. An ally understands that this is a weight that they too must be willing to carry and never put down.
     

  • - WHY ALLIES ARE NECESSARY

    Anyone has the capability to be an ally. An ally recognizes that though they are not a member of a marginalized group(s) they support, they make a concerted effort to better understand the struggle.

    Because an ally might have more privilege (and recognizes said privilege), they are powerful voices alongside marginalized ones.
     

  • - THE WORK OF ALLYSHIP

    Being an ally is hard work. Many of those who want to be allies are scared of making missteps that get them labeled as “-ist” or “-ic” (racist, sexist, transphobic, homophobic, etc). As an ally, you too are affected by a system of oppression. This means that as an ally, there is much to unlearn and learn—mistakes are expected.

    As an ally, you’ll need to be willing to own your mistakes and be proactive in your education.

    If you decide to become an ally but refuse to acknowledge that your words and actions are laced with oppression, you’re setting yourself up to fail. You will be complicit in the oppression of those you purport to help. You are not truly an ally. Know that if you choose not to heed this, you wield far more power than someone who is outwardly “-ist” or “-ic” because you are, essentially, a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

    Just as society will not change overnight, neither will you. Here are some do’s and don’ts that are incredibly important as you learn and grow and step into the role of an ally.

  • - THE DON'TS

    • Do not expect to be taught or shown. Take it upon yourself to use the tools around you to learn and answer your questions
    • Do not participate for the gold medal in the Oppression Olympics
    • Do not behave as though you know best
    • Do not take credit for the labor of those who are marginalized and did the work before you stepped into the picture
    • Do not assume that every member of a marginalized group feels oppressed
    • Don’t act as though you immediately understand the plight of everyone you work with

  • - THE DO’S

    • Do be open to listening
    • Do be aware of your implicit biases
    • Do your research to learn more about the history of the struggle in which you are participating
    • Do the inner work to figure out a way to acknowledge how you participate in oppressive systems
    • Do the outer work and figure out how to change the oppressive systems
    • Do amplify (online and when physically present) the voices of those without your privilege

Consider Ways to Give Ongoing Support

1. If you are able, consider making ongoing donations to organizations like the NAACP. 
2. Consider intentionally and consistently supporting Black-owned businesses (check out @blackandmobile or @officialblackwallstreet and @webuyblack for help on this).

Here is a spreadsheet on Black-owned businesses.
 

TIPS FROM THE HEALTH OFFICE

Summertime is almost here! The health office would like to share a few tips to help you navigate the current obstacles of COVID-19 as we prepare for the summer.

The video reviews the following main points:
  • 8 Tips for a safe Summer (article)
  • Preventive tips (hand washing, wearing masks, physical distancing)
  • Symptom review: Multi System Inflammatory Syndrome, When to call EMS
  • Resource page (Covid - 19 Testing site Locator)
 
For those who are inclined to participate in protests here is a safety preparation guide:


--

Works Cited

Alexander, R. & Vey-Chilton, A. (2019). The Wheel of Intervention. National SEED Project.

Anne Louise, Brittany, Claire, Ethan, Gail & Lisa. [2020]. Lost River Racial Justice. [personal communication].

Goldfine, J. & Champlin, R.  How to Support Protesters in Every City. Papermag. https://www.papermag.com/where-to-donate-protests-minneapolis-2646128317.html?rebelltitem=4#rebelltitem4

Lamont, A. (2020). What is an Ally?  https://guidetoallyship.com/

Educational Sources to Help Individuals Engage with Antiracism/Do the Ongoing Work


Check out “Talking About Race” from the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Here are some recommended accounts and books for everyone (Ms. Luxmoore has shared some of these over Commons and some faculty have shared individually! If you have suggestions to add, please email us!):


Accounts to follow (on Instagram) 
  • @ibramxk
  • @ijeomaoluo
  • @luvvie
  • @ckyourprivilege
  • @decolonizethisplace
  • @theconsciouskid
  • @laylafsaad
  • @teachandtransform
  • @rachel.cargle
  • @lilnativeboy
  • @3tokenbrowngirls
  • @Gabestorres
  • @alokvmenon
  • @britthawthorne
  • @southasians4blacklives
Books to read:
  • This Book is Antiracist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do The Work by Tiffany Jewell (it is currently out of stock from most online sellers, but local bookstores may have it, and we will look into getting more copies when they are back in stock)
  • Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, Ibram X. Kendi
  • Black Is the Body: Stories from My Grandmother's Time, My Mother's Time, and Mine, Emily Bernard
Podcasts to listen to:
  • Code Switch (NPR)
  • Momentum: a Race Forward Podcast
  • 1619 Project (NYT): podcast and literary project
  • The Combahee River Collective Statement
  • Intersectionality Matters!
  • “My Mortality Matters: the Voices and Lives of Black Men,” John Taylor, Spotify
Films/TV shows to watch:
  • 13th, Ava DuVernay, Netflix
  • When They See Us, Ava DuVernay, Netflix
  • Selma, Ava DuVernay, Netflix
  • Dear White People, Justin Simien, Netflix
  • The Hate U Give, Hulu
  • Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975, available to rent
  • Clemency, available to rent
  • The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, available to rent
  • I Am Not Your Negro (James Baldwin documentary), available to rent
Books to read (especially for White Antiracism Practitioners):*
  • How to Be an Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi
  • Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F Saad
  • Uprooting Racism: How White People Can Work for Racial Justice, Paul Kivel
  • So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
  • White Fragility, Robin DiAngelo
*If you decide to read, I encourage you to lean into discomfort, lean into emotion, and open up to other people about how you can do the work on your own antiracist journey (which, for all of us, has no endpoint).
**If you are looking to buy any of these books and they are out of stock with online sellers, please do not pay a price that booksellers like Amazon are price gouging. Look at independent bookstores and their websites if you are able! You can also try:
https://www.powells.com/
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The Cambridge School of Weston is a progressive high school for day and boarding students in grades 9–12 and PG. CSW's mission is to provide a progressive education that emphasizes deep learning, meaningful relationships, and a dynamic program that inspires students to discover who they are and what their contribution is to their school, their community and the world.