Equity and Anti-Racist Work
Equity and Anti-Racist Work
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“The only way to undo racism is to consistently identify it and describe it—and then dismantle it.” Ibram X. Kendi
“The only way to undo racism is to consistently identify it and describe it—and then dismantle it.” Ibram X. Kendi
Anti-racism is the “active process of identifying and eliminating racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies and practices and attitudes, so that power is redistributed and shared equitably.”
Anti-racism is the “active process of identifying and eliminating racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies and practices and attitudes, so that power is redistributed and shared equitably.”
– from the National Action Committee on the Status of Women International Perspectives: Women and Global Solidarity
Becoming an anti-racist is always a work in progress, seldom yields perfection, and differs depending on who you are.
Becoming an anti-racist is always a work in progress, seldom yields perfection, and differs depending on who you are.
Anneliese A. Singh in The Racial Healing Handbook suggests that there are different pathways for different people but that we can all be racist and/or anti-racist.
For example, Singh suggest that becoming an anti-racist as a white person means taking responsibility for your power and privilege, acknowledging the feelings you have to increased multiculturalism, cultivating a desire for understanding and growth, etc.
Becoming an anti-racist as a person of color means recognizing that there are important class differences between people of color, understanding that all racial groups are struggling in some way under White supremacy, realizing that people of color groups are not always united in solidarity, and challenging internalized White supremacy, etc.
The Racial Healing Handbook proposes that all anti-racists must commit to taking individual and collective action as well as engaging in relationship-building beyond their own racialized identity.
Becoming an anti-racist means having an anti-racist agenda.
Becoming an anti-racist means having an anti-racist agenda.
An anti-racist agenda “offers an understanding or explanation of race, racism, and the particular racial formations that develop in and around the classroom or program in question.
It defines and explains the particular realms of experience that both individuals and groups find themselves involved in at that site or classroom.
This means the agenda may discuss how racism tends to be a part of the structures and mechanisms of grading in writing classrooms, in teacher feedback, in the ways that the school admits and places students into classes, in how and what it values in writing and how those values are related to larger dominant discourses. It explains the particular brands of whiteness and whiteliness that occur in the classroom and in assessments. […]
When it comes to race, racism, and antiracist work, it is important that everyone feels safe, but equally important that many also feel uncomfortable. It’s only through discomfort, perhaps pain and suffering, that we grow, develop, and change for the better.”
– from Frankie Condon and Vershawn Ashanti Young, Performing an Anti-Racist Pedagogy, 2017)
Practices that help us become anti-racist
Practices that help us become anti-racist
(adapted from Wheaten College in MA)
- Begin with your personal reflection on your socialization and your world view.
This begins with understanding the forms racism takes, understanding white privilege, and for those willing to do a deep dive, engaging with critical race theory!
It is important to understand that racism in this context is expressed in individual lives as well as particular institutional challenges.
Even if you already understand that your life experience cannot be assumed as universal, learning about how racism shapes all our lives allows for more informed anti-racist work.
Communities of color have been impacted directly or vicariously through media accounts by the criminalization of immigration, and increases in deportations and detention.
2. Take action as your role as an educator.
2. Take action as your role as an educator.
Racism is often embedded when we make assumptions about what students should be like, what they should know before your class begins, what comportment they should enact in their meeting with you, and notions about their capacities to self-discipline.
What we believe to be the core of our discipline, our best practices as advisers, and the sense of our organizational schema — all have to be interrogated as they likely carry legacies of racism and colonialism.
There are many robust pedagogical approaches for organizing your teaching and ensuring that you are ready to engage in difficult discussions.
Three immediate action steps:
Schedule learning and action into every week.
Identify relationships that you want to build and strengthen.
Think about your role: what changes do you need to make by you in your practice?
At Northview, we will...
At Northview, we will...
listen.
educate ourselves and others.
speak our truths and use our voice to promote the well-being of others.
use every opportunity to ask the hard questions and enact policy that is fundamentally antiracist.
work to promote equality within our organization, our industry and our community
Below are some of the things we are watching, listening to, learning from, and reflecting about as we work to dismantle racism. Click on the images below to access the material.
What We're Waching
What We're Waching
Black Youth Resilience in Minnesota
Black Youth Resilience in Minnesota
Call to Mind correspondent Alisa Roth was joined by a panel of youth and mental health experts for an in-depth, interactive virtual town hall discussion.
Celebrating Black Voices
Celebrating Black Voices
Each episode features a children’s book about the Black experience written by a Black author and read aloud by a Black celebrity.
Hair Love
Hair Love
Oscar-winning short film.
What We're Practicing
What We're Practicing
21 Day Racial Equity Challenge
21 Day Racial Equity Challenge
For 21 days, do one action to further your understanding of power, privilege, supremacy, oppression, and equity. It includes suggestions for readings, podcasts, videos, observations, and ways to form and deepen community connections.
10 Keys to Everyday Anti-Racism
10 Keys to Everyday Anti-Racism
The founders of a new organization, the AntiRacist Table, suggest tools you can use to work against prejudice and inequality.
What We're Reading
What We're Reading
What Anti-Racism Really Means for Educators
What Anti-Racism Really Means for Educators
As anti-racism becomes a popular goal for schools across the nation, this TT advisory board member considers what it really means to be an anti-racist educator. Teaching Tolerance
All Students Need Anti-Racism Education
All Students Need Anti-Racism Education
Schools across the nation are committing to the all-important work of anti-racism. Schools with predominately white or privileged students should be no exception.Teaching Tolerance
Talk About Race
Talk About Race
As an educator, I care about my students' racial consciousness and want to develop their racial awareness.
Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
How the Stress of Racism Affects Learning
How the Stress of Racism Affects Learning
A new study shows that the pressures associated with discrimination contribute to the achievement gap.
The Atlantic
How Ibram X. Kendi's Definition of Antiracism Applies to Schools
How Ibram X. Kendi's Definition of Antiracism Applies to Schools
What We're Listening To
What We're Listening To
Let's Talk
Let's Talk
How to lay the groundwork and facilitate critical conversations with students. Additional Let's Talk webinars are also available that include topics of race, gender, whiteness, and Black Lives Matter.
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