2020 Response from White Educators

2020 Response from White Educators
Posted on 06/07/2020
Dear CSUS Community,

Through our conversations with scholars, we know they are feeling angry, hopeless, confused. Biased news reports and misinformation on social media about current events surrounding systemic racism against Black people have left many of our CSUS scholars and educators anxious and overwhelmed.

We understand as White educators that we can not be silent. Too often Black educators are expected to be the ones initiating conversations about systemic racism with scholars. At CSUS, through cultural proficiency seminars, we are prepared as White educators to lean into discomfort when facilitating difficult conversations with scholars about systemic racism, police brutality, and the widespread violence sparked by outrage across the country.

We recognize that school may be one of the places where scholars receive important information about living in a racialized world. We are fortunate in Cambridge to partner with community members and caregivers in this work. If you are looking for resources, here are some that we have found valuable. These have been helpful in our conversations with scholars as well as conversations we have as a staff in our weekly Cultural Proficiency seminars. The goal of our work has been and continues to be to support scholars in practicing anti-racism. We urge you to take a look and start anywhere!

It is our intent to continue the conversation with the CSUS community. Summer is fast approaching but we encourage scholars and caregivers to continue to reach out to their CSUS family after the closing of the school year.

In solidarity,

Stephen Abreu
Laura Ahn (Asian American)
Elizabeth Anderson
Abbie Baldwin
Marisa Berenbaum
Debra Cerundolo
Aimee Chanler
Norah Connolly
Angela DePalma
Dan Fusco
Daniel Georgette
Tracey Gordon
April Hanlon
Connie Henderson
Colleen Ives
Anita Jain
Marissa Jones
Emily Kronhaus
Kerri Lyons
Karolyn Maws
Jackie Murphy
Becca Pearl
Maria Papathanasiou
Rebecca Price
Jamie Ricciardi
Ashley Rosso
Joumana Salameh-Cafferty
Kendal Schwarz
Allison Scully
April Silbert
Laura Smith
Maggie Smyth
Sarah Symes
Kini Udovicki

Anti-Racism Resources For Caregivers
Where to Find Books
10 Black-Owned Bookstores to Support
List of Black-Owned Bookstores in the US
Cambridge Public Library
Frugal Bookstore

“Where Should I Start?”
Resources: Anti-Racism for Beginners
How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
So You Want to Talk About Race? by Ijeoma Oluo
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo
Freedom is a Constant Struggle by Angela Davis
Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
● Article: “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Peggy McIntosh

“How do I raise an anti-racist scholar?”
“31 Children's books to support conversations on race, racism and resistance” (EmbraceRace)
“10 tips for teaching and talking to kids about race” (EmbraceRace)
“These Books Can Help You Explain Racism and Protest to Your Kids” (NY Times)
“Talking to kids about race” (National Geographic)
“'Raising White Kids' Author On How White Parents Can Talk About Race” (NPR)

“I need to unlearn and relearn history”

● PDF: The 1619 Project from The New York Times
The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein
Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America by Ronald Takaki
The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
Walking With the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement by John Lewis
Talking Back, Talking Black: Truths About America’s Lingua Franca by John McWhorter
Rethinking Incarceration by Dominique DuBois Gilliard

“I want more resources!”
Full List of Anti-racist Resources
Cultural Proficiency at CSUS

Current Events
News Summaries

“What books should I read?”
Blended by Sharon Draper
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams
Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jaqueline Woodson
Just Mercy: Adapted for Young Adults by Bryan Stevenson
Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes
Dear Martin by Nic Stone
A Good Kind of Trouble by Lisa Moore Renee
March (series) by John Lewis (Graphic Novels)
This Book is Antiracist by Tiffany Jewell
Hope Nation: YA Authors Share Personal Moments of Inspiration By Rose Brock (Editor), Angie Thomas, Jason Reynolds, Nicola Yoon, Marie Lu
● Book List: 45 BLACK YOUNG ADULT NOVELS TO ADD TO YOUR TBR

“Who should I follow?”
● Jason Reynolds @Jasonreynolds83
● Jacqueline Woodson @JackieWoodson @jacqueline_woodson
● Amandla Stenberg @amandlastenberg
● Yara Shahidi @YaraShahidi
● Ava Duvernay @ava
● Amanda Seals @amandaseales
● Trevor Noah @trevornoah
● Jesse Williams @ijessewilliams
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