Understanding and Confronting Racism Educational Resources
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UNDERSTANDING AND CONFRONTING RACISM Tools to build inclusive excellence in the Commonwealth of Virginia Governor’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Contents Message from the Governor’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion 03 Self-awareness and Reflection 04 Social Awareness and Relationship Building 05 Institutional and Structural 07 Culture 09 Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice 10 Education 14 Allyship 16 Housing 19 Organizing and Movements 20 The information within this document is only intended as general summary information that is made available for educational and reference purposes. The information is not intended to provide specific advice. References within this document to any specific commercial products, process or service, manufacturer, company, or trademark does not constitute its endorsement or recommendation by the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Governor’s Office or any of the Commonwealth’s Secretariats or other divisions, its officers or employees. The Office of the Governor and the Commonwealth of Virginia do not receive any financial gain nor does it seek to promote any of these references. This material may include useful hypertext links, pointers, or external hyperlinks to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations and persons. The inclusion of these links does not constitute endorsement or recommendation by the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Governor’s Office or any of the Commonwealth’s Secretariats or other divisions of the linked web resources or the information, products, or services contained therein. We provide these links and pointers solely for your information and convenience. The Commonwealth does not exercise any control over the content on these sites. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Governor’s Office or any of the Commonwealth’s Secretariats or other divisions, its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Governor’s Office or any of the Commonwealth’s Secretariats or other divisions endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service. 2 Message From The Governor's Office Of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion iversity, equity, and inclusive excellence are the values that guide Dthe work of the Governor’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODE&I). Our collective impact and success in furthering these principles especially in support of goal three of the ONE Virginia Plan depends on how we individually seek lifelong learning related to DE&I. Making business decisions through a DE&I lens will increase organizational effectiveness, team cohesion and strength, and provide an economic and social return on investment. Beyond recruitment and retention of top talent, operationalizing these values can help drive results toward each team’s core mission. As such, adopting DE&I-driven policies and practices is mission-critical for all Virginia teams. In what follows, you will find a collection of resources including articles, books, podcasts, videos, and programs about a range of topics addressing different facets and dimensions of structural racism and inequity. Education is a necessary but insufficient first step toward mitigating structural inequity. However, it is my hope that our increased awareness in education will lead to structural change and get us closer to the original constitutional promise of equal opportunity for all. We hope this information is useful as we seek collective impact to identify a positive path forward. As we learn together from these and other educational resources, we should consider ways to operationalize lessons to improve DE&I across Virginia teams. The Honorable Dr. Janice Underwood, Ph.D. We will update this guide as new content becomes available. We Chief Diversity Officer of the Commonwealth will also be adding discussion protocols and study guides for the Office of the Governor resources. Please share these resources with others, and also share with us any resources we may have overlooked by contacting us at DE&[email protected]. A special note of thanks to Dr. Veleka Gatling, Director of Diversity Initiatives and the President’s Task Force for Inclusive Excellence at Old Dominion University for collaborating with ODE&I in the creation of these resources. In Service to the Commonwealth of Virginia, The Honorable Dr. Janice Underwood Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer Office of the Governor 1111 East Broad St. Richmond, VA 23219 (804) 786-2211 she/her/herself/Ms./Dr. 3 Self-Awareness and Reflection ARTICLES Talking About Race | National Museum of African American History and Culture A conversation on what anti-racism is from the NMAAHC Smithsonian. This page includes many links to other resources including the National Equity Project Implicit Bias PDF. How to Overcome Our Biases? Walk Boldly Toward Them Verná Myers, VP of Inclusion Strategy at Netflix, discusses how to boldly walk into your biases. Internalized Racism Inventory | Cultural Bridges to Justice A set of questions that are helpful in individual and group settings to unearth subconscious forms of racism. BOOKS My Grandmother’s Hands | Resmaa Menakem Resmaa Menakem examines the damage caused by racism in America from the perspective of body-centered psychology. He argues this destruction will continue until Americans learn to heal the generational anguish of white supremacy, which is deeply embedded in all our bodies. My Grandmother’s Hands is a call to action for all of us to recognize that racism is not about the head, but about the body, and introduces an alternative view of what we can do to grow beyond our entrenched racialized divide. Dare to Lead | Brené Brown Brené Brown has taught us what it means to dare greatly, rise strong, and brave the wilderness. Now, based on new research conducted with leaders, change makers, and culture shifters, she’s showing us how to put those ideas into practice so we can step up and lead. The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together | Heather McGhee The Sum of Us is a brilliant analysis of how we arrived here: divided and self-destructing, materially rich but spiritually starved and vastly unequal. McGhee marshals economic and sociological research to paint an irrefutable story of racism’s costs, but at the heart of the book are the humble stories of people yearning to be part of a better America, including white supremacy’s collateral victims: white people themselves. Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 | Edited by Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain Four Hundred Souls is a unique one-volume “community” history of African Americans. The editors, Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain, have assembled 90 brilliant writers, each of whom takes on a five-year period of that 400-year span. They approach history from various perspectives: through the eyes of towering historical icons or the untold stories of ordinary people; through places, laws, and objects. 4 Social Awareness and Relationship Building ARTICLES What is Intersectionality? | Dr. Kimberlé Crenshaw Kimberlé Crenshaw, a 2017 NAIS People of Color Conference speaker, civil rights advocate, and professor at UCLA School of Law and Columbia Law School, talks about intersectional theory, the study of how overlapping or intersecting social identities—and particularly minority identities—relate to systems and structures of discrimination. Eliminating Microaggressions: The Next Level of Inclusion | Tiffany Alvoid In this article, Alvoid lays out how this behavior manifests itself, the role you play, and what you can do to avoid perpetuating its continued existence in society. Racial Microaggressions in Everyday Life Clinical Practice Journal article written by: Derald Wing Sue, Christina M. Capodilupo, Gina C. Torino, Jennifer M. Bucceri, Aisha M. B. Holder, Kevin L. Nadal, and Marta Esquilin Teachers College, Columbia University. How to Begin Talking About Race in the Workplace “To eradicate systemic racism, it is important for managers to empower employees and provide them with resources for having productive conversations about race,” writes Wharton management professor Stephanie Creary in this opinion piece. Here, she offers her own framework for middle managers in corporate environments who would like to initiate conversations about race in the workplace. Template for Holding Your Employer Accountable for Racial Justice | Rachel Cargle A template that will support you in being intentional about holding yourself and other white people in your company accountable for racial justice. BOOKS So You Want to Talk About Race | Ijeoma Oluo In So You Want to Talk About Race, editor-at-large of The Establishment Ijeoma Oluo offers a contemporary, accessible take on the racial landscape in America, addressing head-on such issues as privilege, police brutality, intersectionality, microaggressions, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the “N” word. Perfectly positioned to bridge the gap between people of color and white Americans struggling with race complexities, Oluo answers the questions listeners don’t dare ask and explains the concepts that continue to elude everyday Americans. Between the World and Me | Ta-Nehisi Coates