Hey y’all. I’ve been ghosting on the blog for several months, mainly due to the pandemic/working full-time/caring for toddler full-time situation many of us find ourselves in. I did want to pop in to share some of the best resources I’ve come across in the past month or so that support racial justice, being antiracist, Black Lives Matter activism, and honor the identities and healing of BIPOC. This is an entirely incomplete and very short list, assembled from a variety of sources (listservs, professional organizations I’m part of in my full-time role at a national education nonprofit, friends, colleagues, social media activists and influencers, the library, etc.). Regardless, I have found these works helpful — maybe there’s something here that supports how you’re looking to learn, to listen, and/or to heal.
Films, Documentaries, & Videos
13th by Ava DuVernay: “Combining archival footage with testimony from activists and scholars, director Ava DuVernay’s examination of the U.S. prison system looks at how the country’s history of racial inequality drives the high rate of incarceration in America.”
CNN/Sesame Street’s town hall on 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.” This is a great resource if you have young children.
I Am Not Your Negro written by James Baldwin, directed by Raoul Peck: “I Am Not Your Negro is a journey into black history that connects the past of the Civil Rights movement to the present of #BlackLivesMatter. It is a film that questions black representation in Hollywood and beyond. And, ultimately, by confronting the deeper connections between the lives and assassination of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., Baldwin and Peck have produced a work that challenges the very definition of what America stands for.”
Just Mercy by Destin Daniel Cretton: “We believe in the power of story. Our film, Just Mercy, based on the life work of Civil Rights attorney BRYAN STEVENSON, is one resource we can humbly offer to those who are interested in learning more about the systemic racism that plagues our society.”
When They See Us by Ava DuVernay: “Not thugs. Not wilding. Not criminals. Not even the Central Park Five. They are Korey, Antron, Raymond, Yusef, Kevin. They are millions of young people of color who are blamed, judged and accused on sight.”
All of the images in this post link directly to Black-owned Etsy shops/products.
Podcasts that Focus on the History of Race, Racial Justice, and BIPOC
1619 hosted by the New York Times’s Nikole Hannah Jones: “In August of 1619, a ship carrying more than 20 enslaved Africans arrived in the English colony of Virginia. America was not yet America, but this was the moment it began. No aspect of the country that would be formed here has been untouched by the 250 years of slavery that followed. On the 400th anniversary of this fateful moment, it is time to tell the story.”
A Decade Of Watching Black People Die by the NPR Code Switch team. Takes a head-on approach exploring race, racism, antiracism, and racial justice resources in a variety of historical and present day contexts.
Boarding While Black, a podcast that examines Blackness at some of the nation’s top boarding schools and won NPR acclaim in 2018. Created and produced by one of my students, Fatoumata Soumare.
Good Ancestor with Layla F. Saad
Microaggressions Are A Big Deal: How To Talk Them Out And When To Walk Away by NPR’s Life Kit team
Books
A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn
If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
Me and White Supremacy by Layla Saad (currently reading the ebook version)
No BS (Bad Stats): Black People Need People Who Believe in Black People Enough Not to Believe Every Bad Thing They Hear About Black People by Dr. Ivory A. Toldson
So You Want to Talk about Race by Ijeoma Oluo
The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson
Scholarship Resources
Scholarships for Black & African American Students from Education Loan Finance
Scholarships for Latino & Hispanic Students from Education Loan Finance
Articles
5 ways to start being a better ally for your black coworkers by Courtney Connley
Choosing a School for My Daughter in a Segregated City by Nikole Hannah Jones
Coping with Traumatic Stress shared by Stanford and adapted from the Los Angeles County Department Of Mental Health
Maintaining Professionalism In The Age of Black Death Is….A Lot by Shenequa Golding
Self-Care as it relates to antiracist work from the National Museum of African-American History and Culture (#yoga #mindfulness)
The Case for Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates
You Want a Confederate Monument? My Body is a Confederate Monument by Caroline Randall Williams
Hashtags to Follow to Diversify Your IG Feed
#allyshipisaverb #amplifymelanatedvoices #listentoblackwomen #blackdreamsmatter #celebrateblackwomen #blackwomenslivesmatter #ourstoriesmatter #fightthesystem #iammyancestorswildestdreams #antiracistacist
If you have racial justice, antiracist, or identity resources that you feel should absolutely be included on this list, please comment and share below. <3
