It looks like you're using Internet Explorer 11 or older. This website works best with modern browsers such as the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge. If you continue with this browser, you may see unexpected results.
Anti-Black Racism and other forms of Oppression in Science and Society
In an effort at full disclosure, it should be noted that I developed this guide occupy some of the oppressed identities outlined here, but not all of them. I have attempted to bring together quality, relevant resources for the anti-oppression issues in this guide, and I am specifically looking at Anti Blackness and Islamophobia and welcome others to create guides for other issues.
I welcome and greatly appreciate any feedback and suggestions for the guide, particularly from people with similar perspectives and experiences not listed here.
Introduction
Dear MUSC and all of mankind,
The evil of the world is trying to suffocate us with racism, oppression, colonization, and white supremacy (it is important to name the problems). On the night of June 3, 2020,MUSChosted a Town Hall
This is Us: Discussion on Race and Culture.Forthose who missed it, a recording will be posted here if possible. In the meantime, here is a curatedlist of resources that provides a range of information. Please share resources that you have found useful and I will post them here. By providing access to resources at your fingertips can the culture change. Keep in mind this is just a start.
In When They Call You a Terrorist, BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors and asha bandele share a gut-wrenching and powerful memoir of the prejudice and persecution so many black Americans experience at the hands of law enforcement. White people have become so desensitised to seeing black lives snuffed out on their mobile phones that they are often unable to connect the dots to see that each person had loved ones, desires, relationships, quirks and dreams. This memoir draws our attention not only to the statistics and atrocities committed against black Americans, but also to the humanity of those whose lives were taken, and those who, still living, continue to fight for justice for us all.
In her collection of essays and speeches Sister Outsider, Audre Lorde famously wrote: “Revolution is not a one-time event.” In order to understand what we are seeing on the news and experiencing in our lives, it’s important to understand how history has shaped this moment. Reaching back to books published by black thinkers and feminists decades ago shows us (depressingly) how things are still very much the same, but also (empoweringly) gives us language and context for understanding what we are seeing now – and therefore the ability to disrupt tactics of oppression that still operate today.
Poet and activist Audre Lorde lectures students in 1983 at the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida. Photograph: Robert Alexander/Getty Images
In order to dismantle white supremacy, we must be able to clearly name it. So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo answers some of the most common questions we hear from white people about racism in chapters such as, “Why am I always being told to ‘check my privilege’?”, “Is police brutality really about race?” and “What are microaggressions?”
People are currently asking themselves what can we do in this moment. How can we show up both in the streets, and in our homes? And how can we do so in a way that is smart, sustainable and effective? Road Map for Revolutionaries by Elisa Camahort Page, Carolyn Gerin and Jamia Wilson is a handbook for people of all ages and backgrounds who are ready to step into advocacy and activism, but don’t know where to begin. This beautiful guide covers topics such as staying safe at protests, supporting marginalised communities, online privacy and how to keep up the fight for the long term.
... and are marching for justice in unprecedented numbers. In small towns and big cities across the country, thousands of people are giving voice to the grief and anger that generations of black Americans have suffered at the hands of the criminal justice system. Young and old, black and white, family and friends have joined together to say: enough.
The unconscionable examples of racism over the last weeks and months come as America's communities of color have been hit hardest by the coronavirus and catastrophic job losses. This is a perfect storm hitting black Americans. Meanwhile, the political leadership suggests that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts”. The president who promised to end the “American carnage” is in danger of making it worse.
At a time like this, an independent news organisation that fights for truth and holds power to account is not just optional. It is essential. Because we believe every one of us deserves equal access to fact-based news and analysis, we’ve decided to keep Guardian journalism free for all readers, regardless of where they live or what they can afford to pay. This is made possible thanks to the support we receive from readers across America in all 50 states.
When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Cullors and asha bandele
ISBN: 9781786893055
So You Want to Talk about Race by Ijeoma OluoIn this New York Times bestseller, Ijeoma Oluo offers a hard-hitting but user-friendly examination of race in America Widespread reporting on aspects of white supremacy--from police brutality to the mass incarceration of Black Americans--has put a media spotlight on racism in our society. Still, it is a difficult subject to talk about. How do you tell your roommate her jokes are racist? Why did your sister-in-law take umbrage when you asked to touch her hair--and how do you make it right? How do you explain white privilege to your white, privileged friend? In So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo guides readers of all races through subjects ranging from intersectionality and affirmative action to "model minorities" in an attempt to make the seemingly impossible possible: honest conversations about race and racism, and how they infect almost every aspect of American life. "Oluo gives us--both white people and people of color--that language to engage in clear, constructive, and confident dialogue with each other about how to deal with racial prejudices and biases." --National Book Review "Generous and empathetic, yet usefully blunt . . . it's for anyone who wants to be smarter and more empathetic about matters of race and engage in more productive anti-racist action." --Salon (Required Reading)
Road Map for Revolutionaries by Carolyn Gerin; Elisa Camahort Page; Jamia WilsonA handbook for effective activism, advocacy, and social justice for people of all ages and backgrounds. Are you ready to take action and make your voice heard, but don't know how to go about it? This hands-on, hit-the-ground-running guide delivers lessons on practical tactics for navigating and protecting one's personal democracy in a gridlocked, heavily surveilled, and politically volatile country. If you want to start making a difference but don't know what to do next, Road Map for Revolutionaries provides the resources needed to help you feel safer, more empowered, invested in, and intrinsic to the American experiment. The book addresses timely topics such as staying safe at protests, supporting marginalized communities, online privacy, and how to keep up the fight for the long term, breaking down key issues and outlining action steps for local, state, and federal levels of government. Visit roadmapforrevolutionaries.com.
ISBN: 9780399581649
Publication Date: 2018-09-18
Black Fatigue by Mary-Frances WintersThis is the first book to define and explore Black fatigue, the intergenerational impact of systemic racism on the physical and psychological health of Black people--and explain why and how society needs to collectively do more to combat its pernicious effects. Black people, young and old, are fatigued, says award-winning diversity and inclusion leader Mary-Frances Winters. It is physically, mentally, and emotionally draining to continue to experience inequities and even atrocities, day after day, when justice is a God-given and legislated right. And it is exhausting to have to constantly explain this to white people, even--and especially--well-meaning white people, who fall prey to white fragility and too often are unwittingly complicit in upholding the very systems they say they want dismantled. This book, designed to illuminate the myriad dire consequences of "living while Black," came at the urging of Winters's Black friends and colleagues. Winters describes how in every aspect of life--from economics to education, work, criminal justice, and, very importantly, health outcomes--for the most part, the trajectory for Black people is not improving. It is paradoxical that, with all the attention focused over the last fifty years on social justice and diversity and inclusion, little progress has been made in actualizing the vision of an equitable society. Black people are quite literally sick and tired of being sick and tired. Winters writes that "my hope for this book is that it will provide a comprehensive summary of the consequences of Black fatigue, and awaken activism in those who care about equity and justice--those who care that intergenerational fatigue is tearing at the very core of a whole race of people who are simply asking for what they deserve."
ISBN: 9781523091317
Publication Date: 2020-09-15
Anderson, C. (2016). White rage: The unspoken truth of our racial divide. Bloomsbury USA.
Bonilla-Silva, E. (2017). Racism without racists: Color-blind racism and the persistence of racial inequality in America. Rowman & Littlefield. [5th ed.]
Crenshaw, K. (1991). Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color. Stanford Law Review, 43(6), 1241-1299.
DiAngelo, R. (2018). White fragility: Why it’s so hard for white people to talk about racism. Beacon Press.