Skip to content

October #1

Who’s Racial Justice Rising?? Where’s Mass Slavery Apology?

We’re still doing the same work, and we think our new name, Racial Justice Rising, better reflects of our goals and mission. Mass Slavery Apology continues as the name our statement of apology for slavery – the project that got us started. (We hope you will read it and, if so moved, add your signature and share it with others.)

Welcome new readers

The members of Racial Justice Rising are ordinary people who are troubled by the persistent racism that plagues this country. Believing that the damage caused by racism must be repaired before our society can be whole, we work for just and respectful treatment for all. We share a vision of a multi-racial, multi-cultural, multi-lingual, and multi-faith community.

Our mission is to work for racial justice and system change by:

  • Bringing more people into the anti-racism movement by reaching out, especially to white people, with resources that encourage a deeper understanding of systemic racism and racial justice.
  • Using Mass Slavery Apology, our statement of apology for slavery, to build public acknowledgement of the legacy of slavery and public support for reparations.
  • Addressing conditions of injustice in our own communities.

While much of our work is focused in our local area of Franklin County, MA, we reach out to and are connected with the broader movements in our region and the nation.

Racial Justice Rising’s activities:

That’s Mel Motel facilitating the conversation at our 10/3/15 program, MASS INCARCERATION & IMAGINING ALTERNATIVES.  More info about the program. More photos.

Join us at our free monthly programs in Greenfield:

All programs are at the First Congregational Church of Greenfield, 43 Silver Street, Greenfield MA 01301, almost always on the first Saturday morning of the month. (A big thank you to the First Congregational Church of Greenfield for your support!) Free snacks and childcare. For more info: email@massslaveryapology.org or www.massslaveryapology.org

Saturday, November 7:  1676 and Beyond: Tribes, Race, & Untold History with David Tall Pine White of the Nipmuc Tribe and David Brule of the Nolumbeka project. (click image below for more info)

 

Check out our new YouTube channel! 

We will be posting videos of our programs, and more. Currently available:

– One People, One Earth! with Brother NorthStar

– Black Lives/Black History with Gloria De,Layne Matlock and Adam Matlock
– Video of the April 14 Black Lives Matter action in Springfield MA.

 

Articles, websites, and other resources (see our Facebook page for more!)

Black Lives Matter

– Alicia Garza and ColorofChange say, The US government sees the #BlackLivesMatter movement as a terrorist threat and are using counter-terrorism units to spy on activists and intimidate them. Donate now to expose the FBI’s & DHS’s illegal surveillance.

Black History

– Voices from The Movement from Black Lives Matter Syllabus – dozens of videos & more

Columbus Day

– From Unsettling America: You Are Still Being Lied To: Howard Zinn’s “Columbus & Western Civilization

Criminal Justice & Injustice

– September series on mass incarceration at The Atlantic

– Slavery Never Died, It Reinvented Itself, an article about mass incarceration by Whitney Bens at The Atlantic

Decolonization

– Why Racial Justice Work Needs To Address Settler Colonialism and Native Rights, by Rachel Kuo at Everyday Feminism

– No One Is Illegal, Canada is Illegal! Negotiating the relationships between settler colonialism and border imperialism through political slogans, by Craig Fortier at Decolonization, Indigeneity, Education, and Society

Education/Children

– Why They Don’t Teach Black History in School, a video with Dr. Joy Degruy

– Rewriting History, for the Better, by Dave Constantin at Teaching Tolerance

–Why I Teach My 2-Year-Old About Race, by Michelle Acker Perez at the Washington Post

– McGraw Hill Rewrites Textbook After Whitewashing Slavery, from SHINE

– How To Talk To Kids About Racism in America – with a picture book by Colton Valentine at the Huffington Post

Health Care

– Racism in the ER, by Sheryl Estrada at Diversity, Inc.

Immigration

– New Research Studies Immigration Assimilation and Busts Stereotypes, by Kenrya Rankin Naasel at Colorlines

Indigenous Lives

– $940 million Justice Dept. settlement to 645 Native American tribes, from Jay Syrmopolis at The Free Thought Project.

– 11 Essential Native American Films, from Indian Country Today

Latino Lives

– The Beautiful, Complex Blaxicans of Los Angeles, by Jorge Rivas in Fusion

Muslim Lives

– High school students walk out over Facebook post about Muslims, by Tim Post at MPR News

– I’m Muslim But I’m Not…, a film from Buzzfeed

Racism, general info

– Are You Racist? 28 Common Racist Attitudes and Behaviors, from Odin’s B-Log

– 9 TED Talks to help you understand racism in America

Reparations

– Jamaica is Calling on Britain To Pay Millions in Reparations by Rowena Mason at Business Insider

White Privilege/White Activism

– Local activists talk about BlackLivesMatter on Occupy the Airwaves at Valley Free Radio – including Matthew from Racial Justice Rising & speakers from Western MA SURJ and the David Ruggles Center.

– Call for submissions: 2Leaf Press seeks submissions for a new anthology, What Does It Mean To be White In America

– White Women’s Tears and the Men Who Love Them, a new article by Robin DiAngelo at The Good Men Project

– Jews in America Struggled to Become White. Now We Must Give Up Whiteness to Fight Racism, by Gil Steinlauf in the Washington Post

Other groups’ events:

 Thank you, readers who send us information for these newsletters!  We welcome links to articles, videos, event listings, and other resources.

Shen

Racial Justice Rising

* Find us on Facebook *
 

– We welcome your feedback!

– Please share with others who might be interested.
– To be removed from this email list, please reply with “remove” in the subject line.

Skip to content