Most of us are still recovering from the blatant display of violent disrespect and assault on the U.S. Capitol last week. In the midst of trying to catch our individual and collective breath from this blow, organizations are issuing response statements. Many response statements contain the static and predictable formula: “this is not us” + tears(passive condemnation) = 0.
A perfect example of this formula can be found within the response statement from the University of Michigan:
The past year has been sorrowfully saturated with evidence that we have some serious work and healing to do around race in America. We have come face-to-face with deeply seeded generational truths. Left unattended and festering in the dark recesses of our nation’s conscious, our past has spilled over, soiling our present. Our future depends on the extent to which we hold, honor, and heal from the pain of existing within a racist society.
For many of us, we are experiencing this gut feeling that we have got to do something. Deep down we are certain that something has got…
Red Lotus Consulting and Kaitlyn S.C. Hatch have joined collaborative forces to create Libations & Liberation!
Libations & Liberations are brief connections where Kait and I come together for unscripted conversations. Within a span of 30 minutes (max!), we sip yummy drinks and muse over various terms, topics, notions, fears, and — of course the joys related to the work of moving ourselves out of oppression and into liberation.
The inaugural episode of Libations & Liberation is out! Join me and Kait as we sip and chat about allies in race work.
Over the weekend, I took some time to reflect on Maurice Berger, an author and brilliant voice of our time who lost his life several months ago due to complications from COVID-19. During his life, Berger authored several pieces of work on the topic of race, including White Lies: Race and the Myths of Whiteness (Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, 1999). Albeit a couple of decades old, White Lies is an “oldie but goodie” and continues to support me and the work I do for racial justice. On the topic of racsim, Berger penned:
“The worst kind of racism was no…
Photo Credit: @angelinabambina
While many organizations are engaged in cultivating social justice out in the world, they are simultaneously struggling with how best to address the multiple layers of internal injustices that create unwelcoming work environments, particularly for black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPoC). This past August, Portland Women in Technology (PDXWiT) published the 2019 State of the Community . The report offered findings from a survey of just over five thousand respondents in the tech world for the purpose of gauging the sector’s health when it comes to matters of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). …
The brutal, soul-wrenching race-based murders of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Rayshard Brooks demand that white people move away from the calloused benefits afforded to them within an unjust racial structure.
In the battle against terrorism and in pursuit of racial justice, the only meaningful position white people can hold in dismantling the master’s house (aka white supremacy) is putting in the time, blood, sweat, and tears to develop an identity that is inherently antithetical to whiteness. During the past several weeks, I have been asked by several white people, “What can I do?” The short answer to…
S. Rae Peoples
Mother. Teacher. Agitator.
