Racial Justice

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Critical Ethnic Studies MA Degree – DePaul University

DePaul University’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences is pleased to offer the first graduate program in a new and exciting field that utilizes Chicago as a living classroom. 

The Master of Arts in Critical Ethnic Studies prepares students for advanced analysis of race and ethnicity in an urban and global context. It provides an interdisciplinary approach to the studies of systematic marginalization of racialized minorities. It also looks at how racialized groups respond to and counter these forces through art, culture, political organization and other forms of social citizenship. 
We emphasize social justice and transformation while focusing on U.S. ethno-racial populations through an intersectional, transnational, and urban framework. Students apply critical theories to complex social and cultural issues. The program consists of a combination of core courses and electives and a final project or internship.

Source: las.depaul.edu

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WHAT STANDS BETWEEN US – Lee Mun Wah

 

James Baldwin once said that “America is one tough town.” Those words came back to me as I thought of what is going on these past few weeks in Ferguson, Missouri. So much of the focus has been on the issue of a white police officer killing a young black man, Michael Brown, but almost nothing is said about the environment that creates these types of scenarios that are becoming all too familiar in describing the state of racial relations in the United States, particularly how they negatively impact African Americans.  Often, when the issue of a racial divide arises or is even intimated, denial and shock quickly fills the room, as was evidenced in the past two days when an all white male Fox News panel showed disdain for Capt. Ron Johnson (who is Black) for sympathizing with the African American community over the killing of Michael Brown. Bo Dietl, immediately said, “We’re dividing black and white again. America has no color, it’s all one color.” So often times I have wondered…so, what is that ‘one color’ and what would it mean if we did see color?

Soon afterwards, the mayor of Ferguson declared that “There’s not a racial divide in Ferguson.” One of the great myths in this country is that if we say that ‘everything is fine’ loud and long enough, the problem will go away. This is perhaps because as someone once said, “When the truth becomes too hard to bear, we create another.”

 

So what kinds of environments, attitudes, and behaviors ‘create’ a racial divide?  First of all, having an almost all white police force creates an ‘ethnic vacuum’ that shields the white officers from ever having to see outside their ‘white bubble’ or to get feedback on their actions and attitudes from someone who is non-white. Another is never interviewing officers prior to hire to see if they possess any racial prejudices towards any particular group of people and how that might heighten their perceptions and feelings of distrust and fearing for their safety. This may explain why so many blacks are shot repeatedly, sometimes over twenty times.

 

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Source: www.stirfryseminars.com

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Fatal Invention with Dorothy Roberts – AUDIO

New History Podcasts with BerniceBennett on BlogTalkRadio

Fatal Invention: How Science, Politics, and Big Business Re-create Race in the Twenty-first Century

Dorothy Roberts, an acclaimed scholar of race, gender and the law.

 

“Every time there is a census there is a different definition of race.”

-Dorothy Roberts

 

Source: www.blogtalkradio.com

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What White Children Need to Know About Race

 

Silence is a racial message and a “tool of whiteness.” In order to support the goals of their diversity mission statements and work toward a “racially just America,” schools need to take a more proactive approach to teaching white students about race and racial identity.
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Students must develop a sense of how systemic racism works on an individual, community, and institutional level.

 

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Source: www.nais.org

 

Many white people do not have an urgency about racial injustice.

 

Many white people live in segregated communities where they do not see racial injustice. Unless people tune into the right media channels, they are not going to have a feeling for the insidiousness of racial injustice.

 

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RACIAL EQUALITY OR RACIAL EQUITY? THE DIFFERENCE IT MAKES

 

“If you opt for equal funding per school, racial gaps will remain, and you will not address existing racial inequities.  If you opt for equitable funding, the outcome is that students in School B above now have the opportunity to perform along the lines of students in School A, which they would not have had if you had distributed funding equally. ”

 
See on racemattersinstitute.org

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The Color of Wealth: The Story Behind the U.S. Racial Wealth Divide

 

“For every dollar owned by the average white family in the United States, the average family of color has less than a dime. Why do people of color have so little wealth? The Color of Wealth lays bare a dirty secret: for centuries, people of color have been barred by laws and by discrimination from participating in government wealth-building programs that benefit white Americans.”

 

 

Community Village‘s insight:

 

Book recommended by Joanna Shoffner Scott and Paula Dressel of Race Matters Institute

 

See on www.amazon.com

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Unintentional Racism

Unintentional racism starts with unconscious bias.

Accidental-Racism-2Unconscious bias

Psychologists tell us that our unconscious biases are simply our natural people preferences.  Biologically we are hard-wired to prefer people who look like us, sound like us and share our interests. Social psychologists call this phenomenon “social categorisation‟ whereby we routinely and rapidly sort people into groups. This preference bypasses our normal, rational and logical thinking. We use these processes very effectively (we call it intuition) but the categories we use to sort people are not logical, modern or perhaps even legal. Put simply, our neurology takes us to the very brink of bias and poor decision making. –Tinu Cornish and Dr Pete Jones

To learn more check Understanding Unconscious Bias and Unintentional Racism


This clip features Barbie-Danielle DeCarlo, Rinku Sen, Suzanne LePeintre, Tilman Smith, Tim Wise, Robin Parker, and Yuko Kodama.


Jump to 5:02 for the full story on the shooting of Amadou Diallo (age 23), which reminds me of the shootings of Jonathan Ferrell (age 24), Oscar Grant (age 22), Jordan Davis (age 17), and Trayvon Martin (age 17) – all unarmed Black men.


“In The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B. DuBois suggested that the question white people so often want to ask black people is, How does it feel to be a problem? This program turns the tables and recognizes some simple facts: Race problems have their roots in a system of white supremacy. White people invented white supremacy. Therefore, the color of the race problem is white. White people are the problem. White people have to ask ourselves: How does it feel to be a problem?”

Individuals need to become less focused on feeling very tolerant and good about themselves and more focused on examining their own biases. -Jean Moule

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“But You Speak So Well”: How Latinos Experience Subtle Racism

“By Silvia L. Mazzula, PhD (Asst. Professor of Psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, CUNY). Dr. Mazzula is also the President-Elect of the Latino Psychological Association of New Jersey.

 

What kinds of microaggressions do Latinas/os experience?

If you are Latina or Latino, you may have heard comments such as, “Wow, you speak so well… You are not like them… You are really smart… OR You are different and they will really like you.” You might even be asked repeatedly where you are from if your first answer is a city or state in the U.S.

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How I personally check against microaggressions

I  am conscious to not laugh or participate in racial or ethnic jokes that demean, stereotype, or “other” groups that are different than me (even like me).  When I’m feeling a little bold, I even point out to the “jokester” that they are being microaggressive.  This also includes ending racist and microaggressive jokes at my own dinner table. It may not be much, but it’s one simple thing that I can actively do.

 

What you can do to address microaggressions

Addressing microaggressive acts can be difficult and taxing to your emotional well being, especially with your loved ones and in your professional lives.  Sometimes, it’s helpful to first process the experience with someone who understands.  Speaking to someone who understands will not only help you think through what happened, but also help validate that what you experienced was real and that there is nothing wrong with you.

 

Community Village‘s insight:

 

In California I don’t see many people saying “you speak so well” to Latinos.

 

However, I do see microaggressions frequently. Usually around comments about “those” people, or “those” neighborhoods, or mentioning someone’s skin color when it has nothing to do with the conversation (skin color was mentioned at my work if you can believe it – not just mentioned – it was like – “oh you got really brown”). They didnt’ say it as a compliment. Someone elese piped up and said “She’s golden brown.”.

 

A co-worker told a racist joke at a previous company I worked for. Both my wife and I experienced racist customers when we worked at Orchard Supply Hardware. A customer told my wife that he would run her over if he saw her in the parking lot.

 

People really have been run over and killed from racists.

 

I’m ashamed to say that, to this day, not once have I called these people out for their inappropriate words while I was at work.

 

The time I did call someone out was a family member – and that confrontation escalated so far so fast, we no longer talk to that family – even though it was only one member of that family who had the issue with “Latinos”.

 

@getgln

See on psychologybenefits.org