Hi, friends, I don’t know about you this week has been emotionally and physically draining. I am mad and disgusted. This week has been eye-opening. This past week I have watched 13th, signed petitions, listened to podcasts, and read books.
Here are some resources that I found
Books To Read
White Fragility Robin D’Angelo
In this “vital, necessary, and beautiful book” (Michael Eric Dyson), antiracist educator Robin DiAngelo deftly illuminates the phenomenon of white fragility and “allows us to understand racism as a practice not restricted to ‘bad people’ (Claudia Rankine). Referring to the defensive moves that white people make when challenged racially, white fragility is characterized by emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt, and by behaviors including argumentation and silence. These behaviors, in turn, function to reinstate white racial equilibrium and prevent any meaningful cross-racial dialogue. In this in-depth exploration, DiAngelo examines how white fragility develops, how it protects racial inequality, and what we can do to engage more constructively.
How To Be An Anti-Racist Ibram X Kendi
In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.
The Hate U Give Angie Thomas
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.
But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.
The Autobiography of Malcolm X Malcolm X M. S Handler
In the searing pages of this classic autobiography, originally published in 1964, Malcolm X, the Muslim leader, firebrand, and anti-integrationist, tells the extraordinary story of his life and the growth of the Black Muslim movement. His fascinating perspective on the lies and limitations of the American Dream, and the inherent racism in a society that denies its nonwhite citizens the opportunity to dream, gives extraordinary insight into the most urgent issues of our own time. The Autobiography of Malcolm X stands as the definitive statement of a movement and a man whose work was never completed but whose message is timeless. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand America.
Becoming Michelle Obama Michelle Obama
BECOMING by Michelle Obama. The former First Lady of the United States of America’s memoir is warm and personal. It is broken down into three parts: Becoming Me – which cover her growing up in a middle-class south Chicago home through her Princeton and Harvard Law School period; Becoming Us – covers her life with Barack, and last is Becoming More – where she reveals the stress and opportunities of living in the spotlight and under constant scrutiny can bring.
The New Jim Crow Michelle Alexander
The book discusses race-related issues specific to African-American males and mass incarceration in the United States, but Alexander noted that the discrimination faced by African-American males is prevalent among other minorities and socio-economically disadvantaged populations. Alexander’s central premise, from which the book derives its title, is that “mass incarceration is, metaphorically, the New Jim Crow”.[1]
I’ve Been Meaning To Tell You
The Hanging of Angelique Afua Cooper
Writer, historian and poet Afua Cooper tells the astonishing story of Marie-Joseph Angélique, a slave woman convicted of starting a fire that destroyed a large part of Montréal in April 1734 and condemned to die a brutal death. In a powerful retelling of Angélique’s story―now supported by archival illustrations―Cooper builds on 15 years of research to shed new light on a rebellious Portuguese-born black woman who refused to accept her indentured servitude. At the same time, Cooper completely demolishes the myth of a benign, slave-free Canada, revealing a damning 200- year-old record of legally and culturally endorsed slavery.
Until We Are Free Reflections on Black Lives Matter Canada
The killing of Trayvon Martin in 2012 by a white assailant inspired the Black Lives Matter movement, which quickly spread outside the borders of the United States. The movement’s message found fertile ground in Canada, where Black activists speak of generations of injustice and continue the work of the Black liberators who have come before them.
Policing Black Lives: Robin Maynard
Delving behind Canada’s veneer of multiculturalism and tolerance, Policing Black Lives traces the violent realities of anti-blackness from the slave ships to prisons, classrooms and beyond. Robyn Maynard provides readers with the first comprehensive account of nearly four hundred years of state-sanctioned surveillance, criminalization and punishment of Black lives in Canada. While highlighting the ubiquity of Black resistance, Policing Black Lives traces the still-living legacy of slavery across multiple institutions, shedding light on the state’s role in perpetuating contemporary Black poverty and unemployment, racial profiling, law enforcement violence, incarceration, immigration detention, deportation, exploitative migrant labour practices, disproportionate child removal and low graduation rates. Emerging from a critical race feminist framework that insists that all Black lives matter, Maynard’s intersectional approach to anti-Black racism addresses the unique and understudied impacts of state violence as it is experienced by Black women, Black people with disabilities, as well as queer, trans, and undocumented Black communities. A call-to-action, Policing Black Lives urges readers to work toward dismantling structures of racial domination and re-imagining a more just society.
Podcasts To Listen To
My Girl Podcast
Higher Learning with Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
The Daily Show With Trevor Noah
Shine Brighter Together Me Monique Melton
Power and Politics CBC
The Faytane Show
Documentaries Or Movies to Watch
13th
Released in 2016, 13th examines racial prejudices within the US prison system through interviews with politicians, historians, academics and several members of the Black community who have experienced jail time. It gets its name from the American Constitution’s 13th amendment, which reads: “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States.”
Since its release, 13th has garnered critical acclaim, with reviewers praising its “calmly controlled” exploration of “incendiary” observations. In 2017, it was nominated for an Academy Award.
LA “92
Twenty-five years after the verdict in the Rodney King trial sparked several days of protests, violence, and looting in Los Angeles, LA 92 immerses viewers in that tumultuous period through stunning and rarely seen archival footage. Produced by two-time Oscar winner Simon Chinn and Emmy winner Jonathan Chinn and directed by Oscar winners Dan Lindsay and TJ Martin, the film looks at the events of 1992 from a multitude of vantage points, bringing a fresh perspective to a pivotal moment that reverberates to this day.
Just Mercy
The 2019 film “Just Mercy,” which chronicles courtroom struggles against racial injustice and mass incarceration. In the film, Michael B. Jordan plays attorney Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, who helps a character played by Jamie Foxx. It’s based on Stevenson’s 2014 memoir “Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption,” one of the books that has rocketed to the top of bestseller lists as protests have swept the country.
The Hate U Give
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.
But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.
When They See Us
Five teens from Harlem become trapped in a nightmare when they’re falsely accused of a brutal attack in Central Park. Based on the true story.
When They See Us is based on events of April 19, 1989, Central Park jogger case and explores the lives of the five suspects who were prosecuted on charges related to the sexual assault of a female victim, and of their families. The five juvenile males of color, the protagonists of the series: Kevin Richardson (Asante Blackk), Antron McCray (Caleel Harris), Yusef Salaam (Ethan Herisse), Korey Wise (Jharrel Jerome), and Raymond Santana (Marquis Rodriguez), were divided by the prosecutor into two groups for trial. Each youth was convicted by juries of various charges related to the assault; four were convicted of rape. They were sentenced to maximum terms for juveniles except for Korey Wise, who was 16 at the time of the crime and treated as an adult by the legal system. He had been held in adult facilities and served his time in an adult prison.
They filed a suit against the city in 2003 for wrongful convictions and were awarded a settlement in 2014.
Organizations To Donate To
This organization was created in the U.S. but has chapters in Canada. Their aim is simple: dismantle anti-Black racism and support Black healing. Donate to the Toronto or Vancouver branches.
Black Youth Helpline
Since 1992, the Black Youth Helpline has been supporting young Black Canadians nationwide.
Black Business and Professional Association
The BBPA has been advancing professional opportunities for Black Canadians nationwide since 1983.
Federation of Black Canadians
A national organization that advances Black Canadians’ social, economic, political, and cultural interests.
Justice for Regis
Organized by Renee Beals in honour of her sister Regis Korchinski Paquet, a young woman who fell to her death from her balcony under suspicious circumstances involving Toronto Police, this GoFundMe fundraiser is raising money to help Regis’ family get the justice they need and deserve. Donate here.
This fund was created by his brother Philonise Floyd. This fund is established to cover funeral and burial expenses, mental and grief counseling, lodging and travel for all court proceedings, and to assist our family in the days to come as we continue to seek justice for George. A portion of these funds will also go to the Estate of George Floyd for the benefit and care of his children and their educational fund.
Anyone wishing to send cards, letters of encouragement and/or contributions in the form of a money order or check, may do so by mail at:
The Estate of George Floyd
c/o Ben Crump Law, PLLC
122 S. Calhoun Street
Tallahassee, FL 32301
Attn: Adner Marcelin
All checks must be made out to: The Estate of George Floyd
**UPDATE MESSAGE** 6/9/2020 – From Roxie Washington and Gianna Floyd – “Thank you so much for the outpouring of love and support. We understand that people are wanting to send cards, pictures, or any gifts for my baby. We appreciate that. Because of the outpouring of love and support felt around the world, we are proud to announce a foundation that we have created where supporters can send what they feel from the heart…”
The George and Gianna Floyd Foundation
3030 W. Fuqua
P.O Box 450495
Houston, TX 77245-0495
Thank you!
**UPDATE MESSAGE** 6/3/2020 – Please note that THIS is the only legal Gianna Floyd GoFundMe page on the site. We are working with GoFundMe to have other GoFundMe pages in Gianna’s name shut down IMMEDIATELY. Please note that the Family of Gianna Floyd is working with their legal counsel (Stewart Trial Attorneys) in setting up this GoFundMe page. Her legal counsel takes ZERO percent of funds raised. All money that is donated will be placed in a trust for Gianna and her mother. We appreciate the outpouring of love and support that has been felt around the world.
This is the official GoFundMe established in George Floyd’s honor to help provide for the needs of his 6-year-old daughter Gianna Floyd. Because of her father’s tragic murder due to police brutality, Gianna will now go through life without her dad. In addition, their family has lost their provider, and will no doubt suffer financial hardship after this tragic loss.
As a community, we want to come together in this time of need and assist Gianna’s mother, Roxie Washington, by donating whatever we can to help provide mental and grief counseling for George Floyd’s youngest child, lodging and travel for all court proceedings, and to assist Roxie (Gianna’s mother) in providing for their child’s continued well-being and education.
“Our hearts are overwhelmed with gratitude and we ask that you think of Gianna and the rest of our family as we suffer through this great loss. ” – Roxie
100% of funds will go to Gianna’s care and future.
Thank you.
GoFundMe account managed by Tiffany Lee of Stewart Trial Attorneys on behalf of Roxie Washington.