A Social Justice Newsletter for Educators

“Broadening access doesn’t mean that everybody has the experience that I, privileged person, had in the discourse. Broadening it means that we are all equally uncomfortable, right? That’s actually what pluralism and plurality is.”

– Tressie McMillan Cottom in conversation with Ezra Klein

Lost in Discourse

Ever since I started this newsletter, I have been stunned again and again at the depth of my own ignorance. That means this project is as much about my own desire to learn and grow as it is about sharing resources with colleagues. I’ve also learned that whenever I sit down to curate and compose, some form of tragic racist, misogynistic, homo- or transphobic violence or a combination of those qualifiers has just passed. Last month I wrote in the wake of an Anti-Asian shooting in Atlanta, this month it’s following another police murder of a young unarmed Black man, Daunte Wright, in the course of a traffic stop outside Minneapolis, Minnesota. Protests there have been met with the deployment of the National Guard.

While social justice and anti-racism have become topics for the mainstream, the spectacle and cruelty of racialized violence in the US and around the globe have not abated. There is still so much work to do; so many steps to be taken. What we do and say in our classroom matters. The books we choose, the conversations we encourage or avoid, the learning we embrace or sidestep – all these potentially contribute to or reduce inequitable outcomes in small and perhaps larger ways. While we may not feel individually responsible for sexist, racist and/or homophobic outcomes in society, if we are not actively interrupting those norms (and yes, they are actually (unspoken) norms), then we are kidding ourselves about being anti-racist or social justice co-conspirators. It’s not just this year, I assure you.

That said, I want to acknowledge the recent week-long AIS Vienna Middle School Initiative in recognition of International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In a display outside the cafeteria, students were invited to share insights about different forms of discrimination and how we can combat these individually and as a school. Videos from Stories That Move were shown highlighting common discriminatory struggles faced by young people in Europe.

Ramadan commenced on April 13th, 2021 and our observant Muslim families may be fasting during the day. This year it also extends across much of the IB exam period until May 12th, so please consider how this may be affecting students on campus and in distance learning. Rusul Alrubail wrote this article a few years ago that’s very helpful for teachers.

I wanted to investigate Latinx identity and came across excellent resources at Learning for Justice. I learned so much from this article by Stef Bernal-Martinez, “Unmaking ‘Hispanic’: Teaching the Creation of Hispanic Identity.”

You may want to consider sharing this video with your students on breaking down race and ethnicity. It begins with the question of whether Hispanics are classified as white but goes beyond that very quickly. Understanding the terms and how they are applied help us become more specific in addressing particular concerns among varied groups.

I learned a lot just watching the video and still have lots of questions. As a parent of biracial, bilingual children, questions around self-identification versus social identification are never far from our familiar conversation topics.

Finally, if you are looking for a justice-oriented action to take, please think about signing this educator pledge to support Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and then acting on its recommendations.

“ Social movements can advance justice when they mobilize the masses to deepen our understanding and reframe dominant narratives about the problems and solutions. As we construct these solutions collectively, we then have the potential to realign institutions, policies, and practices. Social movements are, at their core, educational, and therefore, educators and educational scholars can and must play a leading role.”

– from “EDUCATORS PLEDGE TO SUPPORT AAPIS AND ADVANCE JUSTICE
DURING ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH 2021 AND BEYOND”

I’m aware that this is a very mixed bag of resources. As events pile up and our need to response is called for, it is a continuous challenge to decide how and where to remain focused. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m struggling with precisely that dilemma. What has helped me is paying even closer attention to students and what their needs seem to be. Students remind me of the importance of continuing to show up and listen and be present. I encourage us to be brave listeners to our students’ concerns and questions. They live in the world. They see and hear what’s going on. I hope this newsletter serves as a nudge to honor our students’ complexity and their interest in justice.

Be well,

Sherri