Michelle Kim March 31, 2019 A dear friend of mine recently reached out to me via a text message: “Hi love! Just wanted to share with you — I started my new job this Monday and encountered an unexpected thing — it turns out I am the ONLY POC [person of color] and LGBT person in my team and my floor. ” “The twist — the only POC are support staff” This is not an unusual experience for many people navigating workplaces and fields dominated by cis, straight, white men. Given Awaken’s extensive...

Allison Norlian Jun 9, 2020, 09:44am EDT Kim Kaiser’s son was 10 years old when she first spoke with him about the challenges he’d face as a black man with disabilities. It’s a conversation they’ve continued every day since, and it covers a little bit of everything. How should he act in public? Where should he put his hands? How should he respond if police stop him? What type of people should he avoid? In the days following George Floyd’s death, Kaiser was careful to speak with her son about...

This report presents findings from BMP’s 2019 survey of more than 5,000 nonprofit staff on their experiences of race and leadership in nonprofit settings. The survey included many of the same questions asked in the 2016 survey, which informed the original Race to Lead report, and new questions exploring the financial circumstances of respondents and their experiences of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts in the workplace. Race to Lead Revisited confirms findings in the original...

By Tony Weaver, Jr.     Jun 16, 2020 If there’s one thing Americans are doing right now, it’s talking. Talking even more than usual when schools are out and many are still working from home. Every day, new stories of discrimination and violence emerge that prompt new conversations. The moment our country faces weighs heavily on the mind of an adult. But one must wonder: What does it do to the mind of a child? Black students around the country are faced with a reality where they are isolated...

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian and Teaching for Change will host the annual Indigenous People’s Day Teach-In online on Saturday, September 12, 2020. The focus this year is environmental justice, in particular food and climate. The day will include: Keynote speaker Winona LaDuke , internationally renowned author, and activist, working on issues of sustainable development, renewable energy, and food systems. Breakout sessions with resources and strategies for your...

This op-ed argues that the modern emphasis on “resilience” means we’re expected to endure hardship and make the best of it. BY JOHN PATRICK LEARY JULY 1, 2020 John F. Kennedy once told an Indiana audience that “when written in Chinese,” the word “crisis” contains the characters for “emergency” and “opportunity.” It doesn’t . But ever since that 1959 speech, politicians and motivational speakers have invoked Kennedy’s mistaken language tutorial to talk about the importance of persistence,...

Rachel Swan June 26, 2020 BART plans to shift police away from calls related to homelessness, drug use and mental health crises as the transit agency heeds reform calls from the Black Lives Matter movement. Over the next three months, the Board of Directors will work with General Manager Bob Powers to change the transit agency’s law enforcement model, emphasizing social services instead of officers with guns. Four progressive directors introduced the plan as an amendment to BART’s 2021...

Racism, injustice and brutality — experienced directly and indirectly — can have a lasting effect on a person's mental health. By Jillian Wilson 07/01/2020 05:45am EDT In mental health training and treatment, examining the impact of racism on brains and bodies is largely uncharted territory. And while, in recent years, clinicians who advocate for the study of race-based trauma have made strides in promoting this work, most mental health programs still do not offer official training around...

The best laws and diversity training have not gotten us anywhere near where we want to go. Therapist and trauma specialist Resmaa Menakem is working with old wisdom and very new science about our bodies and nervous systems, and all we condense into the word “race.” Krista sat down with him in Minneapolis, where they both live and work, before the pandemic lockdown began. In this heartbreaking moment, after the killing of George Floyd and the history it carries, Resmaa Menakem’s practices...

At the June 23 rd County Board of Supervisor meeting, the supervisors unanimously voted on a resolution supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and reaffirming the County’s commitment to racial equity. The most important part of the Board meeting was how many people turned out to express their deep commitment to racial justice. There were speakers on the overall agenda, the budget, the resolution, the measure to extend the eviction moratorium and the vast majority specifically spoke about...

By SUSANNE RUST STAFF WRITER JUNE 27, 2020 MENLO PARK — As Bay Area communities adopt resolutions supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, one Silicon Valley county this week voted to stockpile its Sheriff’s Department with nearly $1 million in new Taser guns. On Wednesday, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors approved a budget that includes the purchase of 310 new Tasers. The approval of the Taser purchase is coming under fire, in part because it occurred just minutes after the...

Sharing an offering from Islam Hassanein, a local therapist: I have been thinking about the mental health of the BIPOC community as we are seeing recent events of racism and police violence occurring, in addition to this national pandemic. I want to share this flyer with you all and ask to spread the word if you can: I am offering free short-term virtual therapy to Black, Indigenous, People of Color who are 18+ and live in California. Please share this with people you think may benefit.