Charlottesville and Resources

Seems like a great time to recommend these young adult books tackling white supremacy. #Charlottesville pic.twitter.com/ZjiJCqzxb1

— Pick My YA (@PickMyYA) August 12, 2017

“If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention.” Heather Heyer

If you have been paying attention to media in the past few days, you are surely aware that a White supremacist rally was held in Charlottesville, VA which resulted in the death of Heather Heyer and state troopers Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Trooper Berke M. M. Bates. Along with these deaths were many injuries. Beyond that, there was a lot of fear and horror on the part of many as they participated in the counter-protests or watched what was happening from near and far. It wasn’t simply because it was happening, though that was horrifying, but the response from DT made it clear that he does not believe that any one side is more to blame than the other. In the face of White supremacy and Nazis, DT seems incapable of placing blame squarely on White supremacist shoulders. Again we saw a situation where people witnessing this were thinking, well surely now he’ll say something definitive, but no. There are White supremacists who see the outcomes of this event as a victory and are excited about DT’s weak response.

Many people I know are looking for specific things to do in order to counteract, resist, interrupt, and ultimately put an end to racism and it’s many forms. Events like these tend to flood people’s emotions and can overwhelm us or have us looking for positive actions we can do to make change. Here are some of the resources out there if you want to get out and do something. Some of you may need to also do something to care for yourself first. This has been emotionally draining for many, so there are also some self-care resources.

Action Steps
Celeste Ng has you covered if you want very specific tasks. She continues to add other tasks on her twitter feed so it’s a good idea to follow her.

If You’re feeling helpless Tumblr post

Sara Benincasa – What to do About Charlottesville

Upworthy – 16 ways you can make a big difference

Southern Poverty Law Center – Ten Ways to Fight Hate

Places to donate in the Charlottesville area

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Self-Care
From @NYChavez and @HYAdames – Surviving and Resisting Hate: A Toolkit for People of Color

Teen Vogue – 4 Self-Care Tips for People of Color

Comprehensive crowd-sourced list of self-care

Los Angeles Loyolan – Self-Care Tips for Activists

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Resources for Teaching
#CharlottesvilleCurriculum

Citizenship & Social Justice – Curriculum for White Americans to Educate Themselves on Race and Racism–from Ferguson to Charleston

NCTE’s Standing Committee Against Racism and Bias – There Is No Apolitical Classroom: Resources for Teaching in These Times

Washington Post – The first thing teachers should do when school starts is talk about hatred in America. Here’s Help.

Teaching Tolerance teacher resources

NPR – Resources for Educators to Use in the Wake of Charlottesville

NPR – Politics in the Classroom: How Much is Too Much?

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Books to Share/Read
Lee&Low – Books to Help Kids Understand the Fight for Racial Equality

NYT – How to Talk to Your Kids about Charlottesville (focus on books)

ProjectLIT Bookclub

Bustle – 10 Books I Wish My White Teachers Had Read

Social Justice Books a Teaching for Change Project – Social Justice Booklist

From Book Riot – Rincey shares Book Buys Based on Recent Events