Hello From Colorado!

 Hi Friends,

I’m getting settled in Colorado and I’m excited to be writing to you again! Thank you for your patience during this transition.

I hope you’re all getting back into the school year well and that students are getting the support they need. I’ve been hearing through the Arlington grapevine that the new virtual learning program is not meeting student needs, so if you’re hearing the same thing, please speak up about it to the School Board, APS administrators, or the Arlington NAACP Education Committee.

In case you missed it, there was an ArlNow article by Jo DeVoe about PTA spending inequities in July. This is one type of educational equity work where your voice is needed. Partially because of that article, I have been so lucky to get connected with other PTA/private funding equity activists across the country and I’ll certainly share resources along those lines as I hear about them.

For now, please check out:
- Community-Centric Fundraising and this awesome article by Vu Le. I also recommend this article by Rebekah Giacomantonio about the dangers of white-led nonprofits in this work.
- Fakequity, especially the most recent two posts.
- A Progressive’s Style Guide (PDF) by Hanna Thomas and Anna Hirsch.
- This awesome video about school choices that families make and the impacts on education (created by the Park Hill Neighbors for Equity in Education (PHNEE) in Denver, and applicable nationally).

I’ve been paying more attention these days to environmental racism and environmental justice efforts. If you’re feeling at a loss about climate change, maybe take your anti-racist work in this direction.

I wanted to follow up to my last post about Critical Race Theory (CRT) in schools. I found some really helpful resources that I wanted to share with you:
- David Stovall and Subini Annamma write “OPINION: Using critical race theory to understand the backlash against it” (Hechinger Report, 7/29/21), especially: “Ultimately these laws reflect a hard truth: Historical accuracy has become an existential threat to white supremacy.”
- Mark Keierleber writes “Critical Race Theory and the New ‘Massive Resistance’” (The 74 Million, 8/18/21), especially: “claims of colorblindness have been used to entrench existing racial disparities for generations.”

What challenges are you experiencing in your anti-racist work right now? I’m always happy to research and write about your perspectives and experiences — please share with me!

Emily
Listen. Amplify. Follow.