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Posted on June 12th 2020
Anti-Racism Resources - And What You Can Do
Over the last few weeks, we have seen systemic racial injustice manifest itself in an atrocious incident in America, namely the tragic murder of George Floyd on Monday 25th May 2020.
At Harris Girls’ Academy East Dulwich, we are incredibly proud of our diverse demographic and wish to share resources in an attempt to support our students and families at home as they watch the global response to these acts of injustice.
We have produced a set of PSHE resources in context of this issue and last week Mrs Thompson, our health hut manager, delivered a live lesson targeted at KS4/5 students to share her personal response and to give students a platform to share their responses.
As an academy, we are proud of the responses of our students including: sharing petitions; writing reflections; sending entries for a school display; offering much needed support to one another virtually. As an academy, we have shared some initiatives which students can get involved with.
What can you do?
- Support and give to the Minnesota Freedom Fund amongst other fund raising to support injustices.
- Write to global governments about your concerns or your local MP - these challenges happen in the UK too.
- Write to President Donald Trump/write to the FBI - see Amnesty International website.
- Sign appropriate petitions that demand action.
- Talk to friends, family members, adults and peers alike.
- Stand in solidarity with those who are hurt by these traumas and challenges
- Send contributions for the school display including art, images, poetry, short stories, reflections. Send these to Mrs Campbell.
- Read one of the anti-racism books, blogs or articles suggested (see below)
- Turn your feelings into a creative piece of writing - poem, diary, short story, song or piece of art work.
As ever, you are welcome to email staff at the academy if you or your child are struggling at home and would like support. Coaches will continue to email and call weekly and, in addition, Mrs Thompson (Health Hut manager) and Ms Noah (Behaviour Support Manager) are available to call or email if required.
Please do let us know if you would like to hear from them. If your child is worried about personal safety or the safety of her friends, please ask her to use the Sharp system to report any concern or raise it with the Head of House or Coach by email.
Our book of the summer term for Year 9 upwards is The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas. This looks at issues of racial injustice in America from a teenage girl’s perspective.
An extract/reading will be shared weekly with discussion questions on Edmodo. This book is available through Southwark Libraries or can be purchased online if your child would like to read the book in its entirety.
Anti-racism resources for parents and students
Below are some anti-racism resources for any parents/carers and students who may be keen to delve further into this issue while studying from home. This includes a series of renowned historians, philosophers and writers who have contributed to the discussion on racial injustice.
A Parents Guide to Black Lives Matter - resources, activities, and tips for families to empower children to work towards racial equality.
A Channel 4 Podcast Ways to Change the World with Reni Eddo-Lodge on race, social injustice and quotas
The British rapper and activist Akala shares with us some less-exposed features about black history in his talk at Oxford University.
To celebrate BAME authors, here is a list of winners of the Coretta King Scott Book Award that you can share with your child. The Coretta Scott King Book Awards are given to outstanding African American authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults that demonstrate an appreciation of African American culture and universal human values.
Organisations helping schools fight racism
The Black Curriculum - a social enterprise founded in 2019 by young people to address the lack of Black British history in the UK Curriculum. They believe that by delivering arts-focused Black history programmes, providing teacher training and campaigning through mobilising young people, they can facilitate social change. They have email templates you can send to Gavin Williamson, currently the government’s Education Minister.
Show Racism the Red Card - the UK's leading anti-racism educational charity, providing workshops, training sessions, multimedia packages and a whole host of other resources to tackle racism throughout society.
The Anti-Racist Educator – a Scotland-based collective of educational stakeholders working to build an education system that is free from racial injustice. They have a podcast and teaching resources that can be used in the classroom.
Charities and think tanks working to end racism
If you’re able, donating to these charities (as well as the educational charities listed above) will help them continue their work against racism.
Runnymede Trust - the UK’s leading independent race equality think tank, challenging race inequality in Britain through research, network building, leading debates and policy engagement. Donating to Runnymede will help them continue to conduct research and engage with policy makers to make long-lasting change.
Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust - set up in the wake of Stephen Lawrence’s murder in a racist attack in 1993. The charity works with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds aged 13-30 to inspire and enable them to succeed in the career of their choice, in the hope that the UK will become a place where everyone has an equal opportunity to achieve.
Anti-racist petitions
Teach British children about the realities of British Imperialism and Colonialism - a petition to teach Britain’s colonial history in schools, from the trauma caused by British Imperialism, to how members of the African Diaspora contributed to the British nation-state.
Battle racism by updating GCSE reading lists - a petition to get The Good Immigrant by Nikesh Shukla and Why I’m No longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge on the GCSE reading list.
Make white privilege and systemic racism a compulsory part of the British education course - a petition to make educating children about how they can be actively involved in standing up against racism a compulsory part of the curriculum.
Anti-racist books - fiction and non-fiction
How to Be an Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi. Kendi asks us to think about what an anti-racist society might look like, and how we can play an active role in building it.
This Book is Anti-Racist by Tiffany Jewell, is a useful tool for discussing racism with children aged 5-15.
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo. A novel that explores what it’s like to be a black woman in modern Britain through twelve very different characters.
The Good Immigrant compiled by Nikesh Shukla. 21 different voices explore why immigrants come to the UK, why they stay and what it means to be ‘other’ in a country that doesn’t seem to want you.
Quarto-anti-racist-books-for-kids - a list of anti- racist books to discuss injustice with children
Key Stage 3 reading suggestions
Key Stage 4 reading suggestions
Key Stage 5 reading suggestions
Anti-racist podcasts - exploring racism around the world
Miss Buchanan's Period Of Adjustment - this episode of Malcolm Gladwell’s Revisionist History podcast talks about the importance of hiring black teachers where black children are taught and how schools can support the achievements of black students.
About Race - a one-off series from Reni Eddo-Lodge, the author of Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People about Race. She explores issues from eradicated black history to the political purpose of white dominance.
BBC World Service’s Witness Black History - interviews with people who were there at key moments in black and civil rights history.
BBC Short films celebrating black history
Organisation who support with mental health and welfare
Black Minds Matter – free therapy/support groups and mentoring
BLAM charity – online forum to discuss events
