CLX Social Justice League
April 2019 Newsletter
Thank you for attending our workshop on Divided America: Finding Common Ground!
We are so grateful to the folks that joined us on Thursday, April 11 to learn more about how we can "be the change" in our community. Thank you Amy Brown, Amanda Pattanayak, Molly Peeples and Dr. Spencer, for providing tools and strategies on how we help bridge divisions. We appreciate everyone who has come to our sessions this year and for supporting Claxton Elementary.
Here is our resource list:
Claxton and the Teaching Tolerance Social Justice Standards
CLX Stands Against Racism
As stated on their website, "will be focusing on immigration and racism, and the ways in which they intersect. We know that immigrant justice is racial justice, and that xenophobia, bigotry, and racism is continuing to impact the lives and safety of our communities."
During our Teaching Tolerance planning days, we have touched base with classroom teachers on what this will look like in K-5 classrooms and also arranged to have a 'read-in' event. We hope that our families will come read a pre-selected book to help our students continue the conversation on racial justice as well as reflect on how they stand up against racism.
New Monuments + Asheville Hidden History 3rd Grade Project.
An evening with Bryan Stevenson
The talk is free and open to everyone, with support from The David and Lin Brown Visionary Lecture Series and The Van Winkle Law Firm Public Policy Lectures.
Stevenson is the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI). Under his leadership, EJI has won major legal challenges eliminating excessive and unfair sentencing, exonerating innocent death row prisoners, confronting abuse of the incarcerated and the mentally ill and aiding children prosecuted as adults. Stevenson recently won a historic ruling in the U.S. Supreme Court banning mandatory life-without-parole sentences for all children 17 or younger. He also is the author of award-winning New York Times best-selling book "Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption."
A professor of clinical law at the New York University School of Law, Stevenson has been awarded the American Bar Association’s highest honor, the ABA Medal, and the National Medal of Liberty from the American Civil Liberties Union – he was nominated for the latter by U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Stevens. Stevenson has been dubbed “America’s Nelson Mandela” by none other than Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa.
Stevenson also has become a national leader in advocacy and public education about mass incarceration and its roots. In April 2018, EJI opened a new museum, The Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration, built on the site of a former slave warehouse in downtown Montgomery. This is a companion to a national memorial to victims of lynching, The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, which opened at the same time, gaining national news coverage, including a feature by Oprah Winfrey on CBS’ 60 Minutes.
Stevenson, who has been awarded the prestigious MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Prize and 34 honorary degrees, is a graduate of the Harvard Law School.
His lecture at UNC Asheville is a special event as part of the installation celebration for UNC Asheville’s Chancellor Nancy J. Cable.
Seating at this free, unticketed event is first-come, first served. Kimmel Arena’s “Clear Bag Policy” will be in effect; please do not bring backpacks. Parking is limited at UNC Asheville; please consider using public transportation.
For more information, contact the UNC Asheville Events & Conferences Office, 828.251.6853 or events@unca.edu.
Thursday, Apr 25, 2019, 07:00 PM
UNC-Asheville, Kimmel Arena
Immigration Justice Youth Art Exhibition & Talk Back
Youth will exhibit art created on the theme of "Immigration Justice is Racial Justice. No Hate. No Fear." The evening will include a talk back with some of the artists led by BeLoved Asheville's Ponkho Bermejo.
Works of art will include those selected from elementary and middle school students at Evergreen Community Charter School's Stand Against Racism poster contest.
This event is in partnership with Evergreen Community Charter School and is among many community events being held for the YWCA of Asheville's annual Stand Against Racism effort!
Friday, Apr 26, 2019, 06:00 PM
BeLoved Asheville Liberation Station, North Market Street, Asheville, NC, USA
SAR Film Screening & Panel Discussion of "Immigrant Prisons"
The Immigrant Prisons film is made up of four short stories: Immigrant Prisons, Immigrants for Sale, No More Detention: Free Pastor Noe, and Trauma at the Border. This film is about exposing the abuse of the detention and deportation industrial complex by exploring conditions inside these prisons in substandard medical conditions and other abuses.
The film screening will be held on Sunday, April 28, 4:00 pm - 6:30 pm at Grail Moviehouse. There are three different ticket options:
- $0- Free Ticket
- $5- Suggested Donation
- $10- Equity Seat (pay for your ticket and sponsor a free
ticket for another community member)
Please RSVP and get your tickets here or copy and paste into your browser: http://www.grailmoviehouse.com/special-events//immigrant-prisons
Ticket are first come, first serve and sales will close on Friday, April 26th so please make sure to get tickets and RSVP before then.
Sunday, Apr 28, 2019, 04:00 PM
Grail Moviehouse, South French Broad Avenue, Asheville, NC, USA
Stand Against Racism Day
Monday, Apr 29, 2019, 09:00 AM
Claxton Elementary School, Merrimon Avenue, Asheville, NC, USA
Living at the Intersection of Privilege & Oppression
Location: AMS Media Center
*Enjoy a free meal at 5:00pm In cafeteria before session starts*
Tuesday, Apr 30, 2019, 05:30 PM
Asheville Middle School, South French Broad Avenue, Asheville, NC, USA
May 1st Teacher Rally - Asheville Satellite Rally
There will be a satellite march taking place in Asheville so that educators who are unable to make the Raleigh trip can still rally together to show solidarity.
Teachers, families, and supporters will gather at 10am at The Block off biltmore in Asheville, NC. There will be some activities and speakers. Then, the group will walk peacefully from The Block to Vance Monument at Pack Square to hear additional speakers and demonstrate our requests to the public.
Wednesday, May 1, 2019, 10:00 AM
THE BLOCK off biltmore, South Market Street, Asheville, NC, USA
Have some recommendations for us? Retweet, share or post with #clxsocialjustice
Podcasts:
Cult of Pedagogy, 10 Ways Educators Can Take Action in Pursuit of Equity: This episode features professor and activist, Pedro Noguera about 10 specific things we can do to help pursue equity. Great blog post about it here as well.
Code Switch: This NPR podcast features conversations around race and identity in America.
Podcast: Seeing White: A 14-part documentary series exploring whiteness in America—where it came from, what it means, and how it works.
Podcast: The Waters and Harvey Show: This Asheville podcast explores the experiences of historically marginalized people and their communities, and considers the influence those experiences have within our increasingly diverse society.
Articles:
What is Social Justice Education Anyway? from EdWeek.org
Early, Often, and With Increasing Depth: Talking with Children about Racism and White Privilege: This article was shared by a community member with our team. Check it out!
Actions for Allies for LGBTQ students: Here you can find specific ways to be an ally for LGBTQ students of color, students with disabilities, & trans and GNC students.
Webinars/Resources:
PFLAG Asheville: This local organization has several events and support meetings for LGBTQ families and are a great resource in our community.
Fun Social Justice Activities for Elementary Students: Are you looking for fun and creative ways to engage elementary students in anti-bias learning? This on-demand webinar will feature entertaining and educational activities you can use in your classroom as soon as tomorrow. Help young students learn the meaning and value of Identity, Diversity, Justice and Action—the four domains of the Teaching Tolerance Social Justice Standards. Find out how to implement these activities in your classroom with this exciting webinar!
You’ll receive a certificate of completion once you finish this webinar.
Question Bridge: QUESTION BRIDGE INTERACTIVE is a platform that reveals the true complexity, diversity, and humanity within an identity group. This resource was shared by community member, Cheryl! Thank you for sharing great links with us!
Introduction to Restorative Justice: Great resource for educators and families to get a better understanding of what justice can look like in our schools.
Books:
So You Want to Talk About Race? by Ijeoma Oluo:
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
What is your team all about?
Our team has been working on racial equity since 2014 when we received funding from Asheville City Schools Foundation and a recap of that work can be found here.
This year, we are self-funded with the support of Claxton administrators and our fabulous Claxton PTO. Our team felt strongly that we need to carry the momentum of our work on and were able to build a bigger team to create sustainability for our school in order to make sure we have socially just and culturally responsive classrooms.We strive to grow our work with trust in each other, the process, and ourselves that will see us through any imperfection to a place of deeper understanding and respect for all.
We will continue to measure our progress by the changes we see in ourselves, and the whole Claxton staff, and the impact those changes have on our students.
Contact us!
Link to our CLX Social Justice Website
#clxsocialjustice
Email: kimberly.eggett@ashevillecityschools.net
Website: https://sites.google.com/acsgmail.net/clxsocialjustice/home
Location: 241 Merrimon Avenue, Asheville, NC, USA
Phone: 828-350-6500
Facebook: facebook.com/claxtonelem
Twitter: @claxtonelem