CLX Social Justice League
December 2017 Newsletter
We're trying our best to round up social justice related events that are happening in the community, so hang on to your hat, because there are some awesome things happening this winter!
Screening of documentary, 13th by Ava DuVernay
Wednesday, Dec 13, 2017, 06:00 PM
Dr. Wesley Grant Sr. Southside Center, Livingston Street, Asheville, NC, United States
Beer Be(Cause) - Fundraiser for Journeymen of Asheville
More information here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1449279058475032/
Twin Leaf will be hosting Journeymen for a Beer Because Fundraiser on December 14th in our South Slope taproom. Journeymen mentors at-risk adolescent males (ages 12-17) during their transformation to becoming men of integrity. Twin Leaf chose to support this group as they work with these youth on appreciating and understanding their worth and value as humans. In addition to their after school mentoring programs, Journeymen also teach the youth valuable skills such as camping, respect for the environment and nature as well as developing a love of hiking, and other outdoor activities. The board chair Brent Skidmore will be at the brewery on this date taking donations for the group and Twin Leaf will be donating $1 per beer sold this evening towards their next ROWPA, or Right of Passage Adventure Weekend.Thursday, Dec 14, 2017, 06:00 PM
Twin Leaf Brewery, Coxe Avenue, Asheville, NC, United States
Hope, Resilience, and Resistance Author Panel
Event information here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1978569082399056/
Four local authors will talk about their new books and writing for young readers during these chaotic times. How do we tell stories that both entertain and inspire? How do we use our platforms to create change? These questions and more will be discussed by these award-winning and best-selling authors. Event is appropriate for middle-school age and above.Amy Reed, The Nowhere Girls: Enraged by unpunished sexual assaults and the unchallenged rape culture at their high school, three new friends resolve to take action and start an underground movement that changes the lives of everyone involved. www.amyreedfiction.com
Joanne O'Sullivan, Between Two Skies: Hurricane Katrina sets a teenage girl adrift in this critically-acclaimed debut novel that asks compelling questions about class and politics, exile and belonging, and the pain of being cast out of your home. www.joanneosullivan.com
Alexandra Duncan, Blight: When an agribusiness facility producing genetically engineered food releases a deadly toxin into the environment, seventeen-year-old Tempest Torres races to deliver the cure before time runs out. www.alexandra-duncan.com
Alan Gratz, Refugee: This action-packed novel about three young refugees tackles topics both timely and timeless: courage, survival, and the quest for home. Ban This Book: Fourth graders battling censorship and their school. What more could you ask for? www.alangratz.com
Saturday, Dec 16, 2017, 05:00 PM
Firestorm Books & Coffee, Haywood Road, Asheville, NC, United States
#clxsocialjustice meet up at Black Star Line Brewery!
This Fall, a Black, LGBTQ owned brewery, Black Star Line Brewery, was launched in Hendersonville, but as they were just getting started, they received death threats, vandalism and online racist comments. As a team, we decided to show our support for this business and make a field trip to Hendersonville! Join us!
Tuesday, Dec 19, 2017, 06:00 PM
Black Star Line Brewing, 3rd Avenue West, Hendersonville, NC, United States
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
Standing Up by Sitting Down. How Asheville Sparked a Revolution!
8th Annual Kenilworth Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.!
Potluck from 5:30-6:30pm in Kenilworth Center 4 Chiles Ave. (directly behind church) and the program will begin at 6:30pm in the church sanctuary.
"Standing up by Sitting Down: How Asheville Activists Sparked a Revolution."We are honored to host Lewis Brandon as this years speaker. Mr. Brandon is a native of Asheville and was a key participant in desegregating the lunch counters and movie theaters in Greensboro from 1960-1963. Mr. Brandon will discuss the Asheville/Greensboro Civil Rights Connection and his legacy of activism that continues to this day.
DJ Profe$$ah G. will be spinning great tunes, there will be craft projects for children and lots more! Join us as we learn about the brave men and women who stood up by sitting down!
For more information contact Katie Adams 828-273-3747 or email kenilworthpresbyterianchurch@gmail.com
Monday, Jan 15, 2018, 05:30 PM
Kenilworth Presbyterian Church, Kenilworth Road, Asheville, NC, United States
"On The Road" dramatic reading on death row
Wednesday, Jan 17, 2018, 07:00 PM
Dr. Wesley Grant Sr. Southside Center, Livingston Street, Asheville, NC, United States
UNC-Asheville Lecture, Michelle Alexander, author of "The New Jim Crow"
Arena doors open at 6 pm.
Lecture is free and open to the public.
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.
Michelle Alexander’s best-selling book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, both crystalized and amplified public discussion about racism and civil rights, the war on drugs and the prison system. As an attorney, Alexander clerked for Justice Harry Blackmun at the U.S. Supreme Court, directed the Racial Justice Project at the ACLU of Northern California, and brought discrimination suits in private practice.
She now is a visiting professor at Union Theological Seminary and a forceful public speaker who argues that mass incarceration is today’s version of Jim Crow segregation. Alexander will deliver the keynote talk for UNC Asheville’s observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Week.
This event is presented by UNC Asheville with support from the Blue Ridge District of the United Methodist Church.
Thursday, Jan 18, 2018, 07:00 PM
The Sherrill Center and Kimmell Arena, Asheville, NC, United States
Patrisse Cullors presents When They Call You a Terrorist, co-founder of #blacklivesmatter
Friday, Jan 19, 2018, 06:00 PM
Rainbow Community School, Haywood Road, Asheville, NC, United States
Family Voices Night is an intentional effort to invite families of color to conversation with the Claxton Social Justice Team. This opportunity gives voices to families we do not normally hear from and offer feedback on experiences their students of color have had while at Claxton.
Our first session will take place on Thursday, December 14 at Claxton Elementary at 5:30-7pm
Our next Mix It Up at Lunch Day is on Tuesday, December 19th! We'd love to have you at Claxton during lunch to help facilitate conversations and to mix it up! Contact Mark Ackerman, mark.ackerman@acsgmail.net, if you would like to help.
Mix It Up at Lunch on October 31...
Students sat with kids from other classes...
Facilitators helped with conversation!
Over the few days before winter break, our 2-5 students will participate, if they haven't already, in a Paideia seminar with lessons put together by the Claxton Social Justice League.
These topics will help set the stage for tough conversations about race and immigration and led by members of the team or classroom teachers. Our students enjoy having the opportunity to practice these conversations in a safe space while also practicing how to listen to others. For more about Paideia seminars, check out: https://www.paideia.org/paideia-seminar/
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.
Podcast: The Show About Race: the podcast that gets real in not-so-post-racial America
In schools, a growing push to recognize Muslim and Jewish holidays: An article from The Washington Post
INTERACTING WITH POLICE IN SCHOOLS: An article from ACLU North Carolina
Race and the Literary Canon: Middle and high school teachers can re-examine classic novels by exploring issues around race and social justice with students.
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.
Meet the Claxton Social Justice League!
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
Phone: 828-350-6500
Facebook: facebook.com/claxtonelem
Twitter: @claxtonelem