#BARWE215
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Inquiry Series 3 (2020-21 SY)
    • September: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in ourselves and our institutions?
    • October: How can we as white educators center Black joy in our classrooms and schools?
    • November: How can we more deeply reflect and/or apply what we learned about white supremacy culture and Black Joy?
    • December: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
    • January: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
  • Inquiry Resources
    • How to Start a BARWE Group
    • Norms
    • Discussion Protocols
    • Bringing in Coconspirators
    • Facilitators Troubleshooting Guide
  • Summer 2020 Reading Series
    • Summer Reading 2020: Purpose
    • Zoom Meeting 1: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 2: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 3: We Want to Do More Than Survive
    • Zoom Meeting 4: We Want to Do More Than Survive
  • Inquiry Series 2 (2019-20 SY)
    • September: What does it mean to develop an anti-racist identity as a white educator?
    • October: How do our implicit biases affect our students?
    • November: How could incorporating ethnic studies in our classrooms and schools help make our curriculum more antiracist?
    • December: How can we ensure that our school discipline policies are equitable and do not push girls of color out of school spaces?
    • January: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February: How can we recruit and retain more Black teachers in our schools?
    • March: How can White educators be accountable to their colleagues of color?
    • April: How can we interrupt anti-AAPI and xenophobic narratives in our classrooms and school communities?
    • May: How do we support our students during this crisis and connect to the larger fight to dismantle race and class oppression in our communities?
  • Summer 2019 "Seeing White" Discussion
  • Inquiry Series 1 (2018-19 SY)
    • August 2018: Why do white teachers need to talk about race?
    • September 2018: How can our curriculum challenge dominant and oppressive ideologies?
    • October 2018: How can we identify and challenge implicit bias in our own practice?
    • November 2018: How does whiteness affect our practices, relationships, and expectations in the classroom and the school community?
    • December 2018: How do we disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline?
    • January 2019: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February 2019: Why are teachers of color so important for our schools and how can we increase their numbers?
    • March 2019: How can we support colleagues of color and build anti-racist work environments?
    • April 2019: How can we implement culturally relevant teaching to challenge the culture of power that exists in schools?
    • May 2019: How do we push our schools, classrooms, and communities to incorporate more equitable disciplinary practices?
    • June 2019: How do we move this conversation forward and include more educators?
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Inquiry Series 3 (2020-21 SY)
    • September: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in ourselves and our institutions?
    • October: How can we as white educators center Black joy in our classrooms and schools?
    • November: How can we more deeply reflect and/or apply what we learned about white supremacy culture and Black Joy?
    • December: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
    • January: How can we identify and challenge white supremacy culture in our curriculum?
  • Inquiry Resources
    • How to Start a BARWE Group
    • Norms
    • Discussion Protocols
    • Bringing in Coconspirators
    • Facilitators Troubleshooting Guide
  • Summer 2020 Reading Series
    • Summer Reading 2020: Purpose
    • Zoom Meeting 1: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 2: Stamped
    • Zoom Meeting 3: We Want to Do More Than Survive
    • Zoom Meeting 4: We Want to Do More Than Survive
  • Inquiry Series 2 (2019-20 SY)
    • September: What does it mean to develop an anti-racist identity as a white educator?
    • October: How do our implicit biases affect our students?
    • November: How could incorporating ethnic studies in our classrooms and schools help make our curriculum more antiracist?
    • December: How can we ensure that our school discipline policies are equitable and do not push girls of color out of school spaces?
    • January: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February: How can we recruit and retain more Black teachers in our schools?
    • March: How can White educators be accountable to their colleagues of color?
    • April: How can we interrupt anti-AAPI and xenophobic narratives in our classrooms and school communities?
    • May: How do we support our students during this crisis and connect to the larger fight to dismantle race and class oppression in our communities?
  • Summer 2019 "Seeing White" Discussion
  • Inquiry Series 1 (2018-19 SY)
    • August 2018: Why do white teachers need to talk about race?
    • September 2018: How can our curriculum challenge dominant and oppressive ideologies?
    • October 2018: How can we identify and challenge implicit bias in our own practice?
    • November 2018: How does whiteness affect our practices, relationships, and expectations in the classroom and the school community?
    • December 2018: How do we disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline?
    • January 2019: How can we ensure that our schools value Black lives?
    • February 2019: Why are teachers of color so important for our schools and how can we increase their numbers?
    • March 2019: How can we support colleagues of color and build anti-racist work environments?
    • April 2019: How can we implement culturally relevant teaching to challenge the culture of power that exists in schools?
    • May 2019: How do we push our schools, classrooms, and communities to incorporate more equitable disciplinary practices?
    • June 2019: How do we move this conversation forward and include more educators?
#BARWE215

September: What does it mean to develop an anti-racist identity as a white educator?

*If this is your first time doing a BARWE discussion group, we recommend starting with the August 2018 materials.

Don't forget to give us feedback!

Overview

In Inquiry Series 1, we began by asking, “Why do white teachers need to talk about race?” We acknowledged that if we are striving for classrooms and schools to be equitable places, then we have an obligation to fight racism. As we worked through last year’s inquiry series, we dug into issues such as unfair discipline practices, hiring Black teachers, and culturally relevant teaching. Following up on this work, our first Series 2 essential question is, “What does it mean to develop an anti-racist identity as a white educator?” We have chosen a recent interview with Ibram X. Kendi as one of our primary readings. Dr. Kendi points out that many Americans have both racist and antiracist ideas; the goal is to “recognize those racist ideas, get them to essentially get rid of them and essentially strive to be antiracist.” We also chose a conversation on white anti-racism, which highlights some of the hurdles and hiccups that occur when attempting to do this work.

Primary Articles

  • Teaching Tolerance Conversation on White Anti-Racism
  • Ibram X. Kendi interview on NPR

​Guiding Questions

​
  • What does it mean to be anti-racist? How can you incorporate anti-racist ideas into your teaching?
  • Where do you find yourself still upholding racist ideas? How can you work to get rid of them?
  • What does giving up your privilege look like in your classroom and in your school?
  • What action will you take after this meeting that will lead to anti-racist changes in your personal life, school, or community? [Please read our Series 2 protocol for more discussion on committing to action.]

Additional Readings

  • The Urgent Need for Anti-Racist Education
  • The Fight to Redefine Racism
  • Ibram X. Kendi interview on Democracy Now!

Facilitation Information

  • Set a day and time for your group to meet - during lunch, before school, after school, whatever works best for participants. Make sure to send reminders. Also, snacks are always a good idea!
  • Send this month’s Primary Article to your group. You could even send this to a broader group of your colleagues - maybe it will pique someone’s interest! Also look through the additional readings to see if there is another reading that might be better suited to your group and its interests.
  • Prepare yourself to facilitate by reading through our Norms and Discussion Protocol. Choose the protocol that works best for your group in this month. If you have a large group, maybe ask a colleague to help facilitate.
  • Pass the Hat at the end of your discussion and collect donations for the Melanated Educators Collective this month.
  • Complete the Feedback Form.
  • Prepare yourself for October by setting a date and time, inviting colleagues, and looking out for our next Discussion Guide on October 1st.

Feedback Form

We want to know who is using these resources, what they find useful, and any recommendations for improvements in the future. We hope that one person in your group can take a few minutes to fill out our feedback form to let us know how it went.

Here is some feedback we received at the end of Inquiry Series 1:

  • We were glad that we did this every month and valued having set aside time each month to dedicate ourselves towards thinking about racial justice. We took away concrete plans from the readings and discussions.
  • There's no such thing as a "good" white person, really - the work is never done and all of us can be the cause of racism impacting a person of color, despite our intentions.
  • We also are supporting the starting of a Students Organizing Against Racism (SOAR) group and building leadership.

Thank you all for you feedback so far, please keep it coming!

Pass the Hat

In addition to being accountable to our colleagues and students of color, we believe it is important to be financially accountable to people of color who are doing this work on a daily basis. Each month, we will recommend an organization led by people of color, in education and beyond, doing the work of pushing for justice.

At the end of each monthly discussion, pass a hat (or a box) and collect donations for the designated organization. You can then have one group member go online and donate in the name of your school. If you want, you can add “Building Anti-Racist White Educators” after your school name.

This month, we encourage you to donate to the Melanated Educators Collective (MEC). MEC is working to “unify and empower educators of color in the Philadelphia and Greater Philadelphia communities.” MEC is “moving the needle forward in terms of demanding recruitment for Educators of Color, retaining Educators of Color, as well as creating conditions in schools that will facilitate learning for children of color and all children in the Philadelphia area and beyond.” MEC is hosting their 2nd annual conference for teachers of color on September 21st. Donate here to support their important work. 

If you are looking to buy refreshments for your session, we recommend supporting businesses owned by people of color, especially Black-owned businesses, if at all possible. In Philly, we recommend Amalgam Comics & Coffeehouse, Franny Lou’s Porch, and Uncle Bobbie’s Coffee & Books.
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