Educate Yourself With These Resources About Race, Racism, and Racial Justice

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By Kaylee Sullivan - Posted on

Champlain College faculty and staff who teach courses about race and work in the diversity and inclusion field share their recommendations on what to read, listen to, and do to further educate ourselves.

We are in the midst of a movement moment right now. People around the world are advocating for racial justice in a variety of ways—donating, protesting, signing petitions, reading, listening, and more. Social media users are flooding their timelines and stories with educational resources, calls to action, and links to pre-composed emails to send to local and national government officials. The impact is spreading far and wide as people fight for racial justice in the name of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery, David McAtee, and every Black individual who has lost their life due to racist acts of violence.

It’s important the momentum of the movement continues on, and we do not lose sight of the ongoing education needed to make change in a world plagued by systemic racism.

We tapped Champlain’s Core faculty members who teach courses on race relations to find out what they recommend we read and listen to in order to further our understanding and education. You will also find resources from our expert staff who work in the field of diversity and inclusion.

Everyone’s educational journey is going to look different. But it’s important to start somewhere; do something, and continue to read deeply and widely and truly engage with the work. We hope these titles and recommendations provide some guidance, but please note this is by no means an exhaustive list.

What to Read

The Champlain College Library has created a LibGuide with anti-racism reading recommendations. Many of the titles listed below are represented in the guide. Members of the Champlain community are encouraged to take advantage of the Library’s contactless book checkout service. When deciding to buy one of these books, we encourage you to think about where you’re buying from. Supporting Black-owned businesses and bookstores is just one way you can support the movement and lift up the work of Black entrepreneurs.

What to Watch

Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, On Demand and more. Titles exploring the history of race in America and the ongoing fight for racial justice are right at your fingertips. Diversify your regularly scheduled programming and educate yourself about the lived experiences of Black people by watching these films and shows.

What to Listen to

Diversify your collection of podcasts, music, audiobooks, YouTube videos, and radio/online interviews to include Black creators and topics of racial justice.

What to Do

As you do this work and educate yourself about race in America, what will you do with the lessons you learn? What actions will you take? How will you step up and fight systemic racism?

Vermont specific: What to Read

Read the work of some of Vermont’s renowned Black poets and writers and take a deep dive into their stories of race, class, relationships, and the history of slavery in Vermont.

Vermont specific: In the Arts

Listen to and support Vermont’s Black artists.

Vermont specific: What to Do & How to Get Involved

What to Read, Through a Criminal Justice Lens

Tony Perriello, J.D., is the Assistant Dean and Director of Champlain’s Criminal Justice Program. “Our focus is on providing students with a broad education in criminal justice and criminal justice reform,” he says. “We not only provide students an academic path toward a career in law enforcement, but also provide them with a broader sense of the system, its flaws and the possibilities for reform.” The program includes required courses in social justice, oppression, restorative justice, and a seminar in criminal justice reform. Below are some reading suggestions (in addition to some of the books mentioned above) that Perriello recommends to the Champlain community.

Diversify Your News Intake

Do you always go to the same outlets to get your news? Consider diversifying your news feed and the content you read.

What to Read, Watch, and Listen to: Indigenous/Native Resources

Sahar D. Sattarzadeh, former Assistant Professor of Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies in our Core Division, shares resources and recommendations to learn about the history of Indigenous/Native people in the United States and around the world.

More:

Interested in exploring the work of more scholars who write about racism and intersectionality in the U.S.? Here are a few others our faculty and staff recommend learning from: 

  • Cornel West

  • Bell Hooks

  • Audre Lorde

  • Barbara Smith

  • Mary Frances Berry

  • Gloria Anzaldua 

  • Toni Morrison

  • Peggy McIntosh

  • Peter McLaren

Also, check out this Anti-Racist Starter Pack: 40 TV Series, Documentaries, Movies, TED Talks, and Books to Add to Your List.

Thank you to the following people for contributing to this article: the Champlain College Library, Betsy Allen-Pennebaker, Jen Berger, Duane Dunston, Ashley Michelle Fowler, Amy Howe, Ph.D., Robert Mayer, Ph.D., Tony Perriello, J.D., Sahar D. Sattarzadeh, Ph.D., and Faith Yacubian.

Do you have a resource or recommendation you’d like to add to this list? Email theview@champlain.edu.

Author

Kaylee Sullivan

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