#GetWoke and #StayWoke
What does it mean to be “woke?”
Many people in the United States are experiencing a second sight, sometimes defined as being “woke.” In The Calling podcast, social justice activist Michelle Higgins says, “Woke-ness is a journey. It is saying ‘I’m done being blind’ or done saying ‘I’m sleeping on the whole truth about my community.'”
Maybe you read, watched and listened through the previous list of resources to educate yourself about race issues. Or maybe (hopefully) you sat down over a cup of coffee with a friend who is a person of color and listened–really listened–to their story. Your heart is cracking open and you want to learn more.
Here are some additional resources I’ve come across in the last six months since publishing the first list. I listened to the podcasts and read the articles, but am still working my way through the books, though they all come highly recommended. This list is far from exhaustive (and mainly based on recent events, not historical documents), so I hope you will add your own ideas to the comments section of this post. Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom to find new people to follow on Twitter and Facebook.
Podcasts:
The Calling
Michelle Higgins: “I Am a Worshipper” First and Foremost
How ‘Colorblind’ Christianity Broke Propaganda’s Heart
Jemar Tisby: It’s Never Too Soon to Talk about Race in Your Church
Code Switch: Race and Identity (NPR)–various episodes
Epiphany Fellowship (Pastor Eric Mason)
In God We Trust (First sermon after the election)
#Woke Church Series at Epiphany Fellowship:
#WokeChurch: It’s Time for the Church to do Something
#WokeChurch–Lamentations 3:1-18 (the pastor provides a time for African Americans in his congregation to lament)
Facing Ourselves
Are All White People Racist? (No. Well, Kind of. Let Us Explain.)
Fresh Air (NPR)
How the Systemic Segregation of Schools is Maintained by ‘Individual Choices’
Faith Conversations with Anita Lustrea
Faithfully Podcast
Will Christians Ever Get Race Relations Right?
White Christians, the Confederate Flag and the Civil War
Black Lives Matter, the Black Church and the Prosperity Gospel
A Mom’s Missionfield
A Sweaty Conversation about Racial Reconciliation: Retha Nichole and Emily Thomas
On Being with Krista Tippett
Vincent Harding (Civil Rights leader)–Is America Possible?
Isabel Wilkerson (author of The Warmth of Other Suns)
Mahzarin Banaji–The Mind is a Difference-Seeking Machine (on implicit bias)
Eula Bliss–Let’s Talk about Whiteness (refers to her article, White Debt, for the New York Times Magazine)
On Ramp: Two Christians Talk about Race
All of these are fantastic and only about 15 minutes long. So far, Shane Blackshear and Kerri Fisher have broadcasted episodes on privilege, stereotyping, diversity, implicit bias, levels of racism, lasting impacts of Jim Crow & slavery, and white supremacy. Find them all here.
Pass the Mic (put on by Reformed African American Network)
Roundtable: How to Be a White Ally
(And so many others)
Shalom in the City
Megan Tietz (on intentionally sending children to failing schools)
Truth’s Table–Coming this spring! (Hosts Michelle Higgins, Dr. C. Edmondson, and Ekemini Uwan)
Village Church
Justice and Racial Reconciliation panel (following July 2016 shootings)
Video:
Verge Network 7 Part Series on Racial Justice (includes interviews)
What Dark-Skinned People Will Never Tell You (5 min.)
13th Documentary (now on Netflix)
Articles from the Web:
Talking to Our Kids about Race:
Children’s Books to Help Talk about Race with Kids from an Alabama Public Library
What White Children Need to Know about Race, by Ali Michael and Eleonora Bartoli for the Independent School Magazine
5 Ways Parents Pass Down Prejudice and Racism, by Danielle Slaughter for Huffington Post
18 Children’s Books with Characters of Color, by Joanna Goddard for her blog, A Cup of Jo
55 of the Best Diverse Picture and Board Books of 2016, by Mrs. G at Here Wee Read Blog (and another great list from the same site). Follow her on Instagram for more great book ideas.
In the Church:
An Open Letter to the Evangelical Church, from the Black Girl in Your Pew, by Ilesha Graham for Huffington Post
Watching 81% of My White Brothers and Sisters Has Broken Something in Me, by Yolanda Pierce at Religion Dispatches
38 Resources to Help Your Church Start Discussing Race Today by Missio Alliance
White Fragility:
The Sugar-Coated Language of White Fragility, by Anna Kegler for Huffington Post
White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard to Talk to White People about Racism, by Dr. Robin Diangelo for The Good Men Project
4 Ways White People Can Process Their Emotions Without Bringing the White Tears, by Jennifer Loubriel of Everyday Feminism
The POC Perspective:
Choosing a School for My Daughter in a Segregated City, by Nikole Hannah-Jones for The New York Times Magazine
A Letter to My Son, by Rev. Otis Moss III for Huffington Post
Lacrae: Humility is the Key to Understanding Race Relations: Guest Essay, by Lecrae for Billboard
My President Was Black, by Ta-Nehisi Coates for The Washington Post
30 of the Most Important Articles by People of Color in 2016, by Zeba Blay for Huffington Post
Take Action:
6 Things to Do When You Live on White Island, by Leslie Verner at Scraping Raisins blog
25 SOLUTIONS for Police Brutality, by Shaun King
Life After ‘The New Jim Crow,’ by Brentin Mock of Citylab (an interview with Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness)
5 Actions White Educators Can Take to Help Make Schools Anti-Racist, by Jamie Utt for Everyday Feminism
Race and Trump:
Trump Syllabus 2.0 by N.D.B. Connolly and Keisha N. Blaine (an actual syllabus of a course that explores the foundations of “Trumpism”)
Websites:
Barefoot Books: Diverse and Inclusive Books
Reformed African American American Network (RAAN)
Sign up to receive a free weekly newsletter from The New York Times on current racial issues.
[Join BE THE BRIDGE Facebook Group if you haven’t already!]
News, Politics, Pop Culture Sites with a P.O.C. focus
VSB (Very Smart Brothas) Washington Post says about this site: “Very Smart Brothas has emerged as a stream-of-consciousness sounding board, an expletive-laden fuse and an absurdist inside joke.”
Books:
Nonfiction:
America’s Original Sin: Racism, White Privilege, and the Bridge to a New America
Disunity in Christ: Uncovering the Hidden Forces that Keep Us Apart
Ferguson and Faith: Sparking Leadership and Awakening Community
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Prophetic Lament: A Call for Justice in Troubled Times
Roadmap to Reconciliation: Moving Communities into Unity, Wholeness and Justice
Trouble I’ve Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism
The Very Good Gospel: How Everything Wrong Can Be Made Right
Who We Be: A Cultural History of Race in Post-Civil Rights America
Fiction (great for book clubs):
Brown Girl Dreaming (YA book)
People of Color to Follow on Twitter
(*also on Facebook):
***
We are on a journey towards greater “woke-ness.” As allies, partners and justice-seekers, we do well to heed the words of Rev. Traci Blackmon:
“… the invitation to the ally is always to follow the leadership of those who are at the center of the pain. Understanding the situation is not the same as owning the story.
The story matters. And choosing to work toward liberation of any kind requires a commitment to support the narrative of the ones who own the story. The role of the ally is not to lead or to fix. The ally holds the story and amplifies the voice of the story teller.
The ally:
- Shows up to listen, not lead.
- Follows the directions of those at the center.
- Uses privilege to point the spotlight in the direction of the pain.
- Uses power to disrupt oppression.
- Does not expect to be tutored on what is easily learned.
- Knows that the moment is not for them, yet the Movement is about us all.”
There is more to learn. Our responsibility is to listen, educate ourselves, dive into the pain and speak when our voices can amplify the narrative of our hurting brothers and sisters. Peace to you on your journey to #staywoke.
~Leslie Verner
Check out the first list of resources: 70+ Race Resources for White People
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