Toolkit for Change

How does one recognize inequity? What forms does it take, and what effects can it have on those discriminated against? What language should we use when discussing these issues? YWCA of Rochester & Monroe County seeks to provide resources for our community through the Toolkit for Change.  

These core beliefs can help guide the identification of discrimination:

1. Inequity and discrimination exists both in our community and nationwide.
2. Inequity and discrimination provides advantages to majority groups over others.
3. Inequity and discrimination is systemic and systemic solutions are at the heart of addressing the issues.
4. Inequity and discrimination disproportionately effects women and girls – which is why YWCA of Rochester & Monroe County is an important voice for equity in our community.

It’s okay if you do not completely understand these concepts yet or find them difficult to process (see tab below). The resources listed below will give you avenues through which to address any questions you might have regarding discrimination. Even someone well-versed in issues of inequity finds it beneficial to continuously learn and challenge themselves – do not be discouraged by a sense of helplessness or confusion, it’s a normal part of the process!  Additionally, the other categories can help you channel these resulting emotions effectively.

• • What is Intersectionality, and What Does it Have to Do With Me?: The concept of intersectionality has found increased popularity within the guiding principles of many nonprofits in recent years, but the actual concept has existed within black feminist communities for generations. Learn about the conceptualization of intersectionality in this easy-to-follow article. 
    • More of a visual learner? Consider this infographic that visually details identity overlap. 
    • How do white people misuse the concept of intersectionality?
  • Inequality, Equality, and Equity: Equality and equity are words often used interchangeably, but they are not the same. This article uses graphics to explain the critical difference between them.
  • Guidance for Reporting and Writing About Racism published by Syracuse University. The resource includes guidance for writers when writing and reporting about race and how it can produce a more inclusive report. The article is broken down into five considerations when writing about race and racism, and concludes with additional resources to help readers gain a greater understanding of its contents.
  • What do we mean by racial equity?: While written originally for UC Berkeley, this document’s explanation of racial equity succinctly tackles what racial equity looks like, as well as related terminology, such as racial bias and racial justice.
  • Racial Trauma: The term “racial trauma” is frequently used to explain the toll racism has on people of color’s mental health – but what does that look like? This curated resource defines racial trauma and provides specific resources for persons of minority races to utilize.
  • What is “Leaning In”?: “Leaning in” has become popular workplace lingo recently, but what does it actually entail?
    • Now that you know what leaning in is and its basic philosophy, why doesn’t leaning in work for women of color at an institutional level? Why doesn’t it work at a personal level?
  • A Definition and Overview of Systematic Racism: Systematic racism is one of the most basic concepts associated with activism work – but that doesn’t mean that you’re automatically familiar with it! This article defines and explains what systematic racism is, including the theory behind it and how it appears in everyday society.
  • What is Internalized Racism?: Just as systematic racism functions to maintain the advantages of white persons, it functions to discourage people of color to band against it – and this is known as internalized racism. Internalized racism is often thought about in terms of “low self esteem”, but in reality, it is just as systematic as white privilege. 
  • Understanding and Defining White Privilege: What does white privilege look like, and what benefits does it give white persons – even those who don’t feel particularly privileged? This article gives an overview and examples of white privilege.
    • Many white persons may feel uncomfortable with the fact that they have privilege, particularly if they have faced many challenges in their life. Gina Crosley-Corcoran’s “Explaining White Privilege to a Broke White Person” explains how white privilege does not mean that white people automatically get handed everything to them, or that they never have to struggle – but that privilege is a nuanced concept and many facets of it do benefit white persons from all walks of life.
  • Performative Activism Is the New ‘Color-Blind’ Band-Aid for White Fragility: It is easy to romanticize activism, but it doesn’t help those being fought alongside in the long run. This article explains why.
    • This article assumes that you already have an understanding of the problem of “colorblindness”; or, “I don’t see race”. If you don’t, this is a good place to start.
  • The Roots of Colorism, or Skin Tone Discrimination: What is colorism, and how does it present itself in the world today? Why is it that persons of color with lighter skin are favored over those with darker, overtly or covertly? This article explains the basic origins of and disadvantages presented by colorism.
    • Additionally, you can learn how racism and colorism are different here.
  • Hair Politics: Black hair is frequently politicized – you might have heard about controversies surrounding white persons wearing dreadlocks, or incidents where black school children are kicked out of classrooms for having “inappropriate” hairstyles. Why do incidents like this continue to occur across America? This article gives a brief history of black hair and links its current treatment to modern racism, as well as describing how this treatment disadvantages black persons in workplaces and school.
    • Hair politics causes emotional damage as well – read one black woman’s account of how closely her natural hair is tied to white perception. 
    • In 2019, New York State became the second state (after California) to ban discrimination based on natural hairstyles, inspired by the incidents described in the article above. 
  • ‘Latinx’: Why People Are Split On Using [It]: In recent years, the word Latinx has been used as a gender-neutral catch-all for hispanic persons. But is it the right word to use? Activists weigh in on the matter in this CNN article.
    • It seems that most older hispanic persons are unfamiliar with the term, and that is more common in younger circles.
  • More Latinas Are Choosing to Identify as Afro-Latina: The identity of Afro-Latina – or, “descendants of Latin America with African roots” – has become a popular self-identification in recent years. This article discusses what the term means and its importance to those who identify with it.
  • Why Does the U.S. Need Immigration Reform?: Despite the title of this article appearing to ask a singular question, it actually delves into the history of immigration law in the United States and why America is frequently migrated to by immigrants nationwide. 
  • Native American Issues Today: This article, from a Native American-run website, gives a brief overview of the many barriers facing Native Americans in the United States today. Their website has further articles on Native American discrimination.
    • Additionally, Amnesty International provides quick statistics for the dire situations faced by indigenous persons worldwide, every day – it is not only indingeonus persons native to the United States who face discrimination.
    • On a local scale, it is important to note that the University of Rochester was built on Seneca land, with little acknowledgement from the university to this fact. 
    • You can learn more about Native American tribes in Western New York – both their history and their current reality – in this report curated by Partnership for the Public Good.
  • What does the LGBTQ+ acronym stand for?: Get a little lost at all of the letters that seem to be added to the ever-expanding LGBTQ+ acronym? This New York Times article provides a great overview of what each letter means – even ones that you might not always see included in the acronym (like “I” for inersex, or “D” for demisexual). 
  • Basic LGBTQ Terms and Descriptions: Not only does this source define the letters of the acronym, but it also describes the basic differences between gender and sex, as well as provide brief Dos and Don’ts for interacting with and caring for LGBTQ+ folk.
  • What Is Intersex?: Intersex identities are some of the least represented of those that exist with the LGBTQ+ umbrella (though it is important to note that not all intersex persons identify as LGBTQ+).
    • What dangers do intersex persons face? Being intersex in of itself is rarely a medical concern – so why do so many hospitals perform invasive surgeries on intersex children?
  • Do the Words Disability and Handicapped Mean the Same Thing?: How do you correctly refer to someone who has a disability? This resource, compiled by and for disabled persons, tackles this concept – including the important distinction between “disability” and “handicapped”, and the social construction of disabilities. 
    • Additionally, what does the federal government define as disabled?
  • The Language We Use – Women Against Abuse: Language is powerful; it is intentional, and can change the way we perceive people. Therefore, it is critical to use the proper language to describe victims of abuse, which the anti-abuse organization Women Against Abuse breaks down in this informative webpage. 
  • Tone Policing – No, We Won’t Calm Down: This comic defines and explains the harm of tone policing, the practice of only accepting/listening to what an individual is saying so long as they aren’t perceived to be emotional.
  • Supporting Minority Victims of Intimate Partner Violence: Minority women are particularly at risk for experiencing intimate partner violence. This article provides a quick look at violence statistics and an overview of recognizing signs of domestic violence. 
    • National crises such as COVID tend to increase the rates of domestic violence as well, making awareness all the more critical during times of international crisis.
    • It is incredibly difficult to find statistics on abuse regarding LGBTQ+ women of color since a) they are often overlooked in research and b) they often do not respond to self-report research, but the information that we do have paints a dire picture.
  • Ableism 101: In a world full of “-isms”, ableism tends to be pushed to the side. What is ableism, and how does it affect disabled persons? This easy-to-read webpage breaks that down.
    • “Not All Deaf People Want To Be Fixed” is a fantastic read for understanding the complexities of ableism in an everyday context for Deaf persons in particular. 
    • The concept of “inspiration porn” (a term created by disability activist Stella Young) is often brought up within diabled spaces when talking about ableism – here’s a basic overview of what that is and how it harms disabled persons.
  • Reassigning Meaning [To Disability]: This academic essay explores what it truly means to hold an identity related to disability, as well as the impact of well-meaning “nice” words such as “differently abled” on actual disabled persons. 

• • YWCA’s Stance on Paid Safe, Sick, and Family Leave: Women in American frequently have to choose between their health and wellness in order to maintain their jobs, receiving little or none paid leave. This YWCA report on leave summarizes statistics regarding the dire situation facing these women, including minority women and victims of domestic violence.
    • There are also similar reports regarding child care access and workforce participation. 
    • Additionally, labor force participation for women has slowly declined in recent years, despite representing nearly half of the labor force. Many women find attending work difficult due to childcare, and many cannot return to their jobs after having children as a result – or have to take on vulnerable jobs (jobs with low pay, shorter hours that are not by choice, a lack of social protections, etc).
      • This is not helped by the large wage gap that exists between men and women, which only increases for women of color. In fact, according to 2016 Census data, the median wage pay between men and women in Rochester differs by about $3,000 dollars.
  • Block-Granting Low-Income Programs Leads to Large Funding Declines Over Time, History Shows: A 2017 report conducted by Center on Budget and Budget Priorities that shows how funding for low-income assistance programming has decreased significantly from the 2000s and onward – and will likely continue to do so. This has grave consequences on impoverished persons who rely on these programs.
    • The YWCA reports its funding sources publicly here.
  • A ‘Forgotten History’ Of How The U.S. Government Segregated America: Racist housing policies enacted by the federal government in the 1930s have had lasting effects on the upward mobility of African Americans to this day. Author Richard Rothstein offers a summarization of the main points of his book on this practice, called redlining, in this article and accompanying interview.
    • Rochester’s housing history is also one of black segregation – which can be read about here.
  • Maternal Mortality Briefing: Women of color face higher rates of maternal mortality and other childbirth complications than their white peers. The YWCA has collected statistics regarding this systematic inequality in this document. 
    • Women of color are not just denied maternal care equal to that of white persons. Racism permeates all levels of health care. You can read this personal account of one black woman’s experience with white nurses after an intensive surgery, which is interwoven with real statistics.
  • Ending the Criminalization of Women and Girls of Color: Women and girls of color are punished by the criminal justice system at a rate much higher than their white peers. Why is this, and what does this look like? This YWCA briefing on the matter explores these questions and more.
    • Even schools are not safe from criminalization – read about the detention and punishment of schoolchildren of color here, and the school-to-prison pipeline that exists for black girls here.
    • You can also read about what this criminalization looks like at a community level here.
  • National Equity Atlas: NEA is “America’s most detailed report card on racial and economic equity.” Their statistics give numbers to the disparities experienced by those disadvantaged by racial and economic status.
  • African Americans Face Systematic Obstacles to Getting Good Jobs: A wealth gap exists between black Americans and their white peers, and it’s not as simple as applying to better jobs. This article outlines what challenges African Americans face to employment – down to their names.
  • Study identifies a key reason black scientists are less likely to receive NIH funding: Even when people of color break into the research field, they are often less likely to receive grants for their studies in comparison to their white peers. This study, focusing specifically on a lack of funding by the National Institute of Health, explores the barriers to funding that exist for black researchers.
  • A Tale of Two Coopers: Following the story of a white woman threatening to call the cops on a black person to intentionally stoke racial violence, this article explores how black persons are forced to navigate white spaces – restaurants, universities, etc. – and the consequences for being perceived as “out of place” within them.
  • Nail Salon Brawls & Boycotts – Unpacking The Black-Asian Conflict In America: This article highlights the reason behind and the impact of racial conflict between minority identities, focusing specifically on Asian and Black minorities. 
  • Many Black and Asian Americans Say They Have Experienced Discrimination Amid the COVID-19 Outbreak: Corona does not only have economic implications – it has racial ones as well. Many black and asian persons report worrying about others being suspicious of them because of their masks concealing their face.
    • Corona has also devastated lower-income families: about half of lower income Americans reported job or wage loss. There is a racial trend in these reports: “Black adults [are] particularly likely to say they cannot pay some bills or can only make partial payment on some of them in a typical month: 46% of black adults say this, compared with 28% of Hispanic adults and an even smaller share of white adults (20%)”.
  • The Police Are Killing One Group at a Staggering Rate, and Nobody Is Talking About It: Native Americans are frequently the victims of police violence and fatalities, yet they do not receive much mainstream coverage. 
    • You can learn more about #NativeLivesMatter here.
  • 10 things you should know about white privilege: This article breaks down the benefits that white privilege confers onto white persons – and, most noteworthily, deprives from those who aren’t white. 
  • 11 Common Ways White Folks Avoid Taking Responsibility for Racism in the US: Written by famous white activist Robin DiAngelo, this article details how white people perpetrate white superiority by refusing to admit that they can be, potentially, racist themselves. 
  • What LGBTQ Discrimination in the Workplace Looks Like (& How to Respond): This Glassdoor article gives a brief summary of a few real anti-LGBTQ+ workplace cases and what effects they have on the law.
  • Trans People Belong: People who are transgender often face barriers in every sector of their life – from accessing health care to schooling. Learn more about these difficulties from this ACLU article. 
    • Additionally, black trans women face some of the most frequent violence in the LGBTQ+ community – and are the most frequent target of fatal hate crimes.
  • Brief on Violence Against Sexual and Gender Minority Women: This report, curated by VAWG (Violence Against Women and Girls), explores the particular forms of violent discrimination experienced by sexuality and gender minority women, and why a modern women’s movement must include their identities.
  • Common Barriers to Participation Experienced by People with Disabilities: This CDC article provides a brief overview of the day-to-day challenges people across the disability spectrum experience, from transportation to fitting into larger society.

This summarization of a 2017 study conducted by the National Rehabilitation Information Center further expires employment barriers for disabled persons, who frequently experience much lower employment rates than their able-bodied peers.

• • Teaching Our Kids About Racism: An honest, largely unscripted vlog where a white mother and two black mothers discuss racism, Black Lives Matter, and teaching children about racism.
  • What Dark-Skinned People Will Never Tell You: A collection of first-hand accounts of colorism by dark-skinned people of color from multiple nationalities. 
  • ‘We Have A Place In This World Too’: This NPR piece follows the personal accounts of black Americans and their everyday anxieties on facing racism in America.
  • Disability Solidarity: A Living Playlist: Many black, disabled Americans document their experience through music. This is a curated playlist of music reflecting these experiences.
  • The Hispanic Experience Today: This CNN-compiled resource lists articles, stories, videos, and etc. on how Hispanic persons navigate through 21st-century America.
  • What It’s Like to Be an Undocumented Immigrant: Often, the American narrative on immigragation is that immigrants need to apply for citizenship “the right way”. This is the account of one woman illegally living in America on what prevented her from living in the states “the right way”.
  • What is the Truth About American Muslims?: A short FAQ-styled reading on misconceptions regarding America’s Muslim community.
  • The Rise of Global Anti-Semitism: A video and description of a panel held by the Wilson Center, this webpage explains the recent resurgence of anti-semitism (the main argument being that it never really went away) and what can be done about it.
    • What is it like to be black and Jewish in times of severe racism and anti-semitism? This opinion piece written by a Jewish person of color explains this from a personal place – “I’m being forced to walk a tightrope.”
      • You can read further about racial tension in the Jewish community here.
  • What It’s Like To Be Intersex: Intersex identities are commonly swept under the rug, and are not known to exist by many – despite being as common as having red hair. And yet, intersex persons are frequently the target of invasive, non-essential surgeries in order to “correct” their natural bodies. This bite-sized video shows a group of intersex persons frankly discussing their identities. 
  • It’s Always Been About Discrimination for LGBT People: This article from the ACLU describes the legacy of shame inherited by all LGBTQ+ persons, and why much of their identity inherently focuses on discrimination as a result – from the individual prospective of an LGBTQ+ person.
  • Frequency Asked Questions About Transgender People: Not only is this a wonderfully brief overview of transgender identity, but it addresses questions that people frequently have about the identity, and are too afraid to ask.
    • You can also hear transgender persons across the age spectum define their identities at the personal level here.
  • What Does “Queer” Mean?: Why do so many people identify as queer, despite its legacy as a slur? Nine queer people explain what their identity means to them.
  • Special Books by Special Kids: This Youtube channel documents conversations held between the channel creator and disabled persons from all walks of life and with all kinds of different disabilities to show them as they really are – normal people. It’s refreshing to see disabled persons portrayed in an every-day context and not held up as beacons of hope, which is the aim of this informative channel.
  • How do you define invisible disability?: Our idea of a disability tends to be something overt and noticeable – but many of them are not. This article gives a brief overview of such “invisible disabilities”.
  • A Class Divided: Though its presentation has certainly aged, and its ethics are questionable, “A Class Divided” still remains one of social psychology’s most classic studies of discirmination. Taking place in a third-grade classroom where the teacher has divided her class into two arbitrary groups – brown and blue eyes – this PBS documentary follows the resulting fall-out that ensued within the classroom as a result, helping us explore issues of discrimination at a microlevel.
    • A brief description of this experiment can be found here.
  • “Telling All American’s Stories”: The American National Park Service frequently compiles in-depth histories of multiple minority groups, choosing to focus on one per year to create lengthy, information documents in a series called “Telling All American’s Stories”. This resource has guides about the history, culture, struggles, and triumphs of minority groups across America, including disabled persons, persons of color, immigrants, LGBTQ+ persons, etc. If you are interested in learning about these identities in an academic but still easy-to-understand format, this is the resource to turn to.

Processing discrimination – meaning the mental toll experiencing, learning about, or addressing discrimination takes – differently affects those who were previously unaware of the discrimination and those being discriminated against. The former may experience a sense of disillusionment in of a world they had thought they had known, and the latter may experience fatigue from the frequency of their discrimination. Both require healing, but the means by which they may experience this can greatly differ. This category offers places for persons of all backgrounds to find a sense of understanding and, ideally, peace, so that they may be in the best possible mindset to address discrimination.

• Healing in Action – A Toolkit for Black Lives Matter/Healing Justice and Direct Action: This toolkit provided by Black Lives Matter explores the concept of healing justice, which address the trauma that POC fighting for their own equality experience on a day to day basis and makes healing a natural part of activism efforts, rather than something that “takes away” from it, in order to maintain the energy and safety of Black activists.
• Here’s How to Recover from Activism Burnout: One of the most important action activists can take is to prevent burnout; or, “a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion caused by long term involvement in situations that are emotionally demanding”. It is impossible to learn about systematic barriers and injustice without emotional drain, and when one is sufficiently drained, it is impossible to take action – therefore, learning the signs of burnout and how to treat it is important.
  • Want to share this information with your activist organization? Activist Trauma has created a pamphlet on recognizing, addressing, and the cause of burnout. 
• Black Activist Burnout: ‘You Can’t Do This Work If You’re Running On Empty’: This article details how the effect of racism takes its toll on the emotional and mental health of black Americans in particular. It details the accounts of black activists and their tips for confronting burnout.
  • Additionally, why are black millenials more prone to this form of burnout? This voice recording follows Tiana Clark, who has previously written articles on black burnout, speaking on this area of expertise.
• 100 Acts of Radical Self-Care: This interactive activity set forth by GirlTrek for black women in particular challenges participants to engage in at least one act of self care every day, in whatever time frame deemed achievable. It is in a printable format and can be printed and pinned somewhere visible as a reminder to any participants – or can be used as an idea sheet for potential acts of self care! 
  • If you are uncomfortable with any of the suggested activities, you can substitute them!
  • You may also find that creating a long-term self-care plan may be beneficial in keeping up with it, rather than participating in a challenge. 
• Dealing With Discrimination: This article from the APA describes experiencing discrimination from a psychological perspective, and offers suggestions on how to check in with your body and mind after a discriminatory incident. 

Being aware of and able to healthily process discrimination are incredible steps to take, but they are not the final ones. Everyday actions can be taken to address discrimination at the local level. The more steps taken by multiple persons, especially when coordinated, the farther this reach goes. Here are some potential steps you can take to bolster your reach!

• • Beyond Protests: 5 More Ways To Channel Anger Into Action To Fight Racism: This NPR article is a great start to dipping your toes into activist work, providing tips and resources in a short article to begin encouraging change.
  • Ways You Can Help: This multilingual resource (translations can be found here) lists petitions to sign, numbers to text, and places to donate to for the BLM movement in one helpful place.
  • 21st Century Leadership: Optimizing Diversity by Leveraging the Power of Inclusion: This downloadable report addresses how organizational leaders can leverage their position of power to encourage inclusion in their workplace hiring practices and culture, benefiting the organization as a whole.
    • Want to leverage employees themselves to change workplace culture? Check out this Chron article, and finish off with this HR article on high-performance team creation.
    • Race to Lead: Confronting the Nonprofit Racial Leadership Gap is a report on inclusion specifically regarding nonprofit leadership.
    • Specifically interested in gender inclusion? Check out this list of potential actions employers can take to encourage gender inclusion in their workplace.
  • Racial Equity Toolkit to Assess Policies, Initiatives, Programs, and Budget Issues: This guide walks you through what type of assessments you can conduct on your organization to, in their own words, “guide the development, implementation and evaluation of policies, initiatives, programs, and budget issues to address the impacts on racial equity.”
  • Moving Beyond Diversity Toward Racial Equity: This personal account of one organization’s move towards racial equity in what was already considered a diverse workplace exemplifies the important difference between diversity and equity, as well as giving scaffolding for other organizations to do the same.
  • Racial Equity: The Responsibility and Opportunity for Local Governments: What roles can local governments take in addressing racial equity? The National League of Cities outlines what steps can be taken, and how.
    • If you want an even more detailed guide on the role of local government in working towards racial equity, you can check out the Government Alliance on Race and Equity’s more detailed toolkit here.
    • Living Cities also has its own toolkit for what city governments can do to address racial equity.
    • Interested in what Rochester itself is doing to this end? Check out the REAL team!
  • Creating High-Impact Nonprofits: A nonprofit can only address discrimination and inequity when it is able to function internally! This article reviews some of America’s most successful nonprofits and discusses what tactics they have used to get to where they are today, as well as dispels common myths surrounding nonprofit work.
    • Need more nonprofit help? Check out Geofunders.org or The Community Foundation for grant help, and Bridgespan for leadership development tips!
    • Racial Equity Tools also has a fantastic compiled list of resources for organizations who want their workplace culture to be one that “considers diversity, inclusion and racial equity, with a goal of aligning them with what is known about how to reduce white culture and achieve racial equity goals”.
  • Advancing Women of Color – Burden or Opportunity?: Clickbait title aside, this article teaches employers how to retain WOC in their organization in order to create an optimally inclusive environment. 
  • The Violence Against Women Act and YWCA Impact/Success Stories: This YWCA report outlines how we utilize and benefit from VAWA, and what impact our use of those funds has on the lives on everyday women. If you want to see how federal funding works in action, this is the perfect case study.
    • Similar impacts can be seen, and have been discussed by the YWCA, in this report on the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act.
    • Want to know what else we do in your community? Read about it here.
  • How You Can Support Detained Immigrant Families: This article lists direct actions you can take to support detained families, via reaching out to elected officials and volunteer work.
  • Disability and Health Inclusion Strategies: This article by the CDC walks through how persons with disabilities can be included and accounted for in everyday life, both at local and federal levels.
  • 5 Ways to Handle a Racist Family Member: Confronting racism often ends in us confronting those closest to us – our family members. Though this article specifically details steps to take to properly confront a racist family member, the tips provided can be used for any marginalized identity being targeted.
    • It is also important to understand that educating family members or others on marginalization is not a singular event; it will likely take many conversations for them to understand the impact of inequity. And this goes for you as well! 
  • Taking a Stand Against Discriminatory School Policies: This article teaches educators how to utilize data in recognizing racist trends in the schooling system.
  • How To Create a Schoolwide Racial and Social Justice Initiative: Defining what “help” an educational system needs in order to properly enact social change can be difficult, but this guide gives you an outline through which to explore problems and potential solutions.
  • Filing a Charge of Discrimination: Whether you need to do it for yourself or you’re helping another person with it, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with how to file a discrimination charge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
    • Not sure what harassment looks like? Check out…
      • …what racial harassment could look like.
      • …what sexual harassment could look like.

…the many different categories of workplace harassment that exist beyond what’s listed here.

• • You Say You Stand in Solidarity – But Do You Know What That Really Means?: To provide solidarity, it is important to know what it actually means. This video and accompanying transcript from Everyday Feminism describe what solidarity looks like when one is privileged.
    • You can also explore the roots of the word solidarity here, and what implications that has on the word’s modern use today. 
    • Solidarity should be a word of action – this article compares solidarity to hurricane relief in an efficient metaphor.
  • 10 Ways You Can Support Women of Color at Work: An easy-to-parse list of ways that co-workers and employers can provide support to WOC in the workplace.
    • Wondering the potential benefits of supporting women at work, as well as what potential barriers exist to doing so? Harvard Business Review has your back.
  • How to Truly Support the Muslim Community: Unsure of how to show solidarity to Muslim persons in your community? This article details what allyship looks like in the face of American cultural violence. 
  • 3 Ways for Christians to be in Solidarity With Our Jewish Sisters + Brothers: While written for Christian communities, this article’s tips on standing in solidarity with Jews can be utilized by anyone of any religious/spiritual background (or lack thereof). 
  • How Do We Talk About Recent Incidents of Anti-Semitism [Alongside Black Lives Matter]?: This piece describes the solidarity that Jewish persons can constructively use to support people of color, even during a time of their own community’s onslaught.
    • …and as we’ve discussed above, black Jews do exist, and are just as deserving as support as their white religious peers.

• • What Black scientists want from colleagues and their institutions: Academia can often be a hostile place for people of color – read the accounts of six black academics to understand what kinds of institutional changes need to be applied in order to better support people of color within the research community.

• • Supporting Students from Immigrant Communities: Immigrant children are at the forefront of the polarizing topic that is immigration. This anxiety can impede their educational progress and peace of mind – which is why Tolerance.org has collected this collection of resources for how one may best support immigrant children in classrooms, politically, emotionally, etc.
    • You can read about the YWCA’s stance on keeping immigrant families together here, or watch our policy briefing here. 
    • Colorín Colorado also has an expansive list of potential resources for educators teaching immigrant children here.

Understanding the root causes of multiple forms of discrimination can ideally help us reduce their impact. While within our current societal culture it is impossible to cultivate a space that will never be discriminatory, it is possible to cultivate an environment that has the capacity to (as you might have already guessed) identify, process, and address discrimination, thus learning from it and limiting it to the best of our ability. This can take many forms, including, but not limited to continuously:

• • Teaching Young Children About Bias, Diversity, and Social Justice: Why teach children about discrimination? We falsely assume that children are incapable of understanding the complex issues of discrimination, but they aren’t – and the benefits of appropriately teaching them about these concepts are numerous.
  • Charlottesville And How To Teach Your Children About Racism Now: Written from the Christian perspective of a white woman post-Charlottesville, this blog post is a deeply emotional account of the importance of discussing race with white children of any age.
    • Unsure if talking about racism with your white child is developmentally appropriate? Check out this guide on how to talk about race to your child appropriately at every stage of their life.
    • What about for children of color? Watch Denene Milner discuss the importance of instilling self-esteem within children of color here.
  • Racism and Violence: How to Help Kids Handle the News: It is important to see racism as a traumatizing series of lifelong events while also acknowledging that children need to be taught about it. This article walks parents through teaching children about the “scary times” we live in.
  • How White Educators Can Approach Antiracist Work: Integrating an an actively anti-racist approach into educational work is critical for developing critically thinking students. This article gives suggestions on how best to do that.
    • Baylor University’s guide to providing students with a multicultural education also has direct advice on what teachers can do to examine their classroom biases and make meaningful change for/recognition of their diverse student population.
  • D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice: This series of multilingual resources help educators integrate LGBTQ+, racial, gender, and cultural themes within their classwork.
    • They have created a kid-friendly version of the Black Lives Matter movement’s guiding principles here, which can be found in multiple languages on their website.

• • Understanding Implicit Bias: Everyone has implicit bias, or: “attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner”. These attitudes often influence how we interact with and perceive minority groups, whether we realize it or not – becoming aware of and accepting that we hold these internal views on a continuous basis is critical to furthering our equity work.
    • Harvard’s Project Implicit provides a variety of psychological tests to visually demonstrate one’s implicit bias, and might be a good first step in exploring one’s own biases. The goal is not to get some kind of “high score” or “correct results” on these exams, but rather to confront one’s own biases. 
    • As Vox puts it, implicit bias means that ”we’re all a little bit racist”, and their article provides suggestions for what to do with that information.
    • There exist strategies for reducing the effects of implicit bias, as outlined in this psychological study here.
  • Donate and educate yourself – A list of ways to be a better ally: This list of allyship opportunities is relevant for anyone seeking continuous self-education and support.
  • Curriculum for White Americans to Educate Themselves on Race and Racism–from Ferguson to Charleston: This compilation of resources provides a curriculum for White Americans to educate themselves on their impact in the anti-racism movement.
  • 30+ Ways Asians Perpetuate Anti-Black Racism Everyday: Written for members of the Asian community, this piece identifies ways in which Asian persons are connected to anti-black racism, challenging the notion that only white people can be racist.
    • The article is also available in Japanese.
    • The organization Unveil Our Story also has a large collection of resources for Asian Americans regarding BLM here.
  • Reducing Discrimination [From a Social Psychology Perspective]: This psychology-based reading out of a social psychology textbook describes the processes that discrimination takes, using social psychology hypotheses and studies to support their points. It also provides methods by which persons can confront discrimination, helping one both educate themselves in biases and act upon their education.
  • Offensive political dog whistles: you know them when you hear them. Or do you?: Recognizing dog whistles – or, “a political shorthand for a phrase that may sound innocuous to some people, but which also communicates something more insidious either to a subset of the audience or outside of the audience’s conscious awareness” – is critical in confronting and deconstructing institutional inequity. But how can you tell what is and what isn’t one? This Vox article breaks down how to recognize and contextualize them.
  • LGBTQIA+-focused learning modules for health workers: These learning modules provided by the National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center provide an interactive experience with how one can best serve LGBTQIA+ clients. 
  • Nonprofit Quarterly: This organization regularly reports on methods that can be used by organizations in order to encourage diversity and equity within their structures, and is an excellent resource for anyone involved in nonprofits looking to integrate equity practices into their everyday work.
  • Tools for Addressing Chapter Conflict: Published by Black Lives Matter, this PDF walks through what conflict within a social justice group looks like, how trauma plays a role in conflict, and how to navigate through it.

• • Register To Vote Online (New York State citizens only): The New York State DMV offers an electronic voter registration application. To use this service, you will need your most recent New York State DMV issued driver license (permit or Non-Driver ID), the ZIP Code currently on record with the DMV, and the last 4 digits of your Social Security Number (SSN).
    • Don’t remember if you’re registered to vote? Use vote.org’s free registration-check tool.
    • Wondering what one vote could possibly do? Learn about the importance of voting, presidential election year or not, from the research group Demos.
  • YWCA’s “Get Out the Vote” initiative: In its continuing commitment to eliminating racism and empowering women, the YWCA of Rochester and Monroe’s parent organization, YWCA, leads civic engagement efforts to ensure safe and unbarricaded voting abilities for all. Through here, you can get an absentee ballot, register to vote in your state, find your polling place, and more.
    • The YWCA also recognizes racial barriers to voting rights, addressed in our Stand Against Racism efforts.
  • U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ “Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities”: This is how the federal government of America defines the ideal American citizen. What overlap or exclusions in values do you notice from these definitions to the ones you have encountered in the articles above?
  • Four Ways to Integrate a Structural Racism Lens into Neighborhood Health Research: This article outlines the means through which researchers can more accurately gather statistics regarding persons of color, considering systematic racism and lack of access as factors in their research.
    • Data collection that expends or overlooks marginalized communities is something that the YWCA has spoken about in the past. Read our statement regarding proposed changes to the 2020 Census here. 
  • YWCA and Racial Justice: The YWCA takes active steps every day to address racial and gender inequity, and you can learn more about that process – what it looks like, our progress, and even our shortcomings. This link has a collection of compiled statements, policies, and reports from the organization itself.
  • BRJE and Boston Workmen’s Circle co-host racial justice and equity meeting: This article is a wonderful walkthrough of a meeting regarding racial justice in a high school setting. 

We also suggest that citizens introduce the following events to your communities to create a better avenue for the identification, processing, addressing, and prevention of discrimination at a local level: 

• Read the ACT Rochester report on Poverty @ https://www.actrochester.org/; hold a discussion and create an action plan for change using their data.
  • Better yet, read up on all of ACT Rochester’s data! Their mission, as stated by them: “To change the culture of community problem-solving and associated decision making through the use of credible, independent and timely data.” Their statistics, organized in “report cards” by area, cover economics, education, health, demographics, etc.
    • Their overview of Monroe county can be found here.
• Familiarize yourself with the policies companies you interact with on a day-to-day basis have regarding equity.
  • For example, Excellus has an easily accessible statement on racial equity here.
• Read a book and hold a book club on a book of impact, using any of the book lists suggested above.
  • Need suggestions? Check out these Goodreads lists.
  • Unable to host a book club thanks to a busy parenthood schedule? Consider reading your child books that have a diverse cast of characters. Remember to include disabilities and gender identity!
• Watch documentaries on racial equity work and hold a discussion group
• Start an intentional conversation with a person or group of a different race, faith or gender identity
• Host a workshop led by an expert on equality
• Write an essay or poem and submit to local papers or post on social media
• Create a mural or collage
• Support businesses run by minority groups.
• Host an open mic performance highlighting the importance of equality in our community
• Reach out to and partner with local groups fighting for equality.
  • In the Rochester area, these groups include the National Coalition Building Institute of Rochester, Spiritus Christi’s Anti-Racism Coalition, Art and Justice Rochester, Showing Up for Racial Justice Rochester, Racial Equity & Justice Initiative (REJI), and 540WMain, Inc.

Racial and Nationality Equity:

• Racial Equity Tools: “Racial Equity Tools is designed to support individuals and groups working to achieve racial equity. This site offers tools, research, tips, curricula and ideas for people who want to increase their own understanding and to help those working toward justice at every level – in systems, organizations, communities and the culture at large.”
• Colorín Colorado: “Colorín Colorado is a national multimedia project that offers a wealth of bilingual, research-based information, activities, and advice for educators and families of English language learners (ELLs).” 
• Letters for Black Lives: “Letters for Black Lives is [an open letter project] crowdsourced, multilingual, and culturally-aware [letters] aimed at creating a space for open and honest conversations about racial justice, police violence, and anti-Blackness in our families and communities.”

Income Equity:

• Rochester-Monroe County Anti-Poverty Initiative (RMAPI): RMAPI is a multi-sector community collaborative with a goal to improve quality of life by reducing poverty and increasing self-sufficiency. To do this, RMAPI is focused on increasing income, making basic needs more affordable and accessible, and lowering concentrations of poverty.”

Ability Equity:

• The International Disability Alliance: “To advance the human rights of persons with disabilities as a united voice of organizations of persons with disabilities.”
• Autistic Self Advocacy Network: “The Autistic Self Advocacy Network seeks to advance the principles of the disability rights movement with regard to autism. ASAN believes that the goal of autism advocacy should be a world in which autistic people enjoy equal access, rights, and opportunities. We work to empower autistic people across the world to take control of our own lives and the future of our common community, and seek to organize the autistic community to ensure our voices are heard in the national conversation about us. Nothing About Us, Without Us!”
• Disability History Museum: “The Disability History Museum hosts a Library of virtual artifacts, Education curricula, and Museum exhibits. These programs are designed to foster research and study about the historical experiences of people with disabilities and their communities.”

Gender and Sexuality Equity:

• GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation): “GLAAD rewrites the script for LGBTQ acceptance. As a dynamic media force, GLAAD tackles tough issues to shape the narrative and provoke dialogue that leads to cultural change.” 
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Queer Toolkit: “NASW can offer experts to help you better cover social issues related to the LGBTQ community. NASW can help you find experts you can interview, topics you can cover during Pride Month, data and other resources, and a glimpse of how the LGBTQ community is covered in the news and entertainment media.”
• Rainbow Health Ontario: “Rainbow Health Ontario creates opportunities for the healthcare system to better serve LGBT2SQ communities . . . to feel more clinically and culturally competent in caring for their LGBT2SQ service users.”

Environmental Equity:

• Public Health Resources for Understanding Environmental Racism: Environmental Racism is intentional racial discrimination in infrastructural and environmental policy making. This resource can equip individuals with information to better address these issues in their communities.