Voices of St. Luke's: The Social Justice Sentinel Issue

Voices of St. Luke’s:

The Social Justice Sentinel Issue The Eight Major Identifiers

Dear SLS Community,

This is a publication about social justice, and about the intersectionality of the many issues that are pertinent to the human experience. As you read through the following articles - many of which are brave, personal accounts from members of our community - keep in mind the “eight major identifiers” shown above, and the many ways in which they intersect. The Sentinel and the Student Diversity Leadership Council have put this together because we believe that many of the issues discussed on the following pages too often go ignored. It is our responsibility as members of this community to work towards a common goal of respect, compassion, and ceaseless equality. Our very first step must be education, and we hope that is what the following articles, and the subsequent conversations that may arise, will help us accomplish. We hope that your education on these issues does not stop here, but rather that these articles will encourage you to think about your own role in this community and the many ways in which you can work towards improvement. As you read, be sure to ask questions, ponder difficult ideas, and start conversations. Together, we can make an impact. Thank you, and enjoy!

--- The Sentinel & the SDLC

A Collaboration Between the Sentinel & the SDLC

Lessons I’ve Learned About Equity and Inclusion

by Evan Downey

“I don’t know, I’ll have to ask him,” my friend said. I noticed right away that he didn’t say “ask” the way I had learned to say it. He said it the way I had learned to say the word ax. He had grown up in the Bronx. I had grown up in rural New York. By the accidental geography of birth, we had learned to pronounce the word differently, not unlike the way the British pronounce ask differently than Americans, or the way my Southern friends from college pronounce “pen” and “pin” the same.

In that moment, as we stood in line to order our egg-a-bagels, somewhere inside, a voice told me that I should razz him about his pronunciation of the word ask. “Or you could ask him,” I said snidely, pronouncing it the way I had learned. Over the course of two years, our friendship had blossomed through jokes and jabs, and I had hoped to land a good one. Teasing is not always a bad thing. It can be a means of establishing intimacy in friendships, an act of inclusion even. But, this was not that. The hurt in my friend’s eyes told me that this was different. This was exclusion. For, my friend was black.

I, of course, am white.

What I failed to understand when I made the comment was that the most proximate context— that of our jokes and jabs—was a sliver of the larger context of race in America. My comment was a textbook microaggression: those slights that people from marginalized communities endure as they navigate privileged spaces like our elite New England boarding school. It was wrong. It was cruel.

It was ignorant. It was a way of saying that he did not belong in the way I did. In short, it was racist.

Something I’ve learned about racism is that it seeps into our worldview and corrodes our moral compass whether we seek it out or not. I did not learn the power hierarchy of accents in school, or from a racist family member or friend. I learned it osmotically, through my life experience. I learned it through the stories that we tell ourselves, the cultural narratives that come to be understood as conventional wisdom. Conventional wisdom dictated that my friend’s Bronx accent was an expression of his lower status on the social totem pole. Had he known better, conventional wisdom dictated, he

would have pronounced the word properly.

These are the stories we tell ourselves, anyway.

The conventional wisdom of the social hierarchy of accents is an example of what sociologists call White Supremacy. My own accent—an extension of the community in which I was raised, and thus my whiteness—gave me the unearned structural advantage to shame my friend. This underscores the subtle and arbitrary ways that cultural narratives elevate whiteness to a place of primacy in America.

These are the same cultural narratives that led Joe Biden to describe Barack Obama as “articulate” when he first ran for the Presidency in 2007. As Michael Eric Dyson noted in a New York Times interview at the time, the subtext of this compliment plays into historical tropes about “the exceptional Negro.” “The implication is that most black people do not have the capacity to engage in articulate speech, when white people are automatically assumed to be articulate,” Dyson noted.[a]

If we are to have a serious conversation about race, we must begin by expanding upon the popular definition of White Supremacy.

The conventional wisdom that White Supremacy is just Klansmen in hoods or Neonazis marching in Charlottesville is predicated on what sociologist Robin DiAngelo describes as the good/bad dichotomy: racism is something that bad people do, the implication being that a good person can live outside of it. But, this simply is not true. This is the same fiction perpetuated by the trope, “I don’t see color.” Of course, you do. In fact, I suspect you knew my friend’s race before I told you he was black.

White people say “I don’t see color” in order to dismiss the idea that we can be influenced by racist ideas. If you’d asked me back then, I probably would not have admitted the racism behind my comment. “But, I’m a good person. I didn’t intend to say something racist, so that criticism is not fair,” I probably would have said. But, this defense fails to account for my responsibility in perpetuating White Supremacist narratives that conflate accent and intelligence. Though my jab may not have been motivated by hate, it was certainly founded in a racist trope that arbitrarily privileges

people who speak like me when it comes to access to jobs, wealth, and opportunity.

To be clear, it is important to avoid the suggestion that microaggressions and overt racial enmity are the same. They are not. But, it is also important that white people not lean on this difference to abdicate our responsibility for dismantling the racist ideas that distort our capacity to see the world as it is.

This is why I felt it was important to share this moment of personal shame from high school. First, I want to model for white community members the importance of taking responsibility for the racial mistakes we will inevitably make in our lives. Popular discourse leans so hard on the good/bad dichotomy that white people are inevitably discouraged from talking about race. The fear of being labeled “racist” shuts down conversations before they can begin.

Yes, we should all endeavor not to be racist. But, I would argue that this is a little like me telling my students to go forth and speak French, or my players to go forth and win a basketball championship. We need to have a plan for getting there.

White allies, rather than endeavoring not to be racist, work to be anti-racist. As DiAngelo suggests, rather than ask: Am I racist? Consider asking yourself how you have been shaped by the forces of racism. If we begin with the right question and seek to learn and grow, we can all play a role in dismantling racism. [a] Definitions - The Racial Politics Of Speaking Well - Lynette Clemetson, The New York Times

The Human Race

by Janelle Johnson I’m running as fast as I can I see others forward by me I think nothing of it I am running as fast as I can I feel my dark curls become heavy The burden on my body is profound Each step takes twice the amount of effort I think nothing of it I’m running as fast as I can The brown of my skin begins to ache Still I wear it with pride The searing pain in my legs is felt with every stride My arms with every pump My face with every wince For all of me is brown I cannot escape it The weight of my hair provides no relief I think nothing of it I still run as fast as I can I look up at the others They are running Blissfully I think I am different My suffering is deep They are free I cannot think anything of it I run as fast as I can JJ

Dear Young Black Man

by Jordan Robinson

Dear Young Black Man,

I get it, teenage years are weighing heavy on you - the stress of getting good grades and managing your time. As well as the added stress of being a man of color in world that makes you a target because of the color of your skin. So you walk through the halls with 4,000 other kids, head low, doing just enough to get through the day. You race from one room to another where you’re told you could be anything you want to be from an astronaut to a CEO. But don’t make too much noise. Especially when your teacher tells you that you’re getting into college solely because of affirmative action. You’re supposed to take the blow and continue to do your work. You’re told to use your voice to answer 1+1 but when the white kid in the corner says his parents work hard just to fill the pockets of the lazy you are told to be silent because if not, you’re the angry black man or you’re overly sensitive. So as the years have gone by you’ve learned to stay silent about the jokes that aren’t funny. My message from me to you is that when you walk into a room, you should make all the noise you want. People for the last hundreds of years have fought and died for you to do so, and they still are today. They did that so that when you walk the halls, you do so with your head held high and with a strut that only comes with the power instilled in you by those who came before you. I’m telling you this because now we have been given the opportunity to be heard and make change. We are no longer silenced, and we now use our voice to be the change we want to see. So young black man, when you walk down the hall, hold your head high; don’t just roll with the punches but speak up. You tell your teacher you work just as hard as everyone else, if not more, to achieve your goals. Also, don’t let others’ ignorance phase you, cause their hate isn’t worth the stress. Don’t let them make their problem your problem. The only thing you can do is educate yourself to hopefully educate others. Stand for what you know is right. At the end of the day, if you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything. Surround yourself with people who inspire you to be better, and be someone who people are inspired by. You may not know it yet, but you demonstrate real leadership qualities. Now all you need to do is to show it.

From, Your Future Self

Here’s Why Intention Doesn’t Matter When it Comes to the F-Word

by Michael Pizzani directed at a straight person. Along with this, it’s

Intention is defined as “an aim or plan.” almost always intended to be a joke, and because Maybe you’ve heard your friend ask what your intention was when saying that mean joke, or your teacher ask what your intention was when enrolling in their class. We learn that intention matters when it comes to just about everything we do, and for the most part, I agree with this.

Generally, good intentions produce good outcomes. There are some things, however, that are inherently hurtful, despite one’s intention. One of those things is the F-word.

Unfortunately, we all know it, and have probably all heard it both on and off St. Luke’s campus. Whether you’ve said it, have been on the receiving end of it, or have just overheard it, there’s no denying it exists in our culture.

Over the past few years, I’ve noticed a shift in the way the word is used. While it’s traditionally been used directly toward members of the LGBT+ community, it is now almost always

of this intention, the kids using it don’t think it carries the same weight. But it does for a few reasons.

First, it reaffirms the idea that being gay is an insult. This harmful ideology prevents so many people from embracing their identity. And while few people would directly say that they think being gay is a bad thing, they indirectly say it with the use of the F-word, or when describing something negative as “gay”.

The F-word has a more direct impact on the LGBT+ students who may overhear it in the hallways of SLS. It’s used to highlight that LGBT+ people are negatively “different” in some way.

The word is inherently hateful, and that hate isn’t erased by one’s intention. Simply overhearing the word has the same effect, at least from my personal experience. Even though it may not be directed at them, and the person saying it may not even be

aware of them or how they identify, it still makes the student feel ostracized, and may incentivise them to hide part of their identity.

So despite someone believing their use of the F word is appropriate because their intention was to make a joke, they’re still adding hate to the SLS community, and leaving an impression on everyone around them. If you’ve used it in the past, use this as a learning opportunity to be more White Fragility, in which she notes that “the fomindful of the impact you have on your communi- cus on individual incidences masks the personal, ty. interpersonal, cultural, historical, and structural analysis that is necessary to challenge this larger What Does Racism Really Mean? system” (DiAngelo, White Fragility, page 73).

by Kate Parker-Burgard

So the challenge for me is to move more

When the word “racist” comes up, what one firmly toward anti-racist acts of allyship. It inoften thinks about is “an individual who concludes careful listening, identifying how I particisciously does not like people based on race and is pate in racist systems, and working to move away intentionally mean to them.” Along with ten other from them. It includes confronting racial arrocolleagues, I recently attended a conference where gance and speaking up. It’s a challenge I welcome the keynote speaker, Dr. Robin DiAngelo, project- as I come to understand the depth of my role and ed this quote and pointed out how this common responsibility as a white person of privilege. understanding of “racist” actually protects and Now I Will Go Alone preserves the system of racism. As someone who

by Dylan Johnson has attended diversity conferences for many years, has read dozens of books and articles on race, and Now I will go alone has engaged in countless conversations that have My voice will be heard helped raise my awareness, I like to think that I Society’s norms will be blown am not a racist. But Dr. DiAngelo challenged the Fighting for justice very idea of racism by reminding us that racism is I will cultivate a community not an act but a system, and racists, therefore, are Calm and quiet through the ruckus people who participate in a racist system. When we think of racism as individual racist acts perTogether humanity will strive petrated by people who are angry or mean-spirEqual opportunity for all ited, we excuse ourselves from confronting the Although we’ll be at war with some deep-seated, long-entrenched racist systems The mission is to bridge a relationship that undergird our country. From the terrorism Because we’re all one of slavery, Jim Crow, and present incarceration policies, to other forms of discrimination against We must be in good faith black Americans with GI Bill benefits, inequitable To become one educational opportunities, and biased hiring pracBut attacking others can’t be done tices, our country rests firmly on a racist foundation. And I have benefitted from it simply because Black or white I am white.

Not one is right

The problem, Dr. DiAngelo says, is subEverybody’s rights should be equal scribing to a binary system of “racist = bad, Because in the end non-racist = good.” This allows well-meaning, We’re all just people committed people, like me, to excuse ourselves from recognizing all the ways in which we benefit One race that’s all there is from, and therefore participate in, a racist sociFight me if you want That’s just how society is ety. She expands upon this in her excellent book

Why We Need to Talk About the Asian Population at SLS

by Danielle Nares & members of the Asian Affinity Group

“From my point of view, the school’s conversations about race often neglect the opinions and celebration of the Asian community.”

Before I came to SLS, I defined myself as a woman of color and was not afraid to talk about it.

Today, if I were asked to describe myself as a woman of color, my response would come out as a faint whisper. I am proud of my heritage, but wouldn’t students at SLS rather talk about something other than an Asian-American saying that racial diversity also includes Asians?

The point in my life at which I felt most comfortable explaining my background was when I was in elementary school. At my school, students were mostly Black and Hispanic. They did not concern themselves with arguments about race. To me, it seemed as if there was no need to talk about race because there was an unspoken code of respect and tolerance. Even though I was one of the few Asians at the school, I did not feel that I had to explain myself.

When I moved to SLS, my family and friends asked me if it was hard to adjust to the school knowing that there are “only” white students. I did not expect that I would be someone who contributed to the “diversity” on campus. It was clear, and still is clear, that there are not many Asians at SLS. I did notice that the students were trying to create an environment with the same “unspoken code of respect” that I experienced in elementary school, but because there was so little diversity at the school, this was not enough to create that kind of environment. Through my years at SLS, I have learned that the best way that we can approach difficult conversations is through discussion of all races represented at the school.

From my point of view, the school’s conversations about race often neglect the opinions and celebration of the Asian community. I am not sure if it is because there are so few Asians, or if it is because the Asians at the school are comfortable with letting other students - white students and students of color - dominate the conversation about race.

Similarly, there are not many Asians who speak up about their own race. I recognize that it is hard to talk about my race in a room full of white students; I feel like I have nobody to back me up and relate to what I am talking about. I have let other students

talk about their own experiences with race and have not joined in on the conversation for 5 years. Nobody asks me for another perspective as an Asian. If someone did, it would most likely be when they are talking about grades and why Asians perform well in math and science.

At St. Luke’s, we should focus on creating an environment where every race is represented, so students from underrepresented races are encouraged to share their opinions. I was scared to volunteer and share my views because I did not want to come off as over-opinionated and not have anyone understand my “struggle.” I don’t want to leave SLS knowing that I had the chance to talk to someone who did not know about my culture and traditions and the ways in which my upbringing has influenced my opinions. Furthermore, I don’t want other students to stay silent during conversations about race. With no diversity of opinion, the school as a whole cannot be all-inclusive. More discussion about Asian Americans at SLS will help us step out of our comfort zone.

“The time for assimilation is, as it should be, over.”

I, along with my friends, Ms. Mathrani, Ms. Enrique, and Ms. Lai, have now established an Asian Affinity Group that will give Asian students a safe space of celebration. We aim to bring ourselves into conversations and proactively present our varied perspectives in order to add another angle to school-wide discussions on race and social justice. From the celebration of various holidays that are unique to some Asian countries to conversational “dive-ins,” we hope to raise more awareness about the group and our cause. We urge all students who identify as Asian or Asian-American and support the group’s aim to sign up and join. With more students in the group, more voices will be heard. We strive to ensure that the group reflects all of the distinct Asian countries that are represented at SLS. The time for assimilation is, as it should be, over.

3 Strategies for Having Difficult Conversations

by Elyse Kim

“Encouraging thoughtful and challenging conversations is the single most important step towards sparking change at St. Luke’s.”

Throughout my six years at St. Luke’s, I have engaged in many conversations about race.

Whether it is at the lunch table or during J-Term and CGL groups, these discussions are always thought-provoking and often enlightening, as they force me to rethink my opinions and learn from the people around me. Encouraging thoughtful and challenging conversations is the single most important step towards sparking change at St. Luke’s.

But conversations surrounding race can often become polarized and acrimonious, as race is an extremely sensitive subject which concerns people’s identities and cultures. Therefore, these dialogues are rare and almost frightening, because we are afraid of offending others or being misunderstood. I am by no means an expert on race or relationships, but through the conversations I’ve had at school, I have learned the importance of understanding my peers through conversation.

Here are three strategies that I try to use in difficult discussions about race, religion, politics, and more.

1. Before the conversation even starts, it’s important to decide whether or not the conversation is worth having. I have often approached conversations with a goal of persuading my friends that my opinion is the correct one. While this may seem like an effective way to “win” a conversation, it almost certainly transforms a purposeful dialogue into a shouting match. The only way a dialogue can be productive is if participants are willing to listen to each other and ask questions about unique experiences and opinions. This openness can not only improve individual conversations, but also help to make everyone feel supported and understood.

2. One of the most important elements of a good conversation is honesty, and part of that is admitting when you don’t know something or when you’re wrong.

“To build a strong community, we need to learn about and embrace the strengths and weaknesses of our peers, and this can’t happen if we can’t see past the color of a person’s skin.”

Whenever one of my friends brings up a concept I haven’t learned about or researched, I often feel tempted to act like an expert on the subject.

However, I have more productive conversations when I ask my friends to explain the subject to me. Being willing to listen not only allows you to learn about subjects you’ve never considered before, but it also shows your friends that you are being honest with yourself and with them.

3. When the inevitable heated argument arises, a great way to diffuse the tension in the room is to let your friends know that their experiences are valid and that you want to learn from them. It is so easy to become angry with peers if they don’t agree with you, or to assume they cannot understand you if they don’t share your ethnicity. Culture and heritage should, of course, be celebrated and embraced. But that doesn’t mean that if someone doesn’t share your heritage or opinion, they therefore cannot relate to you or have a meaningful conversation with you.

Everyone in our community is smart and observant, and they deserve an opinion. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that I can connect with anyone, not over our skin color, but over our shared curiosity and desire to make the world better. To build a strong community, we need to learn about and embrace the strengths and weaknesses of our peers, and this can’t happen if we can’t see past the color of a person’s skin.

In all of the conversations I’ve been a part of here at St. Luke’s, one of these strategies has helped me in some way. They are very simple, but even if you’ve heard them a thousand times, it is always worth reminding yourself of things like honesty and the overall purpose of a conversation. Hopefully these reminders can help you improve your daily discussions around sensitive topics like race and politics, because making our dialogue more productive and understanding is one big step towards making St. Luke’s more tolerant and accepting.

SLS Faculty Confronts Issues of Race Through “WE ARE” Group

by Georgia Rosenberg

Student groups. Student life. Student experiences.

When we consider the individuals associated with academic institutions, we undeniably place an emphasis on those who attend: the students. The result is that we often neglect the presence of a robust component of our school communities: that of the faculty.

Recent issues surrounding students of color at SLS - and the atmosphere of race relations that exists more broadly within the walls of our school - further lead us to diminish the impact that this culture has on faculty of color. Just as student clubs attempt to bolster the presence of underrepresented groups and provide a safe space for discussion and action (the Student Diversity Leadership Council and the newly formed SLS Black Student Union, for example), faculty groups can be erected by teachers and administrators to serve the the very same purpose.

Last year, Ms. Perry, the Head of the Upper School, seized the opportunity to create “WE ARE,” a faculty group whose name stands for “White Educators Against Racism Everywhere.”

“It’s best to think of this as a study group,” reads the WE ARE purpose statement, which is reviewed at the beginning of each meeting. “We are here to learn about race and improve our skills in thinking and talking about how race works as a system.”

Perry and her fellow members believe that environments like these are necessary, especially within majority-white communities like SLS. In fact, racial affinity groups have become a prevalent platform within the realm of diversity work. In the case of those like WE ARE, these spaces encourage participants to look inward in an attempt to understand what it means to be white specifically. This reflection is the first step on the way to effective allyship.

It was the tragedy in Charlottesville, VA, during which white supremacists and neo-Nazis, among other alt-right groups, marched in a “Unite the Right Rally” that quickly turned violent, that truly struck a nerve with Perry. She watched as her fellow educators, many of whom were teaching at

schools that were already in session at the time, raced to address issues of racism and division, and felt an urge to take action upon her return to SLS.

“Given my role at school, [I asked myself] ‘What are my blind spots? How can I work on those?” Perry recalls. This was when WE ARE began to take shape.

While the group originally consisted of about eight faculty members who met regularly, it now comprises more than thirty members.

Since Perry first created WE ARE, it has taken on a shared leadership model. Thus, Perry, who believes that the group can function most effectively when members are not being led by their boss, no longer serves as the group’s head.

The group often joins in reading and discussing a book (they are currently reading White Fragility: Why it’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism). They have also screened films, including American Promise, a documentary that follows two African American boys from distinct families who enroll at Dalton - a prestigious NYC private school - from kindergarten through graduation.

Overall, though, WE ARE is truly “about asking how have I, as a white person, internalized - unconsciously - racist messages?” Perry says.

The skills that faculty members hope to gain from their involvement go beyond those associated with education. Still, the group strives to have an impact on how race is approached and discussed within SLS classrooms.

“While it’s extremely important for people of all races to come together...all too often, the way that I [as a white person] have engaged in work around race is to ask a person of color to teach me,” Perry notes. She is also cognizant of the fact that in a professional setting, “there is a burden placed on adults of color to be the experts.”

When such behavior is normalized, white people can become oblivious to their responsibility to understand and acknowledge systems of oppression. Ultimately, this gets rid of any opportunities for growth, and diminishes the role of whites in the system of racism.

“It’s such an unfamiliar practice for me to ask myself how I can change...that’s what the

group helps to keep us focused on,” Perry notes.

Thus, while WE ARE is ultimately about fostering empathy, combatting racism, and cultivating meaningful allyship, the group sees these goals as impossible if they do not begin with internal reflection and growth. “ There are some things that we are going to have to be in the perpetual state of educating the community on,” Perry notes. The WE ARE purpose statement acknowledges, however, that assemblies, guest speakers, and new programs are often not the answer to this much-needed education.

Rather, the statement reads, “this group gets us ready from the inside out to be allies to people of color in this work.”

Perry and other members have internalized the truth that a fundamental difference exists between simply supporting equity and inclusion and actively fighting against racism and oppression.

“We want to change the culture of our school and become an anti-racist institution,” Perry says.

WE ARE recognizes that this lofty goal can only be realized if and when white community members look inward, acknowledge their subconcious internalization of racist rhetoric, and challenge themselves to grow.

Let’s Choose a Better Word

by Sadie Vehslage

“When I hear the word, it echoes in my head, I lose focus of everything that was going on around me and my mind goes blank.” Anonymous

As a person in the LGBTQ+ Community, I tend to focus on the social injustice that surrounds me, especially when it comes to my peers. I’ve been at St. Luke’s for seven years now. I’ve walked through the pillars in the front of the school around 2,000 times, each time recognizing the word “respect” etched into one of the columns. Yet as a gay person in our community, I’ve felt less respected than I ever have due to the frequent use of derogatory terms towards my sexuality.

The word “fa***t” has become a common part of this school’s vocabulary, and to be quite honest, it breaks my heart. After speaking to fellow LGBTQ+ members of the St. Luke’s community, these are some of the responses I anonymously received back from the question,

“Do you feel like your sexuality is respected at St. Luke’s?” :

“Most of my encounters have been good and understanding when I tell people I am bisexual, but sometimes someone will answer in a joking way, like saying ‘oh thats hot,’ or they’ll tell me that bisexuality is fake. This is a problem because how can my feelings be fake?”

“I think my sexuality is somewhat respected at SLS. There are some people in our community that respect my sexuality, but there are others who really don’t. There are people who go around saying “fa***t”, and then there are the people who stand up for us; I appreciate those people.”

“Homophobia is certainly present at St. Luke’s, not only in obvious ways (saying “fa***t”, targeting people for their sexuality) but in more subtle ways. Assumptions about lifestyle, being the token gay guy, among other things. Additionally, the culture of overbearing masculinity thrives in our school. Many male friend groups still isolate and ostracize gay members: things like saying “f*g” in a “joking” way, continued use of “that’s so gay“ and other things. So while I think there is a façade of respect and understanding regarding the gay members of our community, there is still a strong undercurrent of homophobia that needs to be addressed.”

Although many queer St. Luke’s students feel welcomed and respected by their peers, we feel like the use of the word “fa***t” and frequency of gay jokes have increased in recent months. Although I know I can’t completely solve this issue and that I can’t stop people from saying these words, I hope educating people about this degradation can help the St. Luke’s student body take steps towards respecting and welcoming our LGBTQ+ community.

So let’s talk about the F-word.

I can see that words like “f*g” or “gay” are used in our community in a joking manner. I can see that you don’t outwardly hate gay people, and I can see that you “didn’t mean to be offensive.”

It doesn’t matter. For me and many others, these terms feel like a gut-punch.

I do believe that a majority of St. Luke’s community members respect my sexuality; [continued on next page]

however, most of the time when I hear the word “gay”, it is used completely inappropriately. For example, if someone decides not to go to a party, or not to play soccer next year, their friend might respond, “You’re so gay.” But does that really make sense? Does the LGBTQ+ community have anything to do with your feelings about your friend not going to the party?

Often “f*g” or “gay” are used as synonyms for “stupid” or “lame.” Is there really no better word you can use? Isn’t there a word you could use instead that actually makes sense in the context of what you’re talking about? At St. Luke’s, when someone is confronted about their usage of these terms, they often attempt to justify themselves by saying, “That’s not what I meant” or, “It wasn’t supposed to be offensive.” Some people like to defend their actions by saying “It’s just a word,” but how can you say that when this single word holds so much history of hate?

The F-Word and other gay slurs are not only disrespectful to our community at St. Luke’s, but also to the LGBTQ+ world as a whole. Being gay is such a large part of people’s identities. How can you justify using such a hateful term with such ease?

Choose a better word next time.

I am “those” black people

by Sonia Bell

Growing up, we didn’t think we were “those” black people. We lived in a small but well maintained 1,200 square foot two bedroom, one bathroom home in a community in Chicago known as “pill hill” because of the number of black doctors and dentists who lived in the area. Dad was a mail carrier and mom worked as a clerk for the Railroad Retirement Board, so we lived at the bottom of that hill. They didn’t make “doctor’s” money, but we felt like we were true representations of middle class America. Our hair was always combed, usually with two ponytails on each side and a long part down the middle. Our barrettes had to match whatever we were wearing. Our clothing was neat, and our yard was perfectly manicured. Back then, how you kept your home said something about your values and your character. We were not allowed to play in the front yard, and the mantra that “children should be seen but not heard” was embedded in us. We could be loud at home, but once we were in

public, we were silent. We had a car, a white 1971 Volvo sedan, and my sister and I did well in school. We did our homework and never got into any kind of trouble. In our minds, we weren’t “those” black people. We were the other kind of black people --- the ones that were respected, not feared.

But when we moved to a predominantly white neighborhood in Decatur, Georgia in 1972, we noticed almost immediately that for sale signs started going up in front lawns. My dad was still a mail carrier, but my mom decided to be a stayat-home mom. We still had the white Volvo, a well manicured lawn and my sister and I continued to do well in school. Nothing had changed, yet something had. “Those” black people had moved in, and to our chagrin, we were “those” black people. Within a few short years, our predominantly white neighborhood became all black.

Somehow over the years, I forgot about my status as being one of “those” black people. I attended Spelman College (an HBCU), and after receiving my degree in English, taught at Choate Rosemary Hall. I went on to work as the Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions at Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore), Director of Graduate Admissions at Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles), Director of Admission, Associate Director of College Counseling and Senior Class Dean at Nichols School (Buffalo) and Dean of Students at Springside School (Philadelphia). When I was looking to purchase my second condo, I had just completed my coursework toward a Ph.D. in linguistics at the University of Georgia. Whatever it was that made people in Decatur, Georgia think that I was “those” black people certainly was gone. There was no possible way anyone would mistake me for being one of “those” black people. And for a while, I actually believed that.

I found a condo in Center City Philadelphia right on the edge of Society Hill, where historic row houses can go for more than $5,000,000, and got a mortgage through Countrywide Home Loans. My credit was excellent, so I had no worries going through the process.

Once I moved into my sixth floor, one bedroom unit overlooking the storied South Street, no for sale signs went up. In fact, my property value

Above: Ms. Bell and her sister wear red coats increased!

That was 2004. In July 2007, four black homeowners sued Countrywide for discriminatory lending practices and filed a class action lawsuit against the company. I assumed “those” black people were “playing the race card,” and were just trying to get money out of a company because they had fallen behind on their payments or wanted a lower interest rate even though their credit was less than savory. In 2011, I saw this:

The Department of Justice today filed its largest residential fair lending settlement in history to resolve allegations that Countrywide Financial Corporation and its subsidiaries engaged in a widespread pattern or practice of discrimination against qualified African-American and Hispanic borrowers in their mortgage lending from 2004 through 2008.

In 2013, I found out that I was one of “those” black people who was charged higher fees because I was (and still am) black. By that time, I had passed my oral and written comps toward my Ph.D. and had advanced to a stage known as ABD, all but dissertation. But none of that mattered. I was just one of “those” black people.

Who is the Angry Black Woman?

by Tasia Courts

Who is the angry black woman? According to Google Images, she is world renowned tennis player Serena Williams. Back in September, Williams lost the US Open after receiving three violations from the umpire. The first violation was for “coaching,” the second was for breaking her racket, and the third and final violation, which cost her the match, was for calling the umpire a thief, which Williams believed was an act of sexism because her male counterparts call umpires much worse than thieves.

The trope of the angry black woman is the stereotype that black women are overly-aggressive and easily angered by seemingly miniscule happenings. This trope is not new, and although it is difficult to pinpoint its exact origin, many people cite minstrel shows as the beginning of this stereotype. Minstrel shows were a form of entertainment for white people in the nineteenth century.

In these shows, white entertainers toted blackface and dirty, tattered outfits, in order to portray poor, unkempt African-Americans. Black women were usually played by white men in blackface and [continued on next page]

fat suits who constantly screamed at and were argumentative towards the other “actors” on stage.

Fast forward to the 1930s. Sapphire, a character on the show Amos ‘n’ Andy, was a black woman that incessantly complained and nagged about her black husband, George. These are early examples of the stereotype of the angry black woman, but it has not gone away since then. Take, for example, the caricature of Serena Williams published by the Herald Sun following the US Open. In this cartoon, Williams is a large, masculine figure who appears to be throwing a tantrum. There is a pacifier on the ground near her broken racket, implying that she is a baby. Her opponent, Naomi Osaka, and the umpire, Carlos Ramos - both people of color - are drawn as thin white people, so as to contrast with Williams’ intimidating figure. In the cartoon, the umpire says to Osaka, “Can you just let her win?” This racist cartoon portrays Williams, who holds 23 Grand Slam titles, as petulant, irrational, and immature, further perpetuating the trope of the angry black woman.

It is important to point out the difference between the stereotype of the emotional woman and that of the angry black woman. When a woman, typically a white woman, is referred to as emotional, it implies that she is overreacting, bringing into question the magnitude of the situation or incident to which she is responding and the validity of her feelings. This is, indisputably, a sexist sentiment because it portrays women as unable to control their emotions, but it provides a noteworthy contrast to the angry black woman stereotype. When a white woman is called “emotional,” she is not dehumanized, nor is her worth or inherent value decreased, whereas when a black woman is called “angry,” she becomes dangerous and unapproachable because there is nothing more dangerous than a finger-wagging, neck-whipping black woman. White women, despite sometimes being seen as “too emotional,” are often perceived as softer, more approachable alternatives to their black female counterparts. There is also a disparity between emotional Latinx women and emotional black women. Latinx women, when upset, are often described as “crazy,” or “spicy,” and in this context, these words are synonymous with being passionate or sexy. These contrasts are rooted in the fact that historically, black women have been treated as objects for labor or sex, rather than human beings

with valid emotions.

Black womanhood comes with a multitude of stressors and oppressors, and it is important to recognize the strength that comes with these experiences, rather than what society may point out as a weakness. Serena Williams is a recent example of the harm that the trope of the angry black woman causes, but she is definitely not the only example. This stereotype negatively impacts how black women are perceived in society, and contributes to the idea that black women are hardened, intimidating, and graceless.

In the face of the discrimination and oppression that black women face in the workplace, walking on the street, in schools, in the dating world, and in their homes, they have every right to be angry. Whether she is Serena Williams, your mother, your friend, or a stranger, treat black women --all women-- with the same respect that you know you would want if you were angry about something.

What Really Is White Privilege?

by Ally Riley

Today, white privilege is often described through the lens of American activist Peggy McIntosh’s groundbreaking essay “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack.” McIntosh describes white privilege as an invisible force that white people need to recognize. White privilege is both a legacy and a cause of racism.

It exists because of historic, enduring racism and biases. White privilege should be interpreted as a built-in advantage, separate from one’s level of income or effort.

“I would define white privilege as a white person’s inherent societal advantage because of their skin color. I think that often people misunderstand white privilege because they think it means that white people cannot struggle.

However, I always try to explain it by saying that white people can face hardships, but the stress from those hardships is not worsened by their skin color,” states Tasia Courts ‘20.

The phrase white privilege can lead some to feel defensive, especially because the word “white” causes discomfort among those who are not used to being defined or described by their

race. In addition, the word “privilege,” especially for poor and rural white people, sounds like a word that does not belong to them. However, white privilege is not the assumption that everything a white person has accomplished is unearned. It is also not the suggestion that white people have never struggled.

“I would say [white privilege is] a societal belief that a white person in a country has certain privileges beyond what is commonly experienced by a non-white person under the same political, social, or economic systems. It is a term that has largely come up through identity politics in America, and I think everyone has different perspectives on it,” comments James Adamini ‘20.

White people are more likely to move through the world with an expectation that their needs will be readily met. On the other hand, people of color move through the world knowing their needs are on the margins. Public spaces and consumer goods seem to be catered to one race, ergo, creating an innate disadvantage by segregating the needs of people of other races into special sections.

“Well, as a white person I have to catch myself because growing up white in a white neighborhood at a white school, I forget that it is a thing because my race does not affect my life. It affects my life so little that I have the ability to forget about it, which proves that [white privilege] is a thing,” says Lilly Purkiss 19’.

Not only is white privilege a prevalent force throughout society, but it is also found within the St. Luke’s community.

“I’m always the first one that is asked if something is stolen or goes missing. There are also incidents where there will be a lot of people talking and I will have a different opinion. Those people will sometimes then respond to me with a condescending tone and treat me as if I’m less than them or if I’m in the wrong. Here, I also feel like I have to talk very differently than I do at home. Teachers and students will either make fun of the way I speak or tell me that I have to watch how I speak because it is not ‘proper enough.’ There have not been many very extreme or blatant incidents, but if you look, it is definitely there,” shares Zaire Profit ‘21.

There is an apparent difference between how white students and students of color view white privilege within the St. Luke’s community.

“White privilege is a part of St. Luke’s culture, but I cannot think of any specific examples of it

playing out. However, I witness separation between people of color and whites in the lunchroom and in friend groups,” comments Tommy Lewis ‘22.

Education is about preparing for opportunity. Yet, historically, and currently, it has been kept out of the reach of many people simply because of the color of their skin. The recent college admissions scandal exposes the influence of money, wealth, and inside connections within American universities, and therefore displays the toxic role of white privilege in the admissions process more broadly. Thus, white privilege is not only infiltrating the lives of students within the St. Luke’s community, but also within the world as a whole.

“I would say that white privilege is definitely present at SLS. It especially manifests itself in some of the talks about college admissions that I have heard,” Anonymous ‘20.

I have never thought about defining myself as white. My skin tone is a part of my appearance, but it hasn’t necessarily been a central factor in terms of who I consider myself to be. I never really realized until recently that I have been able to move through my entire life without being racially profiled or unfairly stereotyped. Growing up I always had characters in books, films, and television programs that looked just like me to look up to. When I walk into a beauty store, I can easily find products that are catered towards my hair type and skin tone.

I think that it can be hard to truly understand white privilege as it does not tend to explicitly impact the lives of most white people.

The fact that it is invisible makes it so powerful.

However, I feel that in order to be a progressive member of society, one must educate him or herself and make an effort to create positive change. This work begins here at St. Luke’s.

If you are interested in learning more about white privilege, check out: White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for White People to Talk about Racism by Robin Diangelo or watch this video (24 minutes): Red Table Talk, Unpacking White Privilege and Prejudice

The National Student Diversity Leadership Conference

by Tamia Fulton

The St. Luke’s Student Diversity Leadership Council (SDLC) is group of six students and two faculty advisors who work with faculty, staff, and students to create an inclusive and diverse environment. To achieve this, the SDLC organizes Upper School Dive-Ins, which encourage students to share their opinions on difficult social justice topics and work towards finding a middle ground.

This year, SDLC has had two meetings with the Upper School faculty and one with the Middle School faculty. For the first time, the SDLC helped organize the SLS Social Justice Leadership Summit, which is an event held on a Saturday during which members of the whole community are invited to be their authentic selves and discuss issues related to social justice and how we as a school can become a community that is welcoming to all people regardless of race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, ability, socio-economic status, age, gender or political affiliation.

Each year, the National Association of Independent Schools holds a 3-day national conference for teachers (People of Color Conference) and students (Student Diversity Leadership Conference). At the end of each school year, students who are interested in this experience send in an application to be part of the council. Six students are chosen by the faculty advisors, Mr. Griffa and Mr. Thomas. The students selected for the 201819 SDLC were Sarah Bryant, Tamia Fulton, Cassie Long, Lilly Purkiss, Jordan Robinson and Raven Sead. On November 28, 2018, SDLC and a group of teachers traveled to Nashville, Tennessee for the conference. The total number of attendees was approximately 6,400 people.

At the National SDLC, every member issplit up into different ‘family’ groups consisting of fifty students and two adult facilitators. The topics that are discussed in these groups relate to social justice, equity, inclusion, the “eight major identifiers” (listed above), and how to be an ally to people of color. In addition to these family groups, students are given the option to attend affinity groups based on race and ethnicity or sexual orientation. These groups help to give the students a sense of pride and comfortability in who they are. Throughout

the three days, a number of keynote speakers shared their journeys on how they got involved in social justice work. Keynote speakers included Lisa Ling, journalist and current host of This is Life with Lisa Ling on CNN; Christian Picciolini, an ex-white supremacist; and Dr. Marc Lamont Hill, former commentator for CNN and Professor at Temple University.

Aside from all of these amazing groups and speakers, the bonds that the students created with the members of their family group was the highlight of the conference. On the first day, the students entered their group rooms knowing no one and at the end of the day, it was as if they all had known each other for years.

A current member of the council stated, “We could sit down at lunch and a student from Hawaii or the Bahamas could sit down next to us and start talking. There were never any awkward silences. That was how it was during the whole conference. Everyone was so welcoming and loving. Many of us would even hear someone playing music on a device and walk over to sing and dance with them. No one was shy and everyone was their authentic selves.” Even after spending three days with their family groups, the students are still in contact and working with the friends that they made at SDLC.

“I recommend SDLC for everyone. I guarantee that it will change your life.”

Personally speaking, SDLC was such an amazing experience for me. I went in feeling so scared to meet new people and to speak my truth.

At the end of those three days, I didn’t want to leave. I became so confident and unapologetic about myself. I couldn’t have gotten to where I am without my family group. They were all such beautiful, supportive people. I text my family group every day regardless of the fact that some of us live in China, the Bahamas, California, North Carolina and even New York. We are now a family. I recommend SDLC for everyone. I guarantee that it will change your life.

A Letter of Gratitude to Those Who Have Educated Me About My Privilege

by Susanna Montgomery

parts of this country, and certain parts of this world.

For this letter of gratitude, I can thank a lot of people. To begin, I thank family friends

The difference between sympathy and emof mine - people who I have known my whole pathy lies in the idea that we can sympathize - feel life. This family was made up of one of my sorrow or pity for someone else’s misfortune - with- best friends, her sister, and her two mothers. I out necessarily experiencing exactly what they are haven’t gone a day in my life without knowing going through. However, in order to empathize with them. And because of that, I haven’t gone a day someone, we must have the ability to understand and in my life questioning gay people, or any other share those feelings with them. When it comes to the form of sexuality. I was never taught that it was struggles associated with social justice, I recognize “weird” for a woman to be married to another that I cannot empathize with most of them. woman instead of a man. The relationship I had

I heard the N word for the first time in my with them allowed me to become a more acceptlife when I was in seventh grade. The movie 12 Years ing and open person to all sexualities. I cannot A Slave came out that year, and my mother sat me empathize with the hate or prejudice that they down and told me that she thought I should watch are subjected to for being gay women, but I can it. She told me that it was violent, and that it might sympathize with that pain. I cried with them on scare me, or make me uncomfortable, but it was the day gay marriage was legalized. important to her that I watch it. Looking back now, I I would like to thank my best friend since recognize that this was my mother teaching me how seventh grade. We attended a private school to sympathize with a group of marginalized people. in New Canaan, a lot like St. Luke’s. She and I

I excused myself from the movie at one point were at the school for the same amount of time, with an overwhelming feeling of nausea from watch- but we had very different experiences there. My ing the white actors say the N word - hard R - to the friend was one of the only ten or so black kids in black actors, along with a series of other vulgar and my grade. I was one of the fifty or so white kids. violent parts of the movie. I watched my mom wipe I grew up in a house with two parents in New away tears from her cheek at the end of the film. I Canaan. I went on vacations with my family, witnessed her feeling the same sympathy that I felt. my older brother had his own car, and I never

No one is born racist. Unfortunately, mainthought about money. She grew up in different stream American culture perpetuates dangerous houses in Norwalk, Bridgeport, and New York. biases; our society teaches children to be prejudiced, She had a half brother and a single mother. She racist, homophobic, anti-semitic, and more. It’s our was on a scholarship at my school. There is only fault because as white Americans, we have been the so much adults can teach a young girl about her beneficiaries of deeply-rooted historical inequalities. privilege, but I couldn’t have been more blessed Thus, it is our job to fix. As I have grown older and to have a peer, a best friend, be the one to open adopted my own opinions, beliefs, and views on the my eyes. My friend was loving and open and world, I have learned a lot about problems of social funny; we laughed at our differences and never justice and my own privilege. However, I haven’t hid from them. She taught me a different way come to that conclusion on my own. There have been of life, and I did the same for her. If it wasn’t many people in my life who have taken the time to for the school we both ended up at, our paths educate me. And now, I can recognize that educawould have never crossed. I cannot relate to her tion on the topic of social justice issues is the most experience being a black girl in a school full of important thing I, and any other white person, can white people, but I was a shoulder for her to cry do in beginning to solve the problem that we have on and an ally in the face of any prejudice that created. I would like to thank the people in my life she encountered. who have taken the time to educate me about race

I’d like to thank my parents, who have and other social issues. Not everyone is as lucky as paved their own paths through their lives, but I am, and I believe that a lot of the prejudice that have also recognized the privilege their skin still exists is because of a lack of education in certain [continued on next page]

color has given them to do so. It is not the responsibility of people in marginalized groups to teach others about social justice problems. As white people, my parents recognized that and knew it was their responsibility to teach me about them. Though they cannot empathize with black people, or gay people, or Muslim people, they can sympathize with the problems they are facing.

They can educate themselves and feel sorrow for the injustice that marginalized communities experience. And so can I.

It is up to us as humans, as future leaders of this country, to educate ourselves on social justice. And beyond that, we must take a look at our own lives. Who is in our circle of friends? Is there color? Is there diversity of opinion? It is easy to fall into a group where we are comfortable with people who are like us. But it is something that is important to me, and something I am still working on, to start with my personal life and see what I am personally doing, before battling the rest of the world on their choices and decisions. I hope to learn more and sympathize with more people of different backgrounds and experiences. And one day, when I feel able, I hope to educate others the way so many have educated me.

young women of color were interviewed to discuss some of their experiences with race in the classroom and their opinions of society at large.

What does it feel like being a woman of color in your community?

“When we’re talking about how students are treated and inclusivity regarding race, the black woman perspective isn’t always sought after in my opinion.” - Tasia Courts ‘20, Black Woman of Color.

“To be a woman of color in my community is to feel utterly and completely alone. It feels like you have no guidance, no support, no potential.

My community does not make room for women of color. We are targeted and isolated and made to feel worthless. Living in my community as a woman of color is the most dehumanizing experience I have ever lived through.” - Natalija Skoko, Black and Serbian Woman of Color. Natalija attends a predominantly white public high school in Sharon, Massachusetts.

“There’s that constant feeling of having to work twice as hard to get half as much. I feel like hard work is just ingrained into my everyday Discovering the Young Women of Color attitude and that’s how I look at the world. I have to work pretty hard in the society that I live in.” in Our Community Raven Sead ‘20, Black Woman of Color

by Jewels Finley

Some women also describe how being in a

In an ever-evolving social climate, it takes predominantly white space can strengthen their true allies to recognize and welcome the hurt, relationships and bring them closer to their own the joy, and the pride that diversity can bring self-confidence. Sydney Cummings ‘19, says, “It to any given space. As growing students, we’re can be empowering just to know that I’m a strong often taught that conversations about race and black woman and I’m very comfortable with being racism today should be moderated and facilitatable to handle myself in predominantly white and ed in intimate settings by those that know more. male environments at times in the SLS communiWe know that these conversations are uncomty.” Moreover, as Raven Sead ‘20 reflects on her fortable just by the silence that accompanies years at St. Luke’s, she realizes that “connecting them. We all know what it sounded like in that with so many other beautiful and intelligent womauditorium when Anthony Ray Hinton, death en of color and people of color just on that deeper row exoneree, visited our campus and hearts. level” has been a blessing in disguise.

As a result, those committed to equality create

Not every student of color, however, shares fun acronyms like R.O.P.E.S. to make respecting this sentiment. Pamela Jaramillo ‘19 points out one another easy to remember. We coin complex that “if you look at the minority community withterms like intersectionality to better explain our in the St. Luke’s community, it’s predominantly feelings in a society just beginning to understand African-American and I feel like other minorities them. But what would happen if students in our are very underrepresented, especially the latino community shared what they really felt during minority. I really sat down one day, analyzed it, their scheduled social justice time slot? Seven

and realized that I might be the only female in my high school that identifies as fully latina.”

Since many minorities can empathize with instances of racial profiling, racist jokes or slurs targeted at them, code switching, and other forms of contemporary discrimination, society often groups them together based on their common struggle. However, it’s important to remember that one minority may experience racism to a degree that the other minority group won’t as a result of historical events and consequences. This can change what issues are addressed within the minority community.

In light of the Black Student Union gaining news coverage for their Anthony Ray Hinton petition and the Asian Affinity Group recruiting members, Pamela finds herself conflicted. “Yes, you want to support those clubs and those groups because you [are] linked to some of the things they’ve been through, some of the things they’ve talked about, some of the things they feel, but at the same time, while you’re supporting and fighting for their human rights, you realize who’s fighting for yours,” she says candidly. “I’ve asked myself that question...Who’s educating people in the St. Luke’s community on Latino rights? I feel like it’s really hard to do that when the numbers are so little and you feel your voice is suppressed.”

Has the political and racial climate changed the way you learn in the classroom?

the way she learned in the classroom, Tasia Courts ‘20 recalls often feeling like she must assume the role of the teacher despite walking into the classroom as a student. Maddy Sead ‘19 expresses a similar opinion: “I feel like a lot of the teachers, when faced with the topics of race or any social justice issue, they try and tip toe around the topic as if it’s a taboo thing to discuss.

I feel like the topic is too important not to talk about and regardless of the type of atmosphere we are in, there are many things that people in this community need to learn.”

As these women of color continue to research their histories independently, please be open to learning about some of the very vibrant cultures and backgrounds our students come from--even if the facts may differ from those in your history textbook. We CANNOT downplay the isolation and anxiety some of our students of color feel just by coming to class every day.

We must create an environment that allows ALL students to live fearlessly, learn confidently, and love each other passionately--if any of us are to succeed.

The Black Keys

by Cole Bryant

The most beautiful sounds With limitless bounds Emanate from the black and white keys.

Since many SLS students of color came Some use them to put their minds at ease, from predominantly Black and Hispanic public While some long for their reality to freeze, schools, St. Luke’s was a major adjustment in a va- But deep down the goal is to be free, riety of ways. In the first few months of her fresh- And buzz around like bees, man year, Tamia Fulton ‘19 remembers constantly especially for the black keys. being challenged by the curriculum and forced The minorities, to “think faster and quicker.” This came as a surOften forgotten and undervalued. prise to her since she was among the smartest and Which raises the question, sharpest students at her previous school. Tamia Will we ever, also wondered how her race would affect her in Congregate together, this particular environment; she asked herself To the vibrations questions like, “Will they think I’m dumb because That unite us all?

I’m black?” or “Will what I say be ‘too much’ or triggering to them?” Tamia considered the latter especially when discussing historically Black topics and events, such as slavery, in the classroom.

When asked about how this environment affected

Diagram courtesy of Jewels Finley

Some Defined Terms:

prejudices about olving negative stereotypes or inv ct du con to ers ref m: cis Veiled Ra . jokes, questioning a student’s (ex ity nic eth or or col n ski e, basis of race) people on the basis of rac from social situations on the ple peo of ion lus exc ce, spa place in a given

Denial of White Privilege: This is the subtlest form of casual racism but it can be as hurtful as calling people racist names. While it may come from a well-intended place, this form of colorblind racism dismisses society’s history of racism, system of white privilege, and the everyday experiences that people still face because of racism. Even if you can ignore skin color, society does not.

White Savior Complex: The sel f-serving assumption among white people from developed nations that they should be saving peo ple of color or struggling nations. (ex. voluntourists exploiting local people by treating them as ent ertainment and taking selfies wit h them) Apolitical Beliefs: Recognize that in the same way that you have the privilege to stay out of politics, there are still millions of marginalized people who must participate actively in their local governments to promote general welfare. (ex. if you find yourself saying things like: “There are two sides to every story,” “Politics don’t affect me,” or “Not ALL white people...” in politically charged conversations) minority background nds.”: Having friends from an ethnic “I’m not a racist. I have black frie r close ments. What might be acceptable to you com ist rac ke ma to sion mis per you does not give side of your trusted circle. friends may be offensive to someone out

Your education doesn’t end here! Have questions about some of these terms? Want to learn more? Utilize your resources -- books, the internet, publications, etc. -- and continue your social justice education beyond these pages!

Social Justice Crossword Puzzle

Across:

Down:

2. treating everyone in the same way 3. the system that allows the racial group that is already in power to retain power 8. the effect of a behavior regardless of original intention 9. a member of a privileged group who actively supports the cause of a marginalized group 12. societal privilege that benefits white people over non-white people; a built-in advantage 13. giving everyone the resources they need to be successful 14. unfair or unequal treatment based on a social identifier 15. indirect or subtle discrimination against members of a certain group 16. a generalization made about a particular group of people

1. a worldview through a Western European lens 4. internalized judgment of a particular person or group 5. the interconnectivity of social identifiers 6. a group of people who share a common identifier and work together towards a common goal 7. white affinity group formed by SLS faculty 9. having a lack of interest in and engagement with politics 10. alternating between styles of communication based on the cultural context of the situation 11. when a person pre-judges another person or group **answers on back**

Mrs. Sproule Mr. Griffa Mr. Thomas The Student Diversity Leadership Council: Jordan Robinson Raven Sead Sarah Bryant Lilly Purkiss Cassie Long Tamia Fulton The Sentinel: Georgia Rosenberg Elyse Kim Danielle Nares Ally Riley Susanna Montgomery Michael Pizzani & all students and faculty who took the time to contribute such meaningful pieces of writing Answers to crossword puzzle: Across:

2. equality

3. racism

8. impact

9. ally

12. white privilege

13. equity

14. discrimination

15. microaggression

16. stereotype Down:

1. eurocentrism

4. implicit bias

5. intersectionality

6. affinity group

7. WE ARE

9. apolitical

10. code switching

11. prejudice

THE SENTINEL/SDLC

A Very Special Thank You To...