The Confronting Whiteness and Racism Working Group (formerly the Dismantling Racism Working Group) is dedicated to raising awareness of the effects of racism in ourselves, our systems, our society, and discerning how we are called to build the Beloved Community, based on love, justice, and equal opportunity for all. For more information contact Marty Roers at mroers@csjstpaul.org.
PLAY
Penumbra Theater extended, for ONE MORE WEEK, the play “White Card” by Claudia Rankine. Click here for info: https://penumbratheatre.org/event/the-white-card/ Tickets are still available for March 6-8 at 7:30pm and March 7-8 at 2:00 pm. It’s an excellent play and much recommended.
PRESENTATIONS
The Basilica of St. Mary is hosting a free, informative series, called “Becoming Human,” featuring presentations by St. Thomas University professors on various aspects of racism. The events are located in the Basilica school right behind the Basilica church,on Tuesday evenings beginning at 6:00 for gathering and 6:30-8:30 for the presentations. For more information and to register, see https://www.mary.org/news-events/events/becoming-human-lenten-series?instance=2#.XmAfWc_tzct March 10 will feature Dr. Amy Levad discussing how Catholic social thought in general and sacramental theology in particular empowers an anti-racist spirituality especially in relation to the issue of mass incarceration.
Coming to the Table, 3rd Saturday of each month, Minnesota Peacebuilding Leadership Initiative, https://www.eventbrite.com/e/coming-to-the-table-north-minneapolis-instigating-racial-healing-in-minnesota-tickets-92106325499 Robert J. Jones Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC), 2001 Plymouth Ave N. Minneapolis, MN 55411
Coming to the Table 4th Monday of Each Month meetings 7-8:30 p.m. at the Wedge (info at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/coming-to-the-table-south-minneapolis-instigating-racial-healing-in-minnesota-tickets-85500924567)
Discussions That Encounter: Twice-monthly gatherings for open discussions about race, racism and white privilege. More information here, and email Bill Keatts at wkeatts@austin.rr.com to be added to the mailing list for meeting updates.
Penumbra Theatre – Plays, classes, film, discussions.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Gordon Parks’ work at the Minnesota Museum of American Art (through April 19): https://mmaa.org/now-on-view/
See an excellent essay about Gordon Parks: https://mmaa.org/whatsyourweapon/
Minnesota African American Heritage Museum & Gallery – Founded in 2018, the Museum’s purpose is to preserve, record and highlight the achievements, contributions and experiences of African Americans in Minnesota. This mission is carried out through exhibits, workshops and events that educate and inform the public about the history, culture, and art of African Americans in Minnesota. Read MPR’s story about the new MAAHMG.
“Race: Are We Really So Different?” Minnesota Science Museum’s Race Exhibit.
Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. The New Press, 2002.
Berry, Daina Ramey, and Kali Nicole Gross. A Black Women’s History of the United States. Beacon Press, 2020.
Butler, Octavia. Kindred. Beacon Press, 2004.
Copeland, M. Shawn. Enfleshing Freedom: Body, Race and Being. Fortress Press, 2009.
Cottom, Tressie McMillan. Thick: and Other Essays. The New Press, 2019.
Davis, Angela. Angela Davis: An Autobiography. International Publishers Co., 2013.
DiAngelo, Robin. White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism. Beacon Press, 2018.
Douglas, Kelly Brown. Stand Your Ground: Black Bodies and the Justice of God. Orbis Books, 2015.
Kendi, Ibram X. How to Be an Anti-Racist. One World, 2019. 
Lee, Erika. America for Americans: History of Xenophobia in the United States. Basic Books, 2019.
Menakem, Resmaa. My Grandmother’s Hands – Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies. Central Recovery Press, 2017.
Oluo, Ijeoma. So You Want to Talk About Race. Seal Press, 2019.
Perkins, John. The New Confessions of an Economic Hit-Man. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2016.
Shin, Sun Yung. A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota. Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2016.
Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. Spiegel & Grau, 2015.
Treuer, David. The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present. Riverhead Books, 2019.
Wilkerson, Isabel. The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration. Vintage, 2011.
Zinn, Howard. A People’s History of the United States. Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2015.
Equal Justice Initiative (https://eji.org/racial-justice) with noted author Bryan Stevenson (Just Mercy,) provides helpful information about racial injustices, along with information about The National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama
Minnesota Historical Society: helpful information about three African-Americans who were lynched in Duluth, Minnesota: Duluth Lynchings
Network Lobby for Catholic Social Justice: Resources on Acknowledging Systemic Racism and Unpacking Whiteness
The New York Times Magazine’s 1619 Project (pdf here). Additional curriculum resources related to the project from the Pulitzer Center here.
“The Fierce Urgency of Now” M. Shawn Copeland’s address at Boston College on the 50th Anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z34KlYy8Bo
“Redeeming the Soul of America” with Fr. Bryan Massingale, STD. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhFyaNYkK
Eula Biss, Let’s Talk about Whiteness https://onbeing.org/programs/eula-biss-lets-talk-about-whiteness-jan2017/
“Jim Crow of the North” on Minnesota Experience, Twin Cities Public Television