Dismantling Systemic Racism Collection

Uplifting Diverse Voices for Racial Justice

As we work to topple systems of violence and oppression, we must come to terms with the racism and exploitation that is woven throughout U.S. history and continues today. We must also acknowledge the legacy of an economy built on genocide, enslavement and stolen land.

The only way to reconcile with this history and to secure civil and human rights today is to build and broaden effective social movements. For decades, thousands of people and organizations have poured their hearts and souls into the work of dismantling systems that promote inequality and white supremacy. Progress has been painfully slow at the cost of innocent human lives because the burden has fallen on so few. It will take all of us joining these efforts in order to create a just and equitable society.

As professor, scholar (and Bioneers board member) john a. powell suggests in a recent essay for the Othering and Belonging Institute, “… fissures are beginning to appear in the system. And when cracks start to show, we have to keep on hammering.”

This small collection of Bioneers media is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the resources available to get educated and get involved on these topics. We encourage you to visit the organizations listed below and those represented by these speakers.

FEATURED MEDIA

Special Release: Three Recordings Featuring Racial Justice Leaders

Listen to talks and interviews with Heather McGhee, Patrisse Cullors and Kimberlé Crenshaw diving into the history and reality of systemic racism, police violence and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Featured Organizations & Resources

The Othering & Belonging Institute at UC Berkeley, directed by professor john a. powell, advances research, policy, & communications in order to realize a world where all belong.

Color of Change designs campaigns powerful enough to end practices that unfairly hold Black people back, & champion solutions that move us all forward.

Rap Sessions conducts town hall meetings around the nation on difficult dialogues facing millennials. By touring the nation with leading hip-hop activists, scholars, and artists, Rap Sessions helps jumpstart crucial local debate.

BIPOC communities are leading the movement toward a democracy that works for everyone, but that can’t come before we face our legacy as a nation. In this panel discussion from the Bioneers 2020 Conference, racial justice advocates discuss what comes next.

Racial Justice Beyond Trump: Confronting an American Legacy

Women of color are the most progressive voting block in the U.S. and the catalyst for the boldest movements of our time. What can we learn from the light they are shining on the path to freedom for all people? And how can philanthropy support their efforts?

Vanessa Daniel on Funding Black and Indigenous Leadership

How do we change the story of corrosive racial inequity? First, we have to understand the stories we tell ourselves. john a. powell and Heather McGhee show how empathy, honesty and the recognition of our common humanity can change the story to bridge racial divides.

Why Equity is Good for Everyone: Changing the Story, Changing the World

In recent years, political polarization and a sense of “othering” has been immensely apparent. It’s time for collective healing, but john a. powell challenges us to think beyond individualized practices, and to unite and actively work to dismantle systems of oppression.

Healing Across Divides: Building Bridges to Challenge Systemic Injustice

Bakari Kitwana reflects on the questions: What is the future for Black Americans in U.S. Democracy? How do we build liberated Black communities? And what do they look like? Bakari discusses sites of traction, hope and new possibilities.

Racial Justice and Democracy | Bakari Kitwana

Antiracist work demands a tremendous amount of emotional labor from those who undertake it. In this interview, Karla McLaren — an award-winning researcher in the study of effective communication, self-awareness and empathy — talks about her work with Sheila Diggs to embrace emotions as a vital part of antiracist work.

How Emotions Can Guide Antiracist Work

American Indian activist Suzan Harjo celebrates the Washington NFL team’s decision to change their name, and reflects on the long road to get here.

We Are Not A Mascot: A Big Win in the Fight Against Anti-Native Racism

“The problem with ‘all lives matter’ is that it’s based on the myth that all racial groups are situated similarly, that we all have equal opportunity and access . . . and that we can all rely on and trust government institutions, like schools and law enforcement, to care for us.” -john a. powell

All Lives Can’t Matter Until Black Lives Matter Too

The food system is not broken; it’s working exactly the way it’s supposed to as a caste system based on demographics, economics, and race. If we’re going to transform this food system, we have to look at power and who has power. The current food system is controlled by a handful of people who are predominantly white men.

Working Against Racism in the Food System

In an interview with Bioneers’ Polina Smith, Jerry Tello discusses how we can begin to address the imbalances and injustices in our society by taking a deep look at the false narratives that have dominated our culture for far too long, and how we can begin to reclaim our understanding of the sacredness and interconnectedness of all things.

Facing our Wounds: A New Narrative for a Time of Awakening

In his book “How to Be an Antiracist,” Professor Ibram X. Kendi challenges traditional definitions of racism, and who can be racist. In this interview with Zenobia Jeffries Warfield of Yes! Magazine, Kendi discusses what’s missing from the discourse around racism, the difference between antiracism and non-racism, and more.

How to Be an Antiracist: A Conversation With Ibram X. Kendi

A history lesson from Heather McGhee, Distinguished Senior Fellow at Demos, outlining how the election of Barack Obama resulted in a racial backlash and the illusion that we were suddenly living in a post-racial society.

Heather McGhee On Confronting The Denial Of Racism

Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, describes the origins of the BLM movement.

Patrisse Cullors on How Black Lives Matter Began

“The work is far from over in the larger goal of creating a just society where institutions, including the police, serve all people. What I am saying is that fissures are beginning to appear in the system. And when cracks start to show, we have to keep on hammering.”

We’re in a Moment of Collective Trauma. But There Are Glimmers of Hope.

Kimberlé Crenshaw was instrumental in the creation of the #SayHerName campaign to raise awareness about the many black women and girls who are killed by the police. Photo by The All-Nite Images.

Kimberlé Crenshaw on the #SayHerName Campaign

“We have created a system that overrelies on law enforcement and prioritizes their money, their budget, their needs over everything else,” says Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, and Reform L.A. Jails.

Black Lives Matter Co-Founder: Protests Are the Result of “Police Terror with No Accountability”

By around 2044, the U.S. will become a majority-minority nation. This seismic demographic shift has triggered a cultural earthquake. Heather McGhee of Demos sees a direct connection between today’s extreme inequality and this peak moment of racial panic and white anxiety.

Who Is an American? Is Our Democracy as Unequal as Our Economy? | Heather McGhee

A leader of the “Take Back Saint Louis” campaign to remove tax incentives to corporations profiting from climate change reads “An American Horror Story — Open Letter from Ferguson Protestors and Allies.”

Open Letter from Ferguson Protestors and Allies | Arielle Klagsbrun

Restorative justice promotes healing over harm by bringing communities together in the mediation of conflict.

Restorative Justice with Fania Davis

Physician Rupa Marya urges us to radically re-envision and expand our concept of medicine to encompass and address the health impacts of poverty, racism and environmental toxicity.

Health and Justice: The Path of Liberation through Medicine | Rupa Marya

What we do to each other, we do to the Earth. To protect our common home, we’re being called upon to create beloved community and peaceful coexistence. A new generation of visionary change-makers is designing new tools to transform our unconscious biases and create justice.

Raced and Classed: The Journey From Diversity to Equity | Rinku Sen, Saru Jarayaman and Malkia Cyril