30-Day Justice Challenge

Inspired by journalist Shaan Merchant's "30-Day Justice Plan," CSM is spending the month of July learning about racial injustices against Black people in America. We are devoting at least eight minutes and 46 seconds each day to reading, listening, watching, and acting -- taking steps toward mutual understanding, equality, and justice.

If you join all or part of the challenge, let us know! As you participate, challenge yourself to look deeply at your responses -- your beliefs and feelings. Keep a journal of your thoughts and revelations. What are you learning? How are you affected? Then join our virtual discussions on July 17 and July 30.

Faculty and staff who participate (and we hope you do!) can earn formal recognition of professional learning. Faculty can use professional development points for either this year’s Faculty Development Plan or next year’s. Eight hours of participation equals one point. Staff can earn certificates of participation for their employee files. 

Questions? Contact Dr. Sybol Anderson: ssanderson1@csmd.edu. 

30-Day Justice Challenge

July 1: Listen: “Visions”, by Stevie Wonder
            Read: "Let America Be America Again," by Langston Hughes
            Reflect: What is your vision, your dream, of an ideal community? 

July 2: Read: CSM’s Mission, Vision, and Values (or that of your institution, if not CSM) 
            Reflect: How can mindfulness of our mission, vision, and values help us create a more just CSM
            (or other institutional) community? If you are not affiliated with an institution, reflect on your
            personal mission, vision, and values and how they inspire you to act justly.

July 3: Watch: “‘What, to the Slave, is the 4th of July?’ James Earl Jones Reads Frederick Douglass"

July 4: Read: "Racism, Rhetoric, and Research: Francis Scott Key and Our National Anthem," by Glenn
            Johnston
            Watch: “Why We ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing': The Story behind the ‘Black National Anthem’”

July 5: Watch: “The Racial Politics of Time” TED Talk by Brittney Cooper

July 6: Read or See: An essay, poem, or photo exhibit of your choice from The 1619 Project, by The New
            York Times Magazine

July 7: Visit:  The 1619 Project
            Act and Reflect: Take the Harvard Implicit Association Test

July 8: Visit:  The 1619 Project
            Sign Up: For GirlTrek's Black History Bootcamp and 21-Day Walking Meditation

July 9: Watch: “Holy Post—Race in America”, by Phil Vischer
             Attend: "Truth. Action. Reconciliation" webinar by E Pluribus Unum, a racial equity initiative
             coming soon to CSM and Southern Maryland. 2:30pm EDT

July 10: Listen: “The Racial Contract,” Social Distance podcast, with Adam Serwer

July 11: Read: Opinion: "Call It What It Is: Anti-Blackness," by dr. kihana miraya ross, The New York
              Times,  June 4, 2020
              Register/Watch: Recording of "Truth. Action. Reconciliation," if you missed it! (Don't miss it!
                Facebook Live Stream) 

July 12: Dinner and a movie: Order food from a local Black-owned restaurant and watch
              Ferguson: A Report from Occupied Territory

July 13: Watch: “Let’s Get to the Root of Racial Injustice” –TEDx Talk by Megan Ming Francis

July 14: Listen: “A Decade of Watching Black People Die,” NPR’s Code Switch podcast

July 15: Read “Who Gets to Be Afraid in America?” by Ibram X. Kendi

July 16: Watch: “The Seven Last Words of the Unarmed,”, by Joel Thompson. Performed by the Tallahassee
               Symphony, Morehouse College Glee Club, and Florida A&M Concert Choir
               Attend: "Truth. Action. Reconciliation" webinar by E Pluribus Unum, a racial equity initiative
               coming soon to CSM and Southern Maryland. 2:30pm EDT. Register here.

July 17: Meet: Join our Virtual Check-In at 2:30-3:30 pm EDT
               Register for Virtual Check-In #1

July 18: Listen: Marvin Gaye’s album, What’s Going On?
              Sign: Petitions for justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery
              Register: To vote, or confirm you are already registered.
              Call: Your senators. Urge them to back the Emmett Till Antilynching Act.

July 19: Watch: “What I Am Learning from My White Grandchildren—Truths about Race” – TEDx Talk
               by Anthony Peterson

July 20: Donate: Children’s books featuring diverse characters to a local school 
               Attend: Ibram X. Kendi's Virtual Event: "How to Be an Anti-Racist," 7pm, EDT

July 21: Attend: ODLI’s Lunch & Learn with Tim Fenner, Coordinator, Men of Excellence Program,
               at 12:30 pm EDT
               Register for ODLI's Lunch & Learn

July 22: Watch: “Alfré Woodard Reads Sojourner Truth: Ain't I a Woman?”
               Watch: "Kimberlé Crenshaw: 'What Is Intersectionality?'"

July 23: Listen: To an episode of your choice of the Seeing White podcast by Scene on Radio
              [NB: Language]
              Attend: "Truth. Action. Reconciliation" webinar by E Pluribus Unum, a racial equity initiative
              coming soon to CSM and Southern Maryland. 2:30pm EDT

July 24: Read “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack,” by Peggy McIntosh.
              Reflect: Consider the social advantages of being white and how those advantages affect your life
              and the lives of others. Sit with any discomfort you may feel.

July 25: Listen: To another episode of the Seeing White podcast, by Scene on Radio 

July 26: Listen: To another episode of the Seeing White podcast, by Scene on Radio

July 27: Read: “Ten Lessons for Taking Leadership on Racial Equity,” by The Aspen Institute
              Reflect: If you were to become *the* CSM champion of one of these ten actions, which would it
              be? Tell a colleague.

July 28: Read: CSM’s 2020-2021 Plan for Cultural Diversity and Institutional Equity
              Reflect: If you were to become *the* CSM champion of one of these 20 actions, which would it
              be? Tell a colleague. :-)

July 29: Read: “Birth-Day,” by Lucille Clifton
              Reflect: What waits inside you like an ache? Might it be your Day 1 vision? Will you commit to
               working every day to achieve it?

July 30: Attend: "Truth. Action. Reconciliation" webinar by E Pluribus Unum, a racial equity initiative
              coming soon to CSM and Southern Maryland. 2:30pm EDT
              Celebrate! Join our Virtual Check-In at 3:30-4:30 pm EDT
               Register for Virtual Check-In #2

Check out Shaan Merchant's "30-Day Justice Plan."