Featured articles from the Corvallis SURJ newsletter

Reflection: How the Word is Passed (2021), by Clint Smith

A reckoning with the history of slavery across America.

Reflection; The New Jim Crow (2010), by Michelle Alexander

How skewed racial norms led to mass incarceration.

Reflection: Firekeeper’s Daughter, by Angeline Boulley

This debut novel with a Native protagonist is breaking barriers in publishing.

Review: Counting Descent, by Clint Smith

Moving poems about the richness of the Black experience in America.

Article: May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Month!

The history and intent of AAPI month, how folks are celebrating, and how you can lend a hand.

Article: Oregon reckons with racial inequalities in revising cash assistance program

Welfare in America, and in Oregon, is inseparable from our history of racism.

Article: February is Black History Month

The idea of an official celebration of Black History originated with Harvard-educated historian Dr. Carter G. Woodson and his Association for the Study of Negro Life and History.

Review: The Home Place (2016), by J. Drew Lanham

An uplifting, illuminating, and entertaining memoir of growing up in rural South Carolina, to become a noted ornithologist.

Review: BOLD: Conversations About Race – Dean Spade on Mutual Aid

In this well facilitated discussion, Spade calls us to consider if true safety is better rooted in accessible housing for people in crisis, a commitment to look out for our vulnerable neighbors, and easy access to food and monetary support for families and individuals in need? 

Article: Honoring Human Rights (in December and always)

One of the first acts of the newly established United Nations, in 1948, was the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which still serves as a standard as well as an inspiration.

Review: What did we learn? A recap of the November 13 workshop “How To Learn From Our White Antiracist Ancestors: Lessons From the Life of Anne Braden”

As Anne Braden became committed to antiracist work, she understood that it was crucial to mobilize the White community to join the fight against racism.

Article: October 11 is Indigenous Peoples’ Day

The creation of this official holiday has a long history.

Review: Code Switch podcast

The hosts, journalists of color, approach conversations even about heavy topics with humor and empathy, making the podcast feel more like a meaningful discussion with friends.

Review: Such a Fun Age, by Kiley Reid

This novel of two Philadelphia women, one White and one Black, is a complex and layered story, and also a funny, poignant, timely thought-provoking, sophisticated and thrilling read.

Review: Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race, by Reni Eddo-Lodge

This book commits us to solving race issues, starting with changing ourselves, then teaching our families, and then getting involved in any racial justice work we can get my hands on.

Review: A Talk to Teachers (1963), by James Baldwin

Baldwin’s speech is a call to action, not just to the teachers he addresses in this specific piece, but also to white people in general, each of whom have the capacity to dismantle the system of white supremacy culture by first acknowledging what it is.

Review: The Fifth Season, by N. K. Jemisin

A riveting fantasy novel sparks a fresh reexamination of own assumptions and prejudices in our real world. 

Review: The Vanishing Half, by Brit Bennett

An intriguing exploration of race, identity, and family love.

Review: So You Want to Talk About Race, by Ijeoma Oluo

Where our privilege intersects with somebody else’s oppression, we’ll find our opportunities to make real change.

Review: My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies, by Resmaa Menakem

Healing from race-related trauma.