amyferguson's blog

     One day, a young man realized that race had been affecting him, making it a “terrible year.” He decided to confront it by questioning strangers on the street. J.A. Mitchell developed the conversations into the book 30 Days of Race to present the “Idea of Race” and its social realities like a tangled yarn ball or a wildflower bouquet, with some shriveled and ugly pieces indeed. The result of the process is powerful.

On Friday, April 8th, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched two strategic plans aimed at reducing health disparities along racial and ethnic lines. Along with the Affordable Care Act (ACA), they are the first pieces of federal legislation to address racial health disparities in over forty years. Myrna and I were surprised to hear that the government has not acknowledged these inequities! There is plenty of data and research that document racial health inequalities, including the Heckler Report, published 25 years ago.

On Thursday, March 10th, at 11 a.m., activists and community organizers gathered on the steps of the Massachusetts State House to rally. They spoke a clear message: The Black Community supports unions!

The report can be found in the Resource Center on our website or on the website for United for a Fair Economy at this link.

     United for a Fair Economy has released their annual report, State of the Dream 2011: Austerity for Whom? (also accessible through the Resource Center on our website). The report offers an overview of United States government policies since the Great Recession and World War II to analyze how they have affected racial groups.

Archives from the Challenging White Supremacy (CWS) Workshop from the years 1993 to 2000 are available for use in the library. The workshop ran for over a decade, from 1993 to 2005. The contents of the archives are listed below and include lectures, essays, newsprint, workshop activities, and flyers.