2020 was a year of deep learning – and unlearning – for many of us. And our collective work has to continue. Since our last round of weekly reading, we have been reading, listening, and engaging with our communities to not only seek understanding, but to drive change.
At COBS, this means a commitment to institutional priorities that surface our diversity, equity, and inclusion work across our organization, from the field to the boardroom. It also means ongoing engagement with material and concepts that push our comfort zones, challenge our biases, and drive us to think critically and act justly. As an organization built on foundations of white privilege, we must move into a new narrative and will work to ensure the people most oppressed by those systems no longer have to carry the burden of change.
We hope you’ll join us in building equity in the outdoors, and beyond.
To that end, here are some of the things our staff are reading, watching, and listening to this week:
This summary of the Native Justice Coalition’s MMIWG2S Program
Learning more about how people are using the Native Land Digital resources, like this student who researched active reconciliation
This article by Debra Utacia Krol, titled “Can Native American Tribes Protect Their Land If They’re Not Recognized by the Federal Government?”
Follow @nativewomenswilderness on Instagram
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From April 30, 2021
Layli Long Soldier’s book titled Whereas
Events and workshops hosted by Education for Racial Equity
This guide to Indigenous land acknowledgment from the Native Governance Center
Follow @_illuminatives on Instagram
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From April 23, 2021
This Spotify playlist, curated by Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, featuring her favorite climate change conversations.
“Being and Becoming Asian in the Time of COVID-19,” an article by Caroline Hsu, exploring connection to family and heritage during isolation.
“Get Sends or Die Tryin’” by Devin Dabney, in which the author draws insightful connections between climbing culture and hip-hop culture in terms of what is “real.”
Follow @thegreenevan on Instagram.
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From April 16, 2021
Strangers From a Different Shore by Ronald Takaki, a powerful history of Asian Americans through narrative history, personal recollection, and oral testimony.
Bryan Stevenson’s TED Talk “We need to talk about an injustice,” in which he shares some hard truths about America’s justice system.
This article titled “Say Something Because Hatred is Killing Us: Dismantling The AAPI Invisibility Problem in the Outdoors” Marinel M. de Jesus, Esq., also known as Brown Gal Trekker.
This article from John Shin titled “The Dirtbag Dream, and How It Nearly Ruined Climbing for Me.”
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From April 9, 2021
The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Krista Tippett’s On Being podcast episode, “Love is the Motive” with Bryan Stevenson
I Am Not Your Negro, a documentary about James Baldwin, directed by Raoul Peck
Follow @native_women_running on Instagram
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From April 2, 2021
Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad, which guides readers through an understanding of white privilege and participation in white supremacy.
Follow @she_colorsnature on Instagram
“Walking While Black,” an essay by Garnette Cadogan, in which the author explores the complexity of walking through different environments.
Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong
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From March 26, 2021
“A White Paper In the Spirit of a Red Paper” written by Alice Woodworth, Joe Hessenius, and Joe Parker, in which they – as white settlers – offer tools on how to be an ally to Indigenous Peoples.
Follow @stopAAPIhate on Instagram.
“The Case for Reparations” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
The Scene on Radio: Seeing White podcast series, which walks listeners through how the notion of “whiteness” was created and how it manifests today.
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From March 19, 2021
This article by Martha Tesema, titled “Why We Need to Talk About – and Recognize – Representation Burnout.”
This article from Kat Moon with resources on how to help combat anti-Asian violence.
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
The “Nice White Parents” podcast, a five-part series that explores inequality in education and what is arguably the most powerful force in our schools: white parents.
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