by Rev. Clara Sims
One of the stated goals of the Decentering Whiteness Taskforce is to “Promote Education” through developing educational programs, workshops, and resources to increase awareness about privilege, systemic racism, and the historical context that shapes our present reality, while promoting unity through community projects. Therefore, each month, a different member of the DWTF will share a resource that has arisen from our collective work.
For many of us, August is back-to-school month and no matter what level or area of education you are engaged with, you are bound to encounter a way of teaching history that has, since the beginning of this country, centered whiteness. Few projects have so comprehensively and creatively taken on the task of decentering whiteness in United States history than The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story. From Pulitzer Prize winning journalism in the NY Times, to a six-part documentary series, to audio and traditional book formats – there are so many ways to engage with this project that puts slavery, and resistance to it, at the center of what has shaped America.
In the ever present prophetic urgency of truth-telling about the origins and legacies we have inherited, we invite you to spend some time in August with any part of this work and trust that you will be inspired by the liberative vision of freedom and dignity for all people that BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) resistance and resilience have kept alive.
Audiobook and traditional book formats