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LEADING OFF
Happy Friday and welcome to Rhode Map, your daily guide to everything happening in the Ocean State. I’m Dan McGowan and I just realized that “Fresh Prince” is on HBO Max. Follow me on Twitter @DanMcGowan or send tips to Dan.McGowan@globe.com.
ICYMI: Rhode Island was up to 15,325 confirmed coronavirus cases on Thursday, after adding 100 new cases. The state announced 14 more deaths, bringing the total to 756. There were 185 people in the hospital, 42 in intensive care, and 29 were on ventilators.
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The last two weeks in our country have been difficult enough, but it’s been made worse by the fact that a global pandemic has kept children out of classrooms where they could learn about what’s happening together, and discuss the best ways to move forward.
I don’t have the answers, but there are smart people all across the state who can help. So I asked a few of them to weigh in with some thoughts on how to talk with our kids about racism and the unnecessary death of George Floyd.
Here’s what they had to say.
Luke Anderson
8th grade humanities teacher, The Gordon School
Teaching kids to understand race in America isn’t about having answers. It’s about trusting them to come up with their own questions and grapple with their own ideas. If I’m on my game in my eighth grade humanities class, when we learn about Chinese exclusion or Nazi ideology or convict leasing or redlining or Jim Crow, my students won’t leave class satisfied. They will want to know why racist ideas survive or why politicians scapegoat groups of people or why so many people don’t care about their fellow human beings.
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My students come from different backgrounds and I have to be aware that many of my students of color will not bring the same perspectives and experiences as their white peers. They need to know that their story mustn’t be representative of all people of color and they aren’t required to explain racism to their friends.
You can’t begin to comprehend how racism works if you aren’t curious about people. Introduce your kids to some of the lesser-known, but undeniably compelling, stories of people. Mamie Till. Elizabeth Eckford. Fred Shuttlesworth. The fourth graders in an underfunded grammar school in Chicago. Hopefully, these stories will keep them asking questions.
Womazetta Jones
Secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services
Adults discussing racism is often labeled as scary, uncomfortable or difficult so needless to say discussing racism with your children may be unbearable for some. All parents must do some personal work before engaging their children in conversation about race. For white families, I would strongly encourage parents to educate themselves on racism, microaggressions, whiteness, white privilege, white fragility, and the historic trauma experienced by communities of color and our indigenous communities. In our households of color, discussing racism and how to navigate, and perhaps, survive it, is a necessity. For our families of color I would strongly encourage parents to be aware of their own valid traumas in regards to racism as not to project that sadness, fear, anger or hopelessness upon their children. Our parents of color need to be aware of their historic trauma and the beauty, strength, and accomplishments of its people.
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Jorge Elorza
Providence mayor
A wise man once told me that your children watch you more than they listen to you. As a parent, I have found that to be 100 percent true. It’s clear that racist, anti-Black violence is not a one-off, isolated incident, but rather part of a systemic societal problem that persists in our country. I ask parents to talk to their children about these injustices, but more so, I ask parents to set the example by affirming that Black Lives Matter and by taking action to eradicate racism in all of its forms.
Angélica Infante-Green
Education commissioner
Pain, anger, and despair have led not just to protest, but to a heightened and unyielding demand for solutions that change the very system that allows these acts to happen. This is a historic time in our nation, one that we hope will be transformative and lead us to a better, shared future. However, transformative change is hard-earned. As educators, we have a responsibility to be on the right side of history by listening, by learning, by supporting, and by acting in ways that not only confront racist acts and individuals, but that dismantle racist policies, practices, and institutions. This is a time where we, as members of the education community of Rhode Island, need to take a stand and support our black students, their families, and our black colleagues by acknowledging their pain and frustration, saying publicly, “Enough is enough!”
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Andrea Blair
Math teacher, Blackstone Valley Prep High School
I recently shared a vlog with my students, offering support in a stressful time; the impact was greater than I ever imagined. When considering how to support educators to engage and nurture students in this current climate, four principles fly in my mind:
- Vulnerability - Embracing humility to speak from your experience, sharing your heart and your truth.
- Acknowledgement - Seeing each individual student and letting them know that they are valued for their uniqueness, their strength and for their multifaceted selves.
- Empowerment - Educating students on the avenues of enacting change; instructing them on societal events and equipping them to play an active role while celebrating their individuality.
- Love - Seeking to build relationships for no other motive than to know them as people, creating memories, perspective, and experiences through the authentic moments they choose to share. These moments call us to action now and push us to persevere once the dust settles and hashtags disappear.
These four principles create space for student voices. If you're asking what we can do, the answer is, listen to their voices - to the beautiful, powerful, strong, and critical student voices that will propel us forward.
Jessica Waters
Principal, Nowell Leadership Academy
I love you. I see your anger. I am angry too. It’s not right that you are part of a system that, in too many ways, was not set up with your success in mind. But I also know that you are on a path to a bright future, a future that way too many thought was impossible. I see your brilliance, kindness, sense of humor and resilience. You are smart and I want you to be confident in deciding what values you hold and who you want to be. It is not my role to tell you what to think; that would be disrespectful on my part. It is my role to share with you the wisdom that has grown out of my experiences. Be wary of those who would demand you think a certain way or tell you what you can and can’t say. Bryan Stevenson says that hopelessness is the opposite of justice. Always stay hopeful. I love you.
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NEED TO KNOW
Rhode Map wants to hear from you. If you've got a scoop or a link to an interesting news story in Rhode Island, e-mail us at RInews@globe.com.
⚓ My latest: The death of George Floyd is sparking new conversations about whether Rhode Island should reform its Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights, which some say makes it too difficult to fire officers accused of wrongdoing.
⚓ Amanda Milkovits reports that Providence officials say they have “no credible information of any plans for violence” during a Black Lives Matter protest scheduled for today.
⚓ Have we seen the last of snow days? During her daily press conference on Thursday, Governor Gina Raimondo said they could be replaced by virtual school days.
⚓ Several Rhode Island locations made the Globe’s list of fun tourist destinations this summer, even if the coronavirus has changed everything.
⚓ Did you know Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played in a basketball tournament in Providence the day after meeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.? The Globe’s Dan Shaughnessy has a great story here.
⚓ Rhode Map readers have sent another round of Happy Birthday wishes to: Nora Crowley (she was mentioned last week, but she’s special), Jennie Johnson (21 forever), Lilia Holt (30), Alexandra Bless (9), Matt Cardarell (31), Ciaran McEnroe (21), Alicia Anthony, Shannon Shallcross (40), Ted Shallcross Sr. (77), Teddy Shallcross (7), Bob Laprey, MJ Kanaczet, Andrew Kanaczet, Andrew Gobeil, Luis Aponte, Connie Grosch, Sara Chen, David Bibeault, Melissa Jenkins Mangili, Jordan Seaberry, Lauren Niedel, Brian Jencunas, and Evan Staples (33).
WHAT'S ON TAP TODAY
Each day, Rhode Map offers a cheat sheet breaking down what's happening in Rhode Island. Have an idea? E-mail us at RInews@globe.com.
⚓ Thousands of people are expected to attend a peaceful protest in Providence around 4:30 p.m. to demand justice for George Floyd and an end to police brutality.
⚓ Governor Raimondo is holding a press conference with a local leader from Black Lives Matter to discuss racial justice at 10:30 a.m.
⚓ Governor Raimondo’s daily coronavirus update is at 1 p.m.
⚓ The United Way is hosting a virtual community conversation at 11 a.m. to address racism.
⚓ The Downtown Neighborhood Association in Providence is hosting a neighborhood cleanup on Saturday morning.
⚓ Do you ️♥ Rhode Map? Your subscription is what makes it possible. We’ve got a great offer here.
Thanks for reading. Send comments and suggestions to dan.mcgowan@globe.com, or follow me on Twitter @DanMcGowan. See you on Monday.
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Dan McGowan can be reached at dan.mcgowan@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter at @danmcgowan.
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