In November, we remember our first Thanksgiving in America - the usual telling is about strangers sitting down together to share a bountiful meal, a story of two races of people showing generosity and goodwill towards each other. However, we know the early history of our country is actually a history of Indigenous people robbed of their lands and then driven to reservations. Colonial white Americans enriched themselves at the expense of non-white peoples, including Indigenous peoples and thousands of slaves brought forcibly from Africa. In her book The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together (2021), Heather McGhee explains the concept of zero-sum hierarchy, the false idea that resources and opportunities are finite, so that if one group gains or succeeds, it subtracts from the dominant group. McGhee argues that our resources are not finite; instead, with cooperation and using diversity as an asset, we increase rather than decrease our resources. The zero-sum paradigm is counterproductive because it reinforces destructive divisions. Diverse people sharing resources and working together for justice is so much stronger than a divided country. Our first Thanksgiving story of strangers sitting down together and sharing what they have is the vision we need to work for.

Get Out and Vote… and Help Your Neighbor!

Systemic racism has long hindered voter registration and election participation in marginalized communities. Barriers like strict voter ID laws persist today. In the polarized upcoming presidential election, every vote matters, influencing policies on healthcare, climate change, and social justice. Engaging in elections ourselves, and helping others to participate, amplifies diverse voices and counters extremism, reinforcing democratic values. Don’t overlook state and local elections on your ballot—preparing for these choices is crucial. For voter engagement resources, visit non-partisan sites like Ballotpedia or Vote411, or others particular to your party, focused on voter education or transportation to the polls.

“Implicit bias - our subconscious associations of race - permeates everything that we do. And we must pursue systemic accountability to fix it.” -Opal Tometi (Nigerian-American human rights activist)

We are aware of our conscious thoughts, but unconscious prejudices are sometimes difficult to understand. Yet we all possess these implicit biases. It’s OK to admit. It’s the only way to begin to change. How do we recognize our biases? A good place to start would be with discovering our implicit biases, and we can do that with a test. No grades. Project Implicit, a Harvard University project that offers Implicit Association Tests that will measure hidden biases. Once you are aware of your biases you can begin to stop them from being a factor in your decision making, and you can evaluate people on their characteristics and not their race.

Children across the country will soon begin their school year. But schools often fail to provide an equal education for every individual. Take a moment to understand the school-to-prison pipeline and the structures that limit school success for children of color. Ask how you can support students and teachers of color in a learning environment. Support initiatives that allow diverse teaching staff to thrive and ensure that materials provided to children in schools shows students from diverse backgrounds. For more info, check the following websites: ACLU, Pushkin, The Conscious Kid, NAACP, and the Center for American Progress.

Hate groups and hate crimes are growing in the United States. Learning about these groups and how to deal with them will make our community a safer place for all of us. According to the Anti-Defamation League a hate group is “an organization whose goals and activities are primarily or substantially based on a shared antipathy towards people of one or more different races, religions, ethnicities/nationalities, genders, and/or sexual identities. The mere presence of bigoted members in a group or organization is typically not enough to qualify it as a hate group; the group itself must have some hate-based orientation/purpose.” The organization Not In Our Town (www.niot.org) lists seven actions that can be taken when a hate group is recognized in the community. Take a look and think about what you can do.

Gun violence is a racial justice issue. Gun violence disproportionately impacts Black and Brown people. A Black person is over 10 times as likely to be killed by firearms and Indigenous people are almost 3.5 times more likely to be killed by a firearm compared to white people. Community-based groups, lead by BIPOC organizers, have worked relentlessly to develop community-based solutions that successfully reduce gun violence. To learn more, listen to this podcast from Brady, a gun violence prevention organization: https://www.bradyunited.org/resources/podcast/45-on-the-front-lines

Compassionate Awareness
When white people learn about the pain caused by racism to people of color, they/we might find them/ourselves getting emotional. It is understandable to feel compassion and pain about the injustices. However, it is important to realize that how we express our feelings is important. For example, a white person crying about a racial injustice in front of those who have been marginalized by racism shifts the focus away from the victim and their feelings about the situation. It is far more compassionate to listen and to learn how marginalized people feel, and why, first. The book White Fragility by Robin Diangelo is a valuable resource to help build understanding around how to better get to know and communicate with each other.

“No one is born racist or antiracist; these result from the choices we make. Being antiracist results from a conscious decision to make frequent, consistent, equitable choices daily. These choices require ongoing self-awareness and self-reflection as we move through life. In the absence of making antiracist choices, we (un)consciously uphold aspects of white supremacy, white-dominant culture, and unequal institutions and society. Being racist or antiracist is not about who you are; it is about what you do.” from Talking About Race, Being Antiracist, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture: http://tinyurl.com/DHPCAntiracist

This month is the 98th year that Black History Month has been around in one form or another. It began in 1926 as Negro History Week, situated in the second week of February, along with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The original intention was to “encourage coordinated teachings of Black History in America’s public schools.” Fifty years later, Black History Month was finally officially recognized under the Ford administration in 1976.

Today, America as a society is still arguing over whether the truth about Black history should be taught in our schools. In fact, whether America has ever been a racist country has recently become a political campaign initiative. It has never been more important to intentionally educate ourselves about the history of Black Americans and whether the impacts and experience of systemic racism continues to be real.

For more information on Black History Month and a myriad of intriguing options for how to learn evenmore, visit https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/how-to-celebrate-black-history-month.

Monday, January 15 is the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This year, instead of merely using the day off to scratch things off your to do list, use it to reflect on Dr. King’s life, which was committed to working for racial equity, economic justice, and nonviolent conflict resolution. In addition, commit to taking at least one action to honor Dr. King’s life and work. Consider making a financial gift to an organization aligned with Dr. King’s work, volunteering with a justice-oriented organization, visiting a museum to explore the work of civil rights leaders, watching a documentary to learn more about Dr. King (examples can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/MLKDocumentaries), or, if you were alive during Dr. King’s time, write down your memories and share them with someone. The opportunities are endless and as Dr. King himself said, “Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?”

Advent waiting and combating racism may seem like unrelated concepts at first, but upon closer examination, there is a connection between the two. Advent is a period of anticipation and preparation for the coming of Christ. This waiting is a time of reflection and self-examination, where individuals are encouraged to examine their own beliefs and actions.

Similarly, combating racism requires individuals to engage in self-reflection and examine their own biases and prejudices. It requires acknowledging and challenging the systemic racism that exists in society. Just as Advent is a time of waiting for the arrival of Christ, combating racism requires patience and perseverance. It is not a quick fix, but a continuous process that requires ongoing effort and commitment.

Both Advent waiting and combating racism involve hope and the belief in a better future. Advent is a time of hope and anticipation for the coming of Christ, while combating racism is driven by the hope for a more inclusive and equitable society. Both require individuals to have faith in the possibility of change, to actively work towards that change, and to have hope for a better future.

This month’s celebration of Thanksgiving coincides with Native American History Month. As we come together to spend time with family and friends, the occasion can serve as a reminder of the importance of honoring the impacts that the rich and diverse cultures of indigenous communities have had on our lives.

A Google search will yield many opportunities to learn more, including places to visit and activities to share. For example, the area that became Atlanta was originally inhabited by Creek and Cherokee peoples. The space where Peachtree Creek flows into the Chattahoochee was originally a Native village named Pakanahuili, a Creek word meaning “Standing Peach Tree.” The area is now a park in Buckhead called Standing Peachtree.

This Thanksgiving may our celebrations emphasize gratitude not only for the bountiful harvest but also for the enduring resilience and contributions of Native Americans. May we learn more so we can fully appreciate the cultures and sacrifices of the people who lived here for thousands of years before us.