​ Anti-Racism Work At Eliot:
​
​Call to Action to the Congregation
and Friends of Eliot Church

​June, 2020

Elizabeth Baker, Margaret Battat, Josephine McNeil, Rebekah Mitsein, Pete November, and Marge O’Reilly volunteered at the Eliot Annual Meeting on June 7, 2020, to take part in a conversation on racial justice matters in Newton. Out of this conversation, we have produced this document for the congregation’s consideration:
 
The police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Tony McDade, and the lynching of Ahmaud Arbery are only the most recent examples of the deep systemic and institutional racism that has pervaded the police forces and legal system of this country for hundreds of years. Some of us are seeing the breadth and depth of this legacy for the first time. Some of us believed we understood it but are now being asked to reckon with the ways we have been complicit in and complacent about white supremacy despite our best intentions.

Read More  (PDF)

​Below are nine dialogues between Rev. Rick Chrisman and Dr. Elizabeth Windsor
about Heather McGhee's book "The Sum of Us."

Rev. Rick and Dr. Elizabeth invite you to watch the documentary True Justice. Those who have read Bryan Stevenson's Just Mercy - or watched the movie of the same name - will gain deeper understanding of the Equal Justice Initiative and Bryan's work in bringing to life the National Memorial for Peace and Justice and the Legacy Museum in Montgomery, Alabama.

The documentary is available on HBO. For those who do not subscribe to this service, you can access a free trial of HBO Max. If you are an Amazon Prime subscriber, you can also access the HBO trial through them.

Watch this introduction to “Systemic Racism” from act.tv:

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Professor Jonathan Holloway

Are you interested in an historical perspective? Check out this open class from Yale:
African American History: From Emancipation to the Present

Elizabeth Baker, Margaret Battat, Josephine McNeil, Rebekah Mitsein, Pete November, and Marge O'Reilly volunteered at the June 7th annual meeting to take part in a conversation on racial justice matters in Newton. Out of this Conversation, we have produced this document for the congregation's consideration.

What book, articles and podcasts have you been reading/listening to this summer that have helped you become more anti-racist? Please let drelizabeth@eliotchurch. org  know!  Watch this space for information on how we can share our perspectives with each other!

Below are resources that will help you talk about race with your children.
 
From Parent Tool Kit : How to Talk to Your Kids about Race and Racism
 
Age-appropriate Books to Share with Kids from the librarians at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School.

​​Readings to help you go deeper: