Anti-Racism Calendar

By Allston Pudding Staff

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Dedicating yourself to anti-racism doesn’t end when the media stops covering the marches and rallies that are continuing to take over the streets across our country. We must commit ourselves to daily action whether big or small to work to combat the racism in our world and within ourselves. We put together a daily calendar for the next month with many resources to check out. (Calendar at the bottom. Be sure to click over to August actions too!)

Sit Down Sundays

Sit down and read a book or an essay about institutional and structural racism. (Or listen to a podcast or audiobook.) Reflect. We highly recommend going through these Anti-racism resources for white people, which includes extensive articles, videos, podcasts, books, movies and TV, organizations to follow on social media, and other resource compilations.

Books: Browse the inventory of Boston’s only Black-owned bookstore, Frugal Bookstore. Looking for comics or graphic novels? The Million Year Picnic offers free delivery to select locations, mail order, and curbside pick-up! Couldn’t find what you were looking for in those local vendors? Check out these 22 Black-owned bookstores across the country that you can order from online. Here are some recs from our staff:

Also, read this thread by Dr. Rhea Boyd about why you shouldn’t read White Fragility. She recommends the following reading instead:

Articles:

Podcasts:

My Rep. Mondays

Call your representatives and demand they sponsor and vote for policies and legislation that protect Black and brown lives. Find your state legislators by searching your address. Special thanks to I Have a Future for bringing our attention to some of these Bills.

Abolish/Defund the Police

**URGENT UPDATE** Bill S.2800 has passed in the MA State Senate. There is bill H.4861 up in the house for a vote this Wednesday 7/29. Organizations like Families for Justice as Healing and the People Not Prisons formation DO NOT SUPPORT this bill. From their actions calendar: “The proposed bills will cause more harm than good by increasing spending on law enforcement through training and training commissions, expanding the power of law enforcement officials to oversee law enforcement agencies, and making no fundamental changes to the function and operation of policing in the Commonwealth. Real change requires that we shrink the power and responsibilities of law enforcement and shift resources from policing into most-impacted communities.”  Now it’s time to call your MA House Rep. to amend this bill. The ACLU advises asking your rep. to support: 1. Strong use of force standards, including complete bans on the most violent police tactics; 2. Strict limits of qualified immunity; and 3. Banning racist facial recognition technology. There are many other parts of the bill that need to be amended though. Here is who to call and/or email with your concerns:
 
Speaker of the House Robert DeLeo
(617) 722-2500
Robert.DeLeo@mahouse.gov

 
Your own State Representative (https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator)
 House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz
(617) 722-2990
Aaron.M.Michlewitz@mahouse.gov
 
Judiciary Chair Claire Cronin
(617) 722-2396
Claire.Cronin@mahouse.gov
 
 
Actions for Bostonians. Find your district and then find your City Councilor

  • Tell Boston City Councilors who voted yes on the budget that their vote perpetuates racism in our city: Lydia Edwards (District 1), Ed Flynn (District 2), Frank Baker (District 3), Matt O’Malley (District 6), Kenzie Bok (District 8), Liz Breadon (District 9), Annissa Essaibi George (At-Large), Michael Flaherty (At-Large)
  • Ask your Councilor to co-sponsor the ordinance filed by Councilors Wu, Edwards, and Mejia to offer “alternative response from non-law-enforcement agencies” for nonviolent calls about mental health, homelessness, substance abuse, car crashes, etc.
  • **UPDATE** Ask your Councilor to support Councilor Kenzie Bok’s hearing orders on: 1) quarterly hearings to oversee the administration’s plan to reduce BPD’s overtime by 20%; 2) Establishing police contracts as policy documents; and 3) Creating a zero-based budgeting system that allows for alternative budget visions from the community.

Here’s a sample script if you’re calling about everything in the same call.

Stop Evictions

  • Sign this Petition to Cancel Evictions
  • Call Governor Baker’s office (617-725-4005) to extend state-wide eviction moratorium 
  • Call your MA House Rep. about Bill HD.5166 and MA Senate Rep. about Bill SD.2992 “An Act to guarantee housing stability during the COVID-19 emergency and recovery.” This bill would extend the eviction moratorium by 12 months while providing mortgage deferment and funding for small landlords who lose rental income.
  • Call your MA House Rep. about Bill H.3566 and MA Senate Rep. about Bill S.824 “An Act promoting housing opportunity and mobility through eviction sealing (HOMES)” before they convene on July 31st. As soon as an eviction case is filed a tenant has an eviction record, even if they didn’t do anything wrong or were never evicted. This record is unfairly held against tenants when they try to rent a new place. Children are listed on these cases as well, harming their future ability to find housing, credit, and jobs when they are older, contributing to youth homelessness and unemployment. This bill would seal all cases unless an allegation is actually proven and would prevent minors from being listed on cases.

Protect Immigrants

Call your MA House Rep. to support Bill H.3573 and MA Senate Rep. about Bill S.1401 “An Act to protect the civil rights and safety of all Massachusetts residents,” also known as the “Safe Communities Act” before they convene on July 15th. This bill would 1) prevent law enforcement and court personnel from asking people about their status, 2) require police to obtain consent for ICE questioning using a form that explains the right to decline an interview or have an attorney present, 3) limit police, court officers and jail officials from notifying ICE that someone is about to be released, 4) end Massachusetts’ 287(g) contract with ICE, and 5) Provides crucial training and accountability so people can file complaints with the relevant agency or the Attorney General.

Juvenile Criminal Justice Reform

Call your MA House Rep. to support Bill H.3420 and MA Senate Rep. about Bill S.825 “An Act to promote public safety and better outcomes for young adults” before they convene on July 31st. This bill would gradually raise the upper age in delinquency and youthful offender cases to include 18- to 20-year-olds over several years which would provide young people under 21 with more emotional support as is appropriate since the adult brain is not formed until the early 20s.

Environmental Justice

Email the House Committee on Ways and Means (Chair: Aaron Michlewitz Aaron.M.Michlewitz@mahouse.gov, Vice Chair: Denise C. Garlick  Denise.Garlick@mahouse.gov, Asst. Vice Chair: Elizabeth A. Malia  Liz.Malia@mahouse.gov, and any of the members who represent your district) to urge a favorable report and a floor vote by the end of session for Bill H.4264 “An Act relative to environmental justice in the Commonwealth.” This bill codifies the definition of Environmental Justice (EJ) populations, low-income communities and communities of color are disproportionately affected by environmental harms such as power plants, highways, and airports, and implements protections for these communities. Environmental impact reports will be required to include consideration of public health and impact on EJ communities and multi-lingual consultation and outreach will be required for proposed projects in such communities. This bill also creates a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) Bank, which funds mitigation projects and may be funded in lieu of penalties by violators settling enforcement actions.

Wallet Wednesdays

Put your money where your mouth is and support Black-owned businesses, Black-owned restaurants, and organizations that protect Black lives. 

Nonprofits and Other Community-Oriented Organizations: At this point, donating to Black Lives Matter Boston and Massachusetts Bail Fund are no-brainers. Here are some other Boston-area organizations whose work directly impacts our community, and could really use your financial support:

  • Families for Justice as Healing: Led by incarcerated women, formerly incarcerated women, and women with incarcerated loved ones, their mission is to end the incarceration of women and girls.
  • I Have a Future: Run by youth leaders, their mission is to address the issues of youth employment, juvenile criminal justice reform, prevention of gun violence, housing reform, and climate change.
  • Louis D. Brown Peace Institute: A center of healing, teaching, and learning for families and communities impacted by murder, trauma, grief, and loss.
  • Transgender Emergency Fund of Massachusetts Inc.: Provides critical assistance for low-income and homeless transgender people living in Massachusetts.
  • Violence in Boston: The mission of Violence in Boston is to improve the quality of life & life outcomes of individuals from disenfranchised communities by reducing the prevalence of violence and the impact of associated trauma.
  • Youth Justice and Power Union: A youth-led organization for and by people of color, to build up the leadership of people most impacted by systems of oppression.

Black-Owned Businesses:

Black-Owned Restaurants: 

Celebrate Saturdays

Watch a movie that focuses on Black joy, Black excellence, Black power, and Black girl magic.

Protest Everyday 

Protests are still happening even if the media isn’t covering them anymore. Check out this Google Doc for an up-to-date list of protests happening in Massachusetts, which also has helpful resources such as safety tips for protesting, practical guide for protesting, protesters’ rights, tips and legal aid, and guide for white folks’ protesting behavior. We also recommend this zine Muff the Police: Sonic Care at Demonstrations zine by Daphne Carr, which teaches you how to protect your ears at the protest!