Skip to Main Content

Wofford College’s Office of Diversity & Inclusion (ODI) Anti-Racism 101 Teach-In Series Resource List

Office of Diversity and Inclusion

ANTI-RACISM 101 TEACH-IN SERIES RECORDINGS

ACLU of Ohio Policy Counsel and Georgetown Law graduate, Claire Chevrier, and former diplomat and Assistant Professor at East Tennessee State University, Dr. Jean Swindle begin the series and discussion of anti-racism by reflecting on the deeply entrenched racial history of the United States and contextualizing that history to better examine the protests and rebellions in response to George Floyd’s murder. The session was immediately followed with a 30-minute, small group, debriefing session that was not recorded. Claire Chevrier also asked that any attendees of the session please reach out to her directly with any questions or followup. Her email address is: cchevrier@acluohio.org. 

Where the Speaking Truth to Power session provided context, this session provided opportunities for action! Attorneys Breanne J. Palmer, Erin Keith, and Maya A. Mckenzie, alongside Dr. Jim Neighbors encouraged attendees to engage in the deliberate act of decolonizing contemporary understanding of equity, inclusion and allyship to develop effective methods of disrupting systems of injustice through anti-racist behaviors and actions in attendee’s every day lives.  

This Antiracism Teach-In led by local, Spartanburg community leader, Ceej, and Arjun Sethi, activist, author and Professor at Georgetown Law and Vanderbilt Law demonstrated how #SayHerName and #BlackLivesMatter operates as testimony, archive, and political activist tool as forms of Black witnessing and serves an  extraordinary role in repossessing power and demonstrating the relevance of contemporary social media movements as political activism.

Recent Wofford College alumni, Caitlynn Myer, Steele Smith, Monica Branch and Jonathan Franklin led a discussion on how attendees can develop tangible tools and skills that will not only challenge white supremacy's refusal of Black knowing, epistemic injustice, but also mobilize communities for action and resist the majority culture's appropriative and silencing strategies. There was also some intentional discussion of social media activism at Wofford and the safe spaces that were created to allow for Wofford's Black community to bravely share their testimonies through the Black@Wofford Instagram account. The panelists graciously agreed to have their work and capstone’s shared with the session attendees. Jonathan Franklin’s capstone, “The Understanding of a Single Story: Identities Amongst Black Student at PWI’s;”Jonathan Franklin’s Tumblr project, It’s Not My World, Wofford; Monica Branch’s capstone project, “Can You Hear Me?;” Steele Smith’s film:  https://caterpillar-sawfish-sbzh.squarespace.com

Some of the statues and memorials of white supremacy are coming down or being removed from public display. Confederate statues and memorials, statues of Andrew Jackson, the Presidents carved into Mt. Rushmore, which is sacred land to the Lakota people, and others illustrate a white supremacist approach to memorializing US history. This teach-in continues the AntiRacism 101 series by examining the history of racist statues and memorials in the US to help understand the overwhelming call to remove these symbols and monuments to white supremacy. Panelists include Dr. Felice Knight, Assistant Professor of African American History at The Citadel, Dr. Kim Rostan, Associate Professor of English at Wofford College, and Brad Steinecke, Assistant Director of Local History, Spartanburg Public Library System.