Month: February 2023

Sometimes, I feel that pieces of Black history that happen close to home can be easily missed, especially by white people (including me) at that community level. In our UMass community, Dr. John Bracey was described as a pillar of the department of Afro-American Studies, and a passionate mentor. As the founder of the department, he also helped to initiate the certificate in Afro-American Studies.

In light of Dr. Bracey’s recent passing, I’d like to ask that the Comm-Dis department and UMass more widely support the Afro-American Studies Department as they go through this period of mourning. If you know anyone connected to the department and feel comfortable, let them know you can be someone they can come to.

Please take a moment to acknowledge his work and impact: https://www.umass.edu/news/article/memoriam-john-bracey-jr

I’d also like to share one of his most recent projects, part of a long line of innovative projects and initiatives for furthering Black scholarship and presence at UMass. This series of interviews was conducted with his students and documents Black oral histories of UMass students and alums. This project has helped UMass members connect Black stories to our roots here on campus: https://www.umass.edu/diversity/blackpresence/voices/all

The Comm-Dis department can also check out Charlena Seymour’s video, at the top of the page. She is a graduate of our department, and has also served as our department chair and ASHA president!
“In 1971, Seymour joined the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Department of Communication Disorders first as an assistant professor. She served as the director of the Communication Disorders Clinic at the UMass in 1974 and was appointed chair of the department and dean of the Graduate School. In 2001, Seymour assumed the position of interim provost and senior vice chancellor for Academic Affairs. In 2004, she was appointed provost. Seymour later retired from UMass to serve as provost of Simmons College in Boston in 2009.”

You can learn more about Dr. Seymour in the DEI history section of our department page: https://www.umass.edu/public-health-sciences/academics/communication-disorders/justice-equity-diversity-and-inclusion/our-jedi-history

I personally look forward to exploring the archive in more depth and discovering more stories that influence the people and departments around us, as well as the rest of the country.

N a i l a  A r s k y (pronouns: she/her)

M.A. Candidate in Speech-Language Pathology ’23

When I moved to the United States at the age of 19, I had had the usual US History lessons of how Columbus “discovered America” and the Pilgrims and Thanksgiving, blah blah blah. Very little attention was given to the native peoples who already lived here or the African peoples who were forcibly brought here to help colonize the continent for a white minority. 

Once I lived here I became increasingly aware of the still unequal and inequitable regard of different groups of people, often along the lines of skin color and ethnicity. (Having grown up in post-war Germany, the word “race” was not considered a word that one could ethically apply to people, only to animals such as dogs or horses.) 

This pervasive prejudice bothered me, and I tried to educate myself on the historical contexts by reading books, non-fiction historical books as well as novels and poems that helped me understand the perspective of the oppressed. Life happened, but several years ago, amidst a number of the more publicized incidents of police violence against Black people, I took up this quest again. To be an ally, I had to immerse myself a little bit more in the Black cultures. When some friends who felt similarly uneducated suggested a book club, we decided to collectively read books written by African American or African women. 

Somewhat simultaneously, when working out the curriculum for the Multicultural Certificate in our department, I thought about how much some of these books I had been reading had helped expose me to different experiences and ideas and values of Black folks and other historically marginalized groups. I wanted to be able to share this opportunity with the reading groups that were to be part of the certificate’s capstone, and came up with the idea of a lending library with books that I had accumulated and read. Over time, I purchased many more books that I wanted to read and share with other staff and students in the department. 

Thus the lending library was born – it is currently set up on the third floor in our department building and includes several books for adults, young adults and children by and about people with diverse cultural experiences related to facets of identity such as race, ethnicity, gender, and different abilities. There is a sign-out sheet and you are welcome to borrow a book to read. Also if you have suggestions for more books (I could think of sooo many), please let me know.  

Here is a link to the list of books currently in this library. Please note that it is a work in progress: 

https://umass.sharepoint.com/:x:/s/SLHSFacultyStaff/Eeq1Yqa-ec1BmqF5e7t70hwBcYuvY9ewtmMU7hFOesSKCA?e=O80bwS

To honor Black History month, here are some books from the lending library that I read and that I recommend: 

Non-fiction – The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson tells the riveting story of the Great Migration of Black people from the south to northern states through the eyes of three people who experienced it and compares to previous historical migration stories. Well researched (Wilkerson interviewed more than 1000 people) and beautifully told. 

Fiction – The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett is the compelling generational history about the Vignes twin sisters, each adopting different identities of their interracial family history. “Looking well beyond issues of race, The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person’s decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.” (https://britbennett.com) 

Self-Help – What If I Say the Wrong Thing?: 25 Habits for Culturally Effective People by Vern? Myers provides you with some tips to help move you along on your personal and professional diversity journey. 

Young Adult – Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo is the captivating story about the realities of family, love, and death, in which the two sisters Yahaira and Camino connect across the ocean from New York to the Dominican Republic following their father’s death. The novel is partially written in verse that “reads like a dope NYC cipher — brilliant, unorthodox, and beautiful”. (https://socialjusticebooks.org/clap-when-you-land) 

Children – Mama’s Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation, written by Edwidge Danticat and illustrated by Leslie Staub for ages 5-8, “tells the story of a Haitian, immigrant family in the U.S. and a young girl who, amidst pain and separation, finds solace in her mother’s tales. As the protagonist overcomes some difficult challenges, she also learns to recognize the power of her own words”. (https://socialjusticebooks.org/mamas-nightingale-a-story-of-immigration-and-separation) 

Shul Sisters Collaboration: I’m Gonna Walk It With You

Sometimes music can be more powerful than written words alone. This musical collaboration expresses some of what has been on my mind and in my heart as I strive to be an ally while events in the news continue to feel disheartening. As we enter Black History month, I wanted to share it on this blog. I hope others find it to be a source of hope in collective action for racial justice.

This month, members of the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion committee will be posting weekly to share upcoming events and various media for education and reflection, which we hope you will also continue to revisit throughout the year. While it is beneficial to have specific months dedicated to different groups and causes, the surge in awareness that often ensues should not be limited to only that month. All the many facets of our intersectional identities matter all the time!

Coming up this week:

Forgotten Lives: What They Mean, and Why They’re Important.

Wednesday, Feb. 8, 4 p.m.,Old Chapel

Check out more events here: https://www.umass.edu/news/article/events-celebrating-black-history-and-culture

Ongoing: 

• UMass Black Presence Project https://www.umass.edu/diversity/blackpresence 
• Center of Racial Justice and Youth-Engaged Research: https://www.umass.edu/education/center/racial-justice 

Content warning: reference to racial violence to follow

What first connected me to the song shared above was a feeling of frustration and helplessness as I read an article last Saturday morning about Tyre Nichols, yet another Black man killed by police at a traffic stop in Memphis. I was at a loss for words that wouldn’t just feel empty. Then the rabbi closed Shabbat services that day by sharing this song. It spoke to me, and I felt moved to share it in response to these horrific events in Memphis.

At the same time, it is important to recognize that engaging with news of racial violence can bring up trauma and be extremely draining for some members of our community. Each of us has our own way of participating in efforts toward racial justice, including knowing when it is time to step away and focus on taking care of oneself and one’s own mental health. 
The Center for Counseling and Psychological Health has compiled a resource guide for Students of Color (https://www.umass.edu/counseling/resources_POC), with several links related to racial trauma.