Lets Talk About Race

Waking Up White is the book Debby Irving wishes someone had handed her decades ago. By sharing her sometimes cringe-worthy struggle to understand racism and racial tensions, she offers a fresh perspective on bias, stereotypes, manners, and tolerance. As she unpacks her own long-held beliefs about colorblindness, being a good person, and wanting to help people of color, she reveals how each of these well-intentioned mindsets actually perpetuated her ill-conceived ideas about race. She also explains why and how she’s changed the way she talks about racism, works in racially mixed groups, and understands the racial justice movement as a whole.

"We should have been treated fairly, with the utmost respect and dignity. I am concerned about the level of the nonchalance of bigotry, harassment of a child, physical assaults, racial profiling, and the change of prices rate for African American curly texture hair. This experience has tarnished my daughter. I believe we are victims of a hate crime and ugly racism. It hurts tremendously! I am a Mother reach out to you to ask for help for my daughter."

Full 7 chakra guided meditation using relaxation, guided meditation, visualization and mantras.

Jessica talked about many important emerging city topics including: "Mitigating commercial and cultural displacement (affordable housing is a pressing matter that many great organizations have as their focus. Our focus with small business and cultural institutions is synergistic with these concerns) History of race in Union Square.

Future of race in Union Square: how does the new and improved Square benefit all people living here?"

Kia is a 22 year old native Bostonian, growing up in Roxbury, Dorchester. Kia is a recording artist and model. Hear more about Kia on Thursday, May 16. Her artist name is OAZ. You can find her on any social media platform, Pandora, Spotify, ITunes.

In addition to her own journey to success, Kia talked about the school to prison pipeline, community violence, the importance of engagement, and community health & awareness.

Join us.

Join A conversation about politics with LTAR co-hosts Diane Wong, Pharaoh Saunders and special return guests Lew Gitelman and Bill Cavellini. A discussion on race, civil rights, Israel, Palestine, Anti-semitism, white supremacy, capitalism, ignorance and much more. How to engage a movement. Ideas? Passion? Both?

Alex is the Coordinator of the Immigrant Services Providers Group/Health, a member of the Sanctuary City Steering Committee, the Somerville Youth Workers Network, and the Tisch Center for Community Research at Tufts Steering Committees, the Health & Legal Immigrant Solidarity Network and a member of Our Revolution Somerville. He was gentrified out of Cambridge in the late 1970’s and moved to Somerville during its not so good old days

"Growing up in neighborhoods of black and brown folks I was acutely aware of racism and the deadly effects it had on friends and people I knew. I believe the turning point in my radicalization was the advent of Black Power/Malcolm and the murder of MLK! A lot of white liberals could accept civil rights but raising the question of power was going “a bit too far” I can remember as if it happened yesterday ; I was at a Martha Reeves and the Vandellas concert when it was announced MLK had been shot and my good friend Porky Rainey said, "Lew that was the last hope for non violence. There is no turning back”. Yet here we are today and the fight for true equality and liberation still stares us in the face."

Ryan brought his voice and perspective to the show with Diane and Pharaoh to share his thoughts on race in America. Raised in a traditional and homogenous community, Ryan witnessed strict religious, gender, sexual, and racial views throughout his life. While living in Boston, Ryan has begun to recognize and confront his own biases while attempting to understand his heritage and maintain the love for the place he, for so very long, called home.

Listen to Ryan talk about 1) Being from a small rural conservative and religious area in North Carolina. 2) Living as a southerner and confronting what that identity means outside of the south

3) Casual and unapologetic racism witnessed - and finally, a conversation about white supremacy

Bill Cavellini has been a community organizer all his adult life, in New York City, Atlanta, Georgia, Cambridge and Somerville, MA. He drove a taxi cab for over thirty years in Cambridge and worked as a case manager for a Housing First Program, Journey to Success, in Boston, Revere and Chelsea for ten years before retiring in 2016.

He grew up in a segregated housing project in the Bronx, NY. His father was born in Italy, came to this country when he was seven years old. His mother is a first generation Italian American. His father was a NYC police officer and his mother was a parochial school teacher. He has lived in the Boston area since 1970, when he came to attend MIT.

Bill's experiences as a white cab driver, driving at night during the 1970-80’s in the Boston area.

How the white dispatcher favored white drivers over drivers of color and how it challenged Bill to confront his white skin privilege.

Bill talked about how his own stereotypes were challenged almost continuously throughout his driving career.

And Bill talked about the organizing efforts that he has been involved in that tried to be inclusive and diverse….the successes, the failures; and the efforts to support the struggles of people of color.