Black Lives Matter
We at Crossroads stand with the Black Lives Matter Movement. We acknowledge the unjustifiable loss of life suffered by George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Dominique Clayton, Philando Castile, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, and countless black human beings living their everyday lives. We further grieve with those communities whose survival is compromised daily by sanctioned violence. It is a lessening of life that is experienced through economic inequity, heightened rates of disease, increased surveillance, and imprisonment. Against these realities, Crossroads has built a community on the firm grounds of gender, racial, and economic justice since 1974. By providing hope and home for formerly incarcerated women, women are given the space to heal and the emotional tools needed to thrive. It is this deep sense of radical compassion that guides our work at Crossroads in pursuing restorative justice for all. We, the Board of Directors of Crossroads, pledge to actively engage in community, state, and federal efforts to affect criminal justice reform.
Share & Join the Conversation!

We don’t know what we don’t know, until we know it, and by then we can no longer ignore it, we must take action.
Resources to engage with Anti Racism
I invite you to join me in exploring this powerful set of resources to better understand the mechanisms of oppressive systems, better understand how to listen for what needs to be done, what needs to be said, and what needs to be understood. Join me in illuminating what actions we as individuals can take to be a part of a lasting change! I have gathered resources and linked to other resource lists that I have received to guide you in deepening your anti racist work. There are COUNTLESS of hands at work here; educators, authors, artists, activists, organizers, leaders, performers, magicians- all critical thinkers, and of course a long lineage of people who actively lived, studied, synthesized, and produced these works as resources for all of us to explore. I want to thank them all and everyone who is standing up now for equality in the rights and dignities for all human beings.
This document is intended to serve as a resource to white people and parents to deepen our anti-racism work. If you haven’t engaged in anti-racism work in the past, start now. Feel free to circulate this document on social media and with your friends, family, and colleagues.”
I have incorporated helpful stages created by Scaffolded Anti Racist Resources to get you started along with several in depth resource lists below.
The First Thing to Do is Connect!
INTROSPECTION: ACTIVITIES TO ENGAGE YOU
- ”White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Knapsack Peggy McIntosh
- Racial Bias Test – this will help you understand what your biases are for yourself
ACTIVATION:
There are really wonderful, ALREADY established, well organized groups in our area to work with in order to keep your motivation for change alive! Participation is key, and nothing can replace your active commitment to partnership!
JOIN SURJ
Showing Up for Racial Justice: SURJ moves white folks into accountable action as part of a multi-racial movement through community organizing, mobilizing, and education. SURJ has regional chapters that hold meetings and events.
Aware LA – White People for BLM
“You wanna fly, you got to give up the shit that weighs you down.”

OTHER CRIMINAL JUSTICE LINKS
The Marshall Project | Nonprofit news organization that seeks to create and sustain a sens of national urgency about the U.S. criminal justice system.
Witness LA | Nonprofit, nonpartisan source of criminal justice news in the public interest.
Civic Research Institute | Independent publisher of reference and practice materials for professionals in law and government, behavioral health, banking and finance, taxation, education, and the social sciences.
CURB | Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB) is a statewide coalition of 70 grassroots organizations that is reducing the number of people in prisons and jails, shrinking the imprisonment system, and shifting public spending from corrections and policing to human services.

Shop LOCAL/ Support locally BIPOC owned business.
Consider Your Consumer Power! - Donate Your Dollars, Spend Wisely!
(This list was compiled in large part by Shauna Hamilton, and includes resources for farmers markets in the Bay Area)
To support large-scale systemic change, consider supporting the following groups:
To support Black-led groups in creating larger systemic change in their communities, these links will take you to other organizations in Minneapolis:
Websites with links and contact information to work for justice in the case of:
The work starts with each of us – we have so much learning and unlearning to do to inform ongoing action. I have highlighted links below and gathered additional resources that I have found helpful as a way to introspect, motivate, and educate:
EDUCATION: STAYING INFORMED
ARTICLES ON CURRENT EVENTS:
- More Employers move to observe Juneteeth – NY Times (June 19, 2020)
- Coronavirus is hitting Black owned businesses the hardest – NY Times (June 18, 2020)
- Here are the 100 Cities where Protestors were Tear Gassed. – NY Times – (June 18, 2020)
- NYPD Disbands Plainclothes Units Involved in many Shootings – NY Times – (June 15, 2020)
- Atlanta Police Chief resigns over shooting of Rayshard Brooks – BBC – (June 12, 2020)
- 6 Reasons All Lives Matter Doesn’t Work – Parents.com (June 8, 2020)
- “Where do I donate? Why is the uprising violent? Should I go protest?” – (June 1, 2020)
- “No More Money for the Police” – New York Times – (May 30, 2020)
- “The Intersectionality Wars” by Jane Coaston | Vox (May 28, 2019)
- “Who Gets to Be Afraid in America?” by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi | Atlantic (May 12, 2020)
- “America’s Racial Contract Is Killing Us” by Adam Serwer | Atlantic (May 8, 2020)
- The 1619 Project (all the articles) | The New York Times Magazine
- ”My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant” by Jose Antonio Vargas | NYT Mag (June 22, 2011)


MOTIVATION: TALKS TO WATCH
- What if white people led the charge to end racism? | Nita Mosby Tyler | TEDxMileHigh
- Just belonging: Finding the courage to interrupt bias | Kori Carew | TEDxYouthKC
- Coming to Terms with Racism Inertia: Ancestral Accountability | Rachel Cargle | TEDxBend
- How Studying Privilege Systems Can Strengthen Compassion | Peggy McIntosh | TEDxTimberlaneSchool
- White Fragility – Book release video by Robin DiAngelo | University of Washington
- The Power of Privilege | Tiffany Jana | TEDxRVAwomen
- It’s about time we challenge our Unconscious Biases | Juliette Powell | TEDxStLouisWomen
Black Feminism & the Movement for Black Lives: Barbara Smith, Reina Gossett, Charlene Carruthers (50:48) - Interview about White Awake: An Honest look at what it means to be white | Courageous Conversations Understanding Priveledge and becoming a better Ally
- On Radical Compassion | Rev. Greg Boyle Founder of Homeboy Industry
- The Alchemy of the Apology | Eve Ensler | Bioneer Conference 2010
CONTINUING EDUCATION RESOURCES:
- Scaffolded Anti-Racist Resources: “Understanding and utilizing resources about racial inequality and bias is the first part of this work — educating yourself is important. Reject the desire to ask black folks, indigenous folks or people of color (BIPOC) to explain racism for you. Instead, find resources created by BIPOC to help educate yourself, or offer to financially compensate folks who are educating you! Start reading about concepts like white privilege and racial bias.”
- Overt & Covert White Supremacy Pyramid – The Conscious Kid
Please take the time to really read each and every covert action that leads to the larger, more violent acts that are publicly admonished. Understanding the spectrum of how dehumanization and desensitization builds toward the type of state sanctioned violence inflicted on George Floyd is critical. You can also listen to Van Jones speak to this continuum on CNN. - Anti-racism Resources | A comprehensive list compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker, Alyssa Klein in May 2020.
- EllaBaker and the Black Freedom Movement (Mentoring a New Generation of Activist
- The Combahee River Collective Statement
- A Social Syllabus Series | Rachel Cargle
- ”White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack” by Knapsack Peggy McIntosh
- Actions for Solidarity: #BlackTransLivesMatter
- SURJ Toolkit – Calling People In – Conversation Guide
- Tips for Creating Effective White Caucus Groups developed by Craig Elliott PhD

RESOURCES FOR WHITE PARENTS TO RAISE ANTI-RACIST CHILDREN:
* The following resources were compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker, Alyssa Klein in May 2020.
Books:
- Coretta Scott King Book Award Winners: books for children and young adults
- 31 Children’s books to support conversations on race, racism and resistance
- This Book is Anti Racist
- Books to Teach White Children and Teens How to Undo Racism and White Supremacy
Podcasts:
- Parenting Forward podcast episode ‘Five Pandemic Parenting Lessons with Cindy Wang Brandt’
- Fare of the Free Child podcast
- Integrated Schools podcast episode “Raising White Kids with Jennifer Harvey”
Articles:
- PBS’s Teaching Your Child About Black History Month
- Your Kids Aren’t Too Young to Talk About Race: Resource Roundup from Pretty Good
The Conscious Kid: follow them on Instagram and consider signing up for their Patreon
Films and TV series to watch:
- 13th (Ava DuVernay) — Netflix
- American Son (Kenny Leon) — Netflix
- Black Power Mixtape: 1967-1975 — Available to rent
- Blindspotting (Carlos López Estrada) — Hulu with Cinemax or available to rent
- Clemency (Chinonye Chukwu) — Available to rent
- Dear White People (Justin Simien) — Netflix
- Fruitvale Station (Ryan Coogler) — Available to rent
- I Am Not Your Negro (James Baldwin doc) — Available to rent or on Kanopy
- If Beale Street Could Talk (Barry Jenkins) — Hulu
- Just Mercy (Destin Daniel Cretton) — Available to rent for free in June in the U.S.
- King In The Wilderness — HBO
- See You Yesterday (Stefon Bristol) — Netflix
- Selma (Ava DuVernay) — Available to rent
- The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution — Available to rent
- The Hate U Give (George Tillman Jr.) — Hulu with Cinemax
- When They See Us (Ava DuVernay) — Netflix
NEED A BREAK? HERE ARE A FEW PLAYLISTS:
- Stream to Donate to BLM | subscribe for monthly charity streams!
- Say Yes | Iyeoka
- JUNETEENTH | playlist by Lauren Braddock
- Revolutionary Playlist | playlist by Rachel Cargle
- I have a Dream | Martin Luther King Jr.
LISTEN UP: Podcasts to subscribe to:
- 1619 (New York Times)
- About Race
- Code Switch (NPR)
- KQED – California Report Magazine
- Intersectionality Matters! hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw
- Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
- Pod For The Cause (from The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights)
- Pod Save the People (Crooked Media)
- Seeing White
- Irresistible
RECOMMENDED PODCAST EPISODES:
- Youth Voices: Our Wildest DREAM | Irrestistible Healing Justice Podcast
- It started with Oscar Grant: A Police Shooting Oakland & the Making of a Movement | KQED California Report Magazine
- A former prosecutor’s case for prison abolition | The Ezra Klein Show
- Interview about I’m Still Here | Art of the Sermon
- NPR episode about Whistling Vivaldi | NPR
- Rest as Reparations with Trisha Hersey of The Nap Ministry | Irresistible
BOOKS: (Top ten also listed in NY Times Best Seller List as of June 2020):
- So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
- White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo, PhD
- The Color of Law, by Richard Rothstein
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
- Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
- Why are all the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? by Beverly Daniel Tatum
- Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
- Raising White Kids by Jennifer Harvey
- White Rage by Carol Anderson
- Waking up White by Debby Irving
- Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Dr. Brittney Cooper
- How To Be An Antiracist by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi
- Raising Our Hands by Jenna Arnold
- When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America by Ira Katznelson
PURCHASE BOOKS BY BIPOC AUTHORS:
- The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century by Grace Lee Boggs
- Black Feminist Thought by Patricia Hill Collins
- Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
- Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
- Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
- Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
- Redefining Realness by Janet Mock
- Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
- The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
- The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
- The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
- Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
- This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color by Cherríe Moraga