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Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) Events

DEI & JUSTICE STEERING COMMITTEE MEETINGS


 


Next meeting, May 22 *NEW DATE & TIME

 on zoom 6:30-8:00pm


Contact Membership@LWVthurston.org 

for Zoom link.
  • Agenda:

    • Community Walk with Erin Jones. Scroll - Walk With Erin and Thurston Community on Saturday June 8th. 
    • Discuss DEI policy 
    • June Newsletter articles 
    • Strategic Plan

    •

    Hope you can make it!






    "The Untold Story of Women of Color in the League of Women Voters"
    February 24, 2024
    Performers and Director     

    Many thanks, with gratitude, to the many people who contributed to making the Untold Story Project event a success. This includes Annie Cubberly (Chair), Angela Jefferson, Michelle Gipson, Janice Holloway, Thelma Jackson, Devi Ogden, Lisa Sandall, Charles Holloway, Nicole Miller, Loretta Seppanen, Carolyn Smith, Kyrian MacMichael, Tanya Smith-Brice, Brenda Paull, Sholonda Aikins, Dawn Young and Deborah Vinsel, Thurston Community Media.        
    Sponsored by grants from: Nisqually Indian Tribe and LWVWA Education Fund.

     

    Purpose and History of DEI Committee



     


    BOOK GROUP: Let’s Talk about Multicultural America
    Next Meeting: June 11th 6:30-7:30pm
    text Susan Fiksdal (360.870.1488) for directions to her house

    THE LET'S TALK ABOUT MULTICULTURAL AMERICA book group meets every other month to read  about people of various cultural, economic, indigenous, ethnic, racial, gender, and immigrant backgrounds to better understand the diversity around us. After our discussion, members suggest books they've read and appreciated for the next time. 



    This delightful book is an easy read.  You can get it through the library in print or on Libby.  I listened to it on audible and found it quite entertaining! 

    James McBride’s The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store is an adult historical fiction/mystery novel. In 1972, a skeleton found in an old well unravels the hidden secrets of Chicken Hill, a Pennsylvania neighborhood where Jewish and Black communities coexist amidst racial tensions. Chona Ludlow is the Jewish owner of the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, which shapes the destinies of various characters over the decades. James McBride is a National Book Award winner, and the novel explores themes of community, survival, and justice. By Annie Cubberly.

     

    For more information about the book group contact  Annie Cubberly


    Have ideas for books this group should read? Send us an email.
    ____________________________________________________


    THINKING FORWARD FROM A COMPLICATED PAST
    09 Mar 2023 12:04 PM |
    by Amy Peloff, Administrative Director
    Adapted from a presentation.

    Washington State Capitol Dome


    I can’t help noticing that this idea—which the internet has shorthanded as "Your Fave is Problematic"—seems to be the theme of this decade. And, having spent the past two years immersed in that topic and how it relates to pop culture, I find myself bringing that lens to the topic of the campaign to ratify the     Amendment and the early history of the Women’s Suffrage Movement. 

    Continue Reading

    Land Acknowledgement

    Today, we acknowledge the original stewards of the land we call Thurston County: the Nisqually, the Chehalis, and the Squaxin Island people who thrived here for thousands of years. We also confront the truth that their land was unjustly taken, causing generations of trauma to its people.

     

    Acknowledgement is just the beginning. It is our responsibility to educate ourselves on the history of these tribal nations, on our joint history, and on the role they continue to play in the Thurston County community.  We must create authentic connections with our neighbors, amplify their voices, recognize the unique concerns they face, and support their continued call for justice. 

    ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    Past DEI League Events






    Blacks In Thurston County, Washington 1950-1975: A Community Album

    Saturday, December 9th 2:00-4:00 pm


    Join the League of Women Voters of Thurston County and United Churches 

    for a book signing by Thurston County activist, Dr. Thelma Jackson author of
    Blacks in Thurston County, Washington 1950 to 1975: A Community Album

    Place: United Churches of Olympia. 110 11th Ave SE, Olympia. 
    This is a free event, open to the public. 

    Co-sponsored by the Thurston LWV and United Churches of Olympia. Questions? Contact: (360) 754-4305 Or email The League of Women Voters of Thurston County Membership@LWVthurston.org




    SPEAK OUT FOR EQUITY (SO4E) PROGRAM UPDATE

    The SO4E Program to evaluate the effectiveness of equity efforts by Thurston County governments was approved at the  LWVTC 2021 Annual Meeting.  The Program Work Group reported at our 2022 Annual Meeting that our one-year effort had been sufficient to provide a foundation for continuing this work in the context of other League structures and functions.
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    More about the SO4E program and our findings
    More about the SO4E program and our findings

    Program Work Group members Loretta Seppanen, Sandra Herndon, Darcy Huffman, Jody Disney, Keitha Bryson, Nicole Miller, and Peggy Smith set about examining new and emerging policies, programs, processes, and products of the cities of Lacey, Olympia, and Tumwater, as well as those of Thurston County. We were able to provide comments or letters of support for diversity/equity commissions or councils that were established by these jurisdictions. 

    We evaluated the work done during the 2021-2022 program year and found:

    • The local jurisdictions are moving more positively than we had imagined in 2021. 
    • There are several League groups taking actions similar to those outlined in the program proposal associated with a number of local governmental policies and such. We had not imagined this over a year ago, either.
    • Work group members are contributing to equity enhancement efforts as part of other League or community partner groups. 
    • Our website provides a platform for telling members about progress being made in local equity efforts, as well as letting members and the community know about events of interest. 

    Therefore, it was reported at the 2022 Annual Meeting that our one-year effort had been sufficient to provide a foundation for continuing this work in the context of other League structures and functions. Keep an eye on our website for related news.

     


     

     Our DEI Lens

     

     

    DEI Resources

    DEFINITIONS


    LWVWA Definitions 

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    Links to inclusive language, including non-binary pronouns
    Links to inclusive language, including non-binary pronouns
     American Psychological Association

    MyPronouns.org

    Racial Equity Tools Glossary

    REFERENCES & resources

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    Books
    Books
    • Trailblazing Black Women of Washington State, Marilyn Morgan
    • How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America, Clint Smith
    • The Sum Of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone And How We Can Prosper  Together,  Heather McGhee*
    • Murder At The Mission: A Frontier Killing, Its Legacy of Lies, And the Taking of the American West, Blaine Harden*
    • Against Civility: The Hidden Racism in our Obsession with Civility, Alex Zamalin*
    • Caste:The Origins of Our Discontent, Isabel Wilkerson*
    • The New Jim Crow, Michelle Alexander
    • Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates*
    • So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo*
    • Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People, Mahzarin Banaji
    * Titles read by the Let's Talk About Race Book Group
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    Articles
    Articles
    • The Language of Anti-Racism (excerpted from, “Stay Woke, A People’s Guide to Making All Black Lives Matter," Candis Watts Smith and Tehema Lopez Bunyasi, February 2020
    • Before you rage against Critical Race Theory, it might be helpful to know what it is, Marcus Harrison Green, February 2022
    • The Dictionary Definition of Racism Has to Change, John McWhorter, The Atlantic June 2020
    • Ta-Nehisi Coates Revisits the Case for Reparations, The New Yorker, June 2019
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    Movies & Websites
    Movies & Websites
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    Recorded Workshops
    Recorded Workshops

    CIVICS & CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE EDUCATION

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    The State We're In - Your guide to state, tribal, and local government
    The State We're In - Your guide to state, tribal, and local government
    The League produces two compelling civics textbooks, The State We're In: Washington. A new version is designed for elementary grades 3-5, and  the eighth edition of the original is for grades 6 and up.

    LEARN MORE
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    Office of Superintendent Public Instruction (OSPI)
    Office of Superintendent Public Instruction (OSPI)
    Washington SEL Implementation Brief: Focus on Culturally Responsive Practices

    Since Time Immemorial: Tribal Sovereignty in Washington State

    Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Education Civic Education


    LWV dei event recordings

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    A Look at Local Tribal Approaches to Health Care
    A Look at Local Tribal Approaches to Health Care

    Link to recorded forum coming soon.

    LWVTC Event
    Featured speakers:

    • Vicki Lowe, Executive Director of the American Indian Health Commission for Washington State (AIHC)
    • Angela Tobias, Family Medicine Doctor and former Skokomish and Squaxin Tribe physician
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    Native American Women and the Suffrage Movement
    Native American Women and the Suffrage Movement

     LWVUS Webinar - Native American Women and the Suffrage Movement


    COMMUNITY PARTNERS

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    The League of Women Voters of Thurston County is proud to co-sponsor events and educational opportunities to:
    The League of Women Voters of Thurston County is proud to co-sponsor events and educational opportunities to:
    Amplify concerns and  work together with community partners to face inequities of historically marginalized people. 

    Act when we can, after study and based on the teachings of those with knowledge of appropriate actions that are responsive to community.

    Community partnerships have included:
     

    Join  |   Donate |   Volunteer  |   Newsletter

    info@LWVThurston.org

    P.O. Box 2203
    Olympia WA 98507