4-Part Online Seminar Series
Understanding Structural Racism
Registration is closed for this seminar (May 7, 2022)
NAACP Arlington Branch, in partnership with Black Parents of Arlington (BPA), and Trinity NOVA Together for Racial Justice (TNT4RJ), is offering a free four-part virtual seminar on structural racism.
The series will be held on four Tuesdays in May: 10, 17, 24, 31, from 7:00-9:00 pm. The seminar is free and open to the public.
Learn how racism evolved in the U.S.; how structural racism persists even after the Civil Rights movement; and how we can end it and build a racially just society.
The online seminar will be presented by Ayo Magwood, Educational Consultant, Uprooting Inequity LLC (www.uprootingineqity.com). Ms. Magwood has a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Brown University and an M.Sc. in Applied Economics from Cornell University. Ayo Magwood is a brilliant thinker and teacher, and her webinars offer a unique opportunity to learn how to advance solutions for racial justice.
This four-part seminar builds cumulative knowledge each week. Registration is for the entire series (Sessions 1-4, not each individual session). Participants are required to attend each session or watch the full session recording before moving on to the next session.
Understanding Structural Racism is a learning opportunity for people of all experiences! Content is generally appropriate for middle school age and up. The seminar is designed to be accessible to anyone interested in deepening their understanding of history and how structural racism has informed social progress in the United States.
Free and open to the public
Registration Deadline May 7, 2022
Donations are welcome and encouraged
More about Understanding Structural Racism
Session Dates
Tuesday, May 10, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm Session 1: The Origins of Race and Racism
Tuesday, May 17, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm Session 2: The Reproduction of Racism
Tuesday, May 24, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm Session 3: Contemporary Structural Racism
Tuesday, May 31, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm Session 4: Policy Solutions to Structural Racism
Cost
The seminar is free to the public. Sponsored by NAACP Arlington Branch, Black Parents of Arlington (BPA), and Trinity NOVA Together for Racial Justice (TNT4RJ). Donations are welcome and encouraged.
Session 1: The Origins of Race and Racism
Tuesday, May 10, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm
How and why were the races first constructed?
How and why was anti-Black racism developed?
In this session, Ms. Magwood will trace the social construction of race from the early colonial period when the colonies were still a class-based society like in England, through the middle colonial period when the Black-White racial binary and a race-based caste system was constructed through laws. Through primary source evidence, we will learn that racism did not lead to slavery; rather it was the economic interests of slavery that drove the development of racial narratives and a racial caste system. She also demonstrates that racism--the myth of Black racial inferiority--was the narrative that white elites/slave owners created to both rationalize slavery (economic interests) and divide poor Whites and Blacks (political interests).
Session 1 is foundational. If you can’t make this first session, you are required to watch the recording before attending Session 2. If you have problems attending May 10, please email [email protected] to watch the makeup video.
Session 2: The Reproduction of Racism
Tuesday, May 17, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm
Why has there been so little progress in racial economic progress?
Why do most Americans vastly overestimate racial economic progress?
Throughout U.S. history, prohibited forms of racial discrimination have repeatedly been reproduced in more legally and morally acceptable forms: ostensibly “race-neutral” policies that have racially disparate impact. These policies have racially disparate impacts because they are based on either wealth or geography, which are deeply impacted by historical discrimination, and thus act as proxies for race. This
is why civil rights legislation had little impact on racial economic progress. Ms. Magwood will focus on the reproduction of racism in housing (FHA/VA mortgage discrimination, redlining, exclusionary zoning), and in education (G.I. Bill, school funding disparities), as these are the foundation of contemporary structural racism.
Please note that Session 1 is a prerequisite for Session 2. Participants who are unable to make Session 1 should email [email protected] in advance and watch the makeup video before attending Session 2.
Session 3: Contemporary Structural Racism
Tuesday, May 24, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm
What is structural racism, and how does it differ from interpersonal bias?
How does structural racism affect racial economic disparities?
First, Ms. Magwood will introduce the concept of structural racism using several metaphors and explain how it differs from individual bias. Next, she demonstrates how structural racism is rooted in the persistent legacies of the accumulated gains of historical discrimination: residential segregation and the racial wealth gap. Thus, eliminating all racial bias would not have much impact on structural racism. Then, she explains how contemporary structural racism impacts racial economic disparities. Finally, Ms. Magwood will briefly identify the role of individual “opportunity hoarding” in reproducing and exacerbating structural racism.
Please note that Sessions 1 and 2 are prerequisites for Session 3. Participants who are unable to make previous sessions should email [email protected] in advance and watch the makeup video(s) before attending Session 3.
Session 4: Policy Solutions to Structural Racism
Tuesday, May 31, 2022, 7:00-9:00 pm
What big lessons can we take away from our analysis of the history of structural racism?
What are the most promising strategies for addressing structural racism?
First, Ms. Magwood will review the principal lessons developed over Sessions 1-3 in this series. Next, she identifies a number of public policies for reducing structural challenges to racial and economic equity. She also identifies a few things that individuals can do about structural racism. If time allows, she will also describe a strategy for fostering an “equity-conscious ‘we’ identity in a classroom, school, or workplace.
Please note that Sessions 1, 2 and 3 are prerequisites for Session 4. Participants who are unable to attend previous sessions should email [email protected] in advance and watch the makeup video(s) before attending Session 4.
Questions?
Email [email protected]
Join Us!
This four-part seminar builds cumulative knowledge each week and registration is for the entire series - four Tuesdays in May: 10, 17, 24, 31, from 7:00-9:00 pm.
Facilitator Biography
Ayo Magwood (Uprooting Inequity LLC)
Ayo Magwood (Uprooting Inequity LLC) is an educational consultant specializing in in-depth, evidence-based education on historical and structural racism for both adults and students. These presentations include primary and secondary historical evidence, data, quantitative maps, research studies, and original diagrams/images. Each session represents 300-400 hours of research, synthesis, and graphic design work. She breaks down grad-school-level social science research, data, and abstract concepts into engaging narratives and visuals. Ayo is also writing a book on her ProEquity instructional framework for teaching historical and structural racism and honest, appreciative, and civic-minded U.S. History. Ayo has a B.A. in economics and international relations from Brown University and a M.Sc. in applied economics from Cornell University.