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Learn about sundown towns.
Happy Tuesday! Today we're learning about sundown towns, which I always thought of as a part of our history until the Defund San Antonio Police Department Coalition referred to San Antonio as one, and released travel advisories for Black residents.
Renée takes us through the history of sundown towns, the danger of U.S. travel for Black residents, and offers insights for you to consider the next time you're planning a road trip. And be sure to check out the action items – I discovered that my own hometown was once a sundown town.
And thank you for your contributions! If you enjoy this newsletter, you can give one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe for $5/mo on our Patreon.
– Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Use this map to see what towns near your hometown may have been sundown towns.
Support the GoFundMe campaign of two Black women aiming to make travel safer for Black travelers through a modern-day digital green book.
Consider: How does your community express itself as a welcoming space for people of color? How might it dissuade visitors and new residents?
GET EDUCATED
By Renée Cherez (she/her)
An American pastime has resurrected with international travel halted to break quarantine’s mundanity: the road trip. Part of the ‘American Dream’ appeal was the sense of freedom, especially in the imagery of road trips on an open highway.
Twentieth-century representation was loaded with white families’ on deserted highways in Chevy’s worry-free with bright smiles. Absent were Black families’ – as the open road was not a journey of good times but open racialized terrorism (NYTimes).
Though Black Americans were aware of the dangers of traveling by car, there was (and still is) a strong sense of freedom and control that automobile travel offered that trains and busses did not (NYTimes). While traveling by busses and trains in Jim Crow America, Black Americans were often subjected to a conductors’ watchful eye. They would have to defer to white passengers even when seated in the “Colored Cart.” This kind of harassment was relentless and what made the construction of a new highway appealing.
Route 66, or “The Mother Road,” one of the most famous U.S. highways, connected eight states beginning in Chicago linking to Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Gaining popularity during the 1930s as people tried to escape the Dust Bowl, Black Americans also used Route 66 to flee racial violence in Jim Crow south. Unbeknownst to them, there was no escaping Jim Crow as institutionalized racism was embedded in every part of the country. A year before Route 66 construction began, the Chicago Tribune published an editorial warning Black Americans away from recreational facilities like swimming pools:
“We should be doing no service to the Negroes if we did not point out that to a very large section of the white population the presence of a Negro, however well behaved, among white bathers is an irritation. This may be a regrettable fact to the Negroes, but it is nevertheless a fact, and must be reckoned with … [T]he Negroes could make a definite contribution to good race relationship by remaining away from beaches where their presence is resented.”
Chicago Tribune editorial, published on August 29, 1925, via The Atlantic.
Because Route 66 covered over 2,000 miles, various businesses like restaurants, barbershops, gas stations, and motels were along the route, making it possible for travelers to stop for a night’s rest and food –except Black travelers. Of the eight states along the highway, 6 had official segregation laws, but all had unofficial rules about race (The Atlantic).
Victor Hugo Green, a postal worker from Harlem, New York, created The Negro Motorist Green Book. This travel guide listed motels, taverns, guesthouses, barbershops, beauty salons, restaurants, realtors, and department stores that were safe for Black Americans to patronize without harm. The book included listings for all parts of the country, but Route 66 was the most famous highway. Published from 1936-1966, the Green Book was considered the Bible of Black travel because it prevented the shame of being kicked out of restaurants and listed towns known as sundown towns (Smithsonian Magazine).
Sundown towns were white only communities where Black people were not allowed to stay “past sundown,” hence the term. Thousands of communities used local law enforcement to protect these spaces across the U.S. (Tougaloo). These communities were dangerous to Black travelers under any circumstance, but being seen after sunset was sure to warrant violence or death. Mostly created to prevent an influx of Black Americans (and Jews and Chinese) in white communities, sundown towns were and still are, symbols of violence (GEN). Black travelers often passed signs that read “Don’t Let the Sun Set on You Here, Understand?” and “Whites Only Within City Limits After Dark.” At its peak, there were an estimated 10,000 towns like these in 1970 (Tolerance.org).
A common practice among Black men with nice cars was to lie to police officers when asked if the vehicle they were driving was theirs. White vigilantes and police officers found it offensive if a Black man owned a fancier car than their own, or even interpreted it as a Black man trying to upstage him. If a Black man was stopped with his family, to protect them from violence, a chauffeur hat would be kept in the car and used as a decoy to avoid trouble (The Atlantic).
Misha Greens’ new series, Lovecraft Country, on HBO, is a powerful example of how horror coupled with America’s unique form of racism can not only be entertaining but illustrates the psychological warfare Black Americans are forced to endure daily. The series follows a young man Atticus, from Chicago, searching for his father in Ardham, Massachusetts.
Joining him on this road trip is his Uncle George (played by Courtney B. Vance) and childhood friend, Letitia (played by Jurnee Smollet). Playing off Mr. Green’s travel guidebook, Uncle George is creating a travel guide for Black travelers. Without sharing too much, all of the fear that sundown towns embody is perfectly depicted thus far.
From psychological violence by police officers, sundown town signage, and refusal of service in a restaurant, the horror of racism is real, and to consider it entertaining can feel wrong. The first two episodes alone show how mortifying, debilitating, and dehumanizing segregation, sundown towns, and Jim Crow were, and still are, today. Police officers and white vigilantes were used as agents against Black life. This is clear when we think about the hunting and murder of Ahmaud Arbery as he ran through his Brunswick, Georgia neighborhood, which may have very well been a sundown town.
It may be easy for white viewers of Lovecraft Country and those who’ve recently learned about The Negro Motorist Green Book to brush off the racial history both explore as ways of the past. However, we should remember that Black men are still being lynched in America in 2020.
If this year has shown us anything, its that we are far from a post-racial society. With racial injustices in full view, Black travelers are creating the necessary resources to keep other Black people safe both domestically and internationally (Travel + Leisure). White people who consider themselves allies should spend their privilege by sharing and amplifying these resources often to aid in the protection of Black travelers everywhere.
Key Takeaways
Sundown towns were white only and dangerous to Black travelers under any circumstance.
Lovecraft Country, on HBO, illustrates the psychological warfare Black Americans are forced to endure daily.
Black Americans still feel fear when traveling by car in America.
RELATED ISSUES
9/2/2020 | Rally for fair appraisals.
8/30/2020 | Protect housing rights during COVID-19.
7/20/2020 | Protect your community from the harm of gentrification.
7/12/2020 | Learn how air pollution exacerbates COVID-19.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza
Make the census count.
It's Wednesday and there's only 22 days left to complete the U.S. Census! You may have already completed this back in April, and that's a good thing – considering how messy the current census counting situation is right now. In case you missed the news, Renée is giving us the overview in today's newsletter. Learn why the extension is necessary for ensuring fair representation of everyone – especially those most marginalized.
And do your part to rally your friends, family and colleagues to take the census! The next best time to complete the census is now.
Thank you all for your contributions. To support our work, you can give one-time on our website, PayPal or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza), or subscribe for $5/mo on our Patreon.
Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Complete the census! You can do it online, on the phone or via mail: 2020census.gov
Create time and space at your (IRL or virtual) office for your team to complete the census.
View where your state ranks on the 2020 Census Response Rates. Then, research specific ways you can help your state / city count – whether by joining text / phone banking initiatives, or spreading the word in your neighborhood.
GET EDUCATED
By Renée Cherez
Beginning in 1790, the United States Census has been part of the country’s constitutional law. Every ten years, every person in America is counted for two main reasons: distributing funds and properly revealing representation. Census findings not only affect the funds and resources allocated to communities, but it also determines the number of seats each state in Congress holds as well as the drawing of congressional and state legislative districts (Census.gov).
On August 3rd, the Census Bureau announced that field data collection would end on September 30th, a full month before the Trump administration’s extended October 31st deadline. (CNN) In an internal document released last week by the Democratic-led House Oversight Committee, Census Bureau officials warned the Trump administration that compressing the Census data timeline would “eliminate activities that will reduce accuracy” (CNN).
Also mentioned in the Powerpoint-styled report is any modifications made to the review process would eliminate or reduce steps designed to ensure the exactness of data before it is made public (Census.gov). With a shortened timeline, there won’t be time to review data that may be skewed in a practical matter before presenting it to the president on December 31st.
A U.S. judge was able to temporarily halt this movement last Saturday, an issue that will remain in effect until Sept. 17 when she will hold a hearing in a lawsuit filed by the municipalities and advocacy groups (Reuters). This move buys the census some “precious and indispensable time” to gather more data (NPR). And this adjustment is critical; a miscount threatens the accuracy of the numbers used for reapportioning seats in Congress and the annual distribution of $1.5 trillion for federal funding of public services (NPR).
The Trump administration’s decision to expedite the census timeline during an election year and pandemic cannot be overlooked. Because the census determines the allocation of seats in Congress, there is undoubtedly a push to receive incomplete data to ensure seats are held by those who don’t have marginalized communities’ best interests over the next decade (New York Mag).
It’s also not the first time the Trump administration has tried to manage the census in a way that sways to their political agenda. In 2019, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who oversees the Census Bureau, insisted on a citizenship question added to this year’s census (NPR). With Trump’s xenophobic history towards immigrants on full display over the last five years, the Supreme Court blocked the citizenship question from the 2020 census (CNN).
A miscount or no count at all is disastrous for not only Black and Brown communities but also immigrant communities and those experiencing homelessness. Historically, Black and immigrant communities have been undercounted or not counted at all in the census. In 1940, the Census Bureau missed 1 in 12 Black residents (The Guardian). In the 2010 census, 2.1% of African Americans were not counted, including 6% of African American children (Forbes).
Also undercounted: 1.5% of Hispanics and 5% of Indigenous people living on reservations while the white-non Latino population was overcounted by almost 1% (CBS). A 2019 report by the Urban Institute estimates that between 1.1 million and 1.7 million Black residents will be missed in 2020’s census (Urban Institute). However, because of the ongoing pandemic and upending to daily life because of it, years of mistrust of the federal government, the numbers could be far higher.
Racial inequality in national statistics is not new. It has cost the Black community millions of dollars that could have been used for education, mental health services, clinics, businesses, and public programs like Medicaid. An example of this is the disproportionate incarceration rate of Black men.
Black men are incarcerated five times higher than white people, and when the census traces, it documents that Black men are part of the prison population. This inflates the population count and divests funds from Black communities, where incarcerated Black men will eventually return (Forbes). Like the Asian Americans Advancing Justice, who successfully sued the administration over its citizenship question, advocacy groups have voiced their concerns about the new census deadline:
"This new deadline allows Trump to cheat hard-to-count communities of color out of the resources needed for everything from health care and education to housing and transportation for the next 10 years" (CNN).
Like door-knocking, field operations are critical in undercounted communities and counting populations that are most vulnerable like the unhoused. Black people in America only make up 13% of the population, yet, 42% of the unhoused population is Black. The numbers are even higher among Black people experiencing homelessness with children at 52% (ABCNews).
With the deadline fast approaching, Census field agents are now pushing to get into the rural communities that don’t have internet or telephones access. Virtual phone banks organized by advocacy groups are scheduled for September 9th in Chicago, where only 40% of households have completed the census (ABC7). On the opposite end, fieldwork will end in San Diego, a city with a large Hispanic population, which will end on September 18th, twelve days earlier than the official deadline (KTLA).
Almost 230 years later, to the first enumeration, the 2020 Census may be the most critical of our generation as we face down a public health crisis, racial uprisings, an economic crisis, and a federal government steeped in fascism. We must do everything in our power to ensure BIPOC people are counted in this census. If we don’t, these communities stand to lose more than they already have over the last six months of this pandemic and four years of this administration.
key takeaways
The last day to complete the U.S. Census is September 30th.
Black communities are historically undercounted in the Census, leading to millions of dollars lost for valuable resources.
In the 2010 Census, 1.5 million Black and Hispanic people went uncounted.
RELATED ISSUES
7/23/2020 | Know our racist presidential history.
7/21/2020 | Honor the legacy of Rep. John Lewis.
7/20/2020 | Protect your community from the harm of gentrification.
7/8/2020 | Investigate school district funding disparities.
7/6/2020 | Abolish qualified immunity.
7/5/2020 | Support the Navajo Nation through COVID-19.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza
Help decriminalize drug possession.
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Happy Thursday – for real this time. I guess I was trying to fast forward this week yesterday. Can you blame me?!
This has been a heck of a week, and it's still only Thursday. You may have heard that last night, players at several major sports leagues went on strike, forcing leagues to postpone games (ESPN). Renée wrote a powerful story in last week's newsletter encouraging all of us to support athletes fighting injustice. Now's the time to put that newsletter into action.
Today, Renée is back with a quick overview of the history of drug possession, its contributions to the criminalization of communities of color, and its ramifications today. Send your insights and thoughtful inquiries – each Saturday, we answer questions and dive deeper into this week's topics in our weekly Study Hall.
You can always support our efforts by making a one-time contribution to our website, PayPal, or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). Or, subscribe monthly on Patreon. Thank you to all that have contributed so far!
Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Urge your senators to support the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, which will, if passed, decriminalize marijuana, expunge certain marijuana offenses from people’s records and “provide for reinvestment in certain persons adversely impacted by the War on Drugs.”
GET EDUCATED
By Renée Cherez
America’s 1970’s “war on drugs” introduced by Richard Nixon and continued by Ronald Regan in the eighties created deep and disproportionate outcomes for communities of color, and Black people bore and continue to bear the highest burden. In 2016, Dan Baum published an article in which he recalls a 1994 conversation with a former Nixon aide:
“The Nixon campaign in 1968, and the Nixon White House after that, had two enemies: the antiwar left and black people. You understand what I’m saying? We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or blacks, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news. Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course, we did.”
John Ehrlichman, counsel and Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs under President Richard Nixon, via Harpers.
This may have surprised some, but Black people across America knew for decades the war on drugs was racialized terror that targeted their communities. If asked to picture a drug dealer, it’s unsurprising if the first image that comes to mind is a young, Black man. This is wholly evident in majority-white cast movies and shows where marijuana use is depicted. It’s no accident because this is how the war on drugs campaign was designed. In an April COVID-19 press conference, Jerome Adams, the Surgeon General of the United States, suggested that the disproportionate rates of death among Black and Latinx communities were caused by higher rates of drugs, tobacco, and alcohol consumption. Not only did he fail to mention systemic racism as a cause for higher rates of death in Black and Brown communities, but he perpetuated the stereotype that Black and Brown people consume substances at higher rates (NYTimes).
The war on drugs was intended to criminalize and vilify Black people, making it possible to lock them away in prisons under a public safety guise. Because of this, Black people continue to undergo blatant discrimination at every level of the criminal justice system, including over-policed communities, more searches, more arrests, more convictions, longer sentences, extended probation periods, and are granted fewer appeals (Drug Policy Alliance).
Introduced in 1973, the Rockefeller Drug Laws in New York mandated draconian prison terms for possession or the sale of small amounts of drugs like marijuana, cocaine, and heroin for 15 years to life. (Drug Policy Alliance). The law was said to target “kingpins,” however, those overly convicted were Black, low-level, first time, non-violent offenders though white people smoked and sold crack more than Black people (NPR). Mandatory minimums for low-level offenses were set by Congress, making it impossible for judges to have their say in the event they disagreed.
These laws not only ushered in the mass incarceration system we see today but the usage of the criminal justice system for drug abuse versus public health systems like cost-free rehabilitation clinics.
In 2018, Black men were incarcerated at 5.8 times the rate of white men, and Black women were incarcerated at a rate of 1.8 times the rate of white women (U.S. Department of Justice). Black men’s prison sentences, on average, are 19.1% longer than white men who commit the same offense (USSC). Nearly 80% of people in federal prison and almost 60% of people in state prisons for drug offenses are Black or Latino. Furthermore, prosecutors are twice as likely to pursue a mandatory minimum sentence for Black people than white people charged with the same offense (Drug Policy Alliance).
Science shows that drug abuse is a disease and should be treated as a health problem rather than a moral failure (NIH). Unlike the crack epidemic of the eighties which involved poor Black people, the opioid and heroin epidemic that’s killed mostly young, white, middle-class Americans in recent years is told in a more compassionate and solution-based way. A research study analyzed 100 popular press articles from 2001-2011 found that the depictions of white, suburban heroin users to be sympathetic while the descriptions of Black and Latino heroin users were “urbanized” and criminalized (NIH).
As the 2020 American presidential election approaches, millions of disenfranchised Black and Brown people cannot vote due to the war on drugs and mass incarceration. Because of this, candidates running for office on any level should be advocates of the decriminalization of drugs, including marijuana. Black people who use marijuana are deemed thugs and low lives, while white people who use marijuana are considered progressive and cool.
Marijuana is legalized in eleven states and Washington D.C. and legal for medicinal use in thirty-three states (Business Insider). With the legalization of marijuana in states like Colorado and Washington, majority-white venture capitalists have invested and gained billions of dollars in profit growing and selling the very substance millions of Black and Brown people are imprisoned for. Many states in the cannabis industry have laws that prevent individuals with marijuana adjacent offenses who are disproportionately Black and Brown people (Forbes).
What does it say about a country that has more prisons than schools? What does it say about a country with more people imprisoned in cages than anywhere else in the world? Rates of drug use are as high as they were forty-nine years ago when Nixon dubbed drug abuse “public enemy number one.”
We cannot trust that mass incarceration and the enduring criminality of Black lives will just go away. We must advocate for the decriminalization of drug possession, which is the primary cause of incarceration among Black and Brown people. Treatment centers should be available for everyone, especially those without means. We must continue to educate ourselves about the root of issues – not only the issues themselves – to help guide our building of essential programs and resources in communities that need them the most.
RELATED ISSUES
President Richard Nixon and Ronald Regan ushered in the “war on drugs” in the ’70s and ’80s, which has led to the mass incarceration of Black and Brown people today.
In 2018, Black men were incarcerated 5.8 times the rate of white men, and Black women were incarcerated at a rate of 1.8 times the rate of white women.
The decriminalization and legalization of marijuana will help to end mass incarceration.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza
Support those incarcerated and impacted by COVID-19.
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Good morning!
Each Sunday we analyze the racial disparities of COVID-19 and how you can help. Today, Renée outlines the crisis happening in prisons and jails across America. As we continue to rally to transform our criminal justice system, we cannot forget about how so many are suffering right here, right now. Read more stories on criminal justice here.
Thank you for everyone that makes this newsletter possible. If you haven't already, consider giving one-time on our website, PayPal, or Venmo (@nicoleacardoza). Or, you can contribute monthly on our Patreon.
Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Stay informed with The Marshall Project as it collects data on COVID-19 infections in state and federal prisons. You can view the website here.
Do you know your local or state prison? Are they allowing incarcerated people to make phone calls free of cost? If not, send an email using this template and customize it to your local or state prison.
GET EDUCATED
By Renée Cherez
As COVID-19 began making its way across America in March, the country came to the standstill of the century. Universities and schools closed their doors, nursing homes, and hospitals suspended visitation, restaurants, retail stores, and movie theaters stopped all operations to prevent the spread of this invisible virus.
Public health and safety seemed to be the utmost priority but not for the incarcerated. America's carceral system is disgustingly unique: Holding only 4% of the world's population, the United States imprisons the highest rate (20%) of incarcerated people globally (Prison Policy Initiative).
Prisons and jails are like Petri dishes where bacteria and disease spread rapidly due to close living quarters, limited to no cleaning supplies, overcrowding, and the inability to socially distance. Not only is the COVID-19 death rate of incarcerated people higher than the overall national rate, but the incarcerated are also infected by coronavirus at 5.5 times higher than the overall national rate (JAMA Network).
So far, the country’s highest cluster can be found in California’s San Quentin State Prison, where over 2,600 incarcerated people and staff have been infected, and 26 incarcerated people have died (NYT).
“I am very concerned [...]. There’s no way to social distance. We all eat together. We have a communal bathroom. There’s no way to address a public health issue in an overcrowded facility.”
An incarcerated person at San Quentin State Prison for the NYTimes
In June, Texas began testing every incarcerated person to find that both the incarcerated and staff tested positive quadruples of the number of positive cases to 7,900, resulting in 25 deaths (Prison Policy Initiative). Even more shocking is 60% of the (785 men out of 1,400) incarcerated at Michigan Lakelands Correctional Facility tested positive for the virus (Detroit Metro Times).
Like the general public, at the start of the spread, testing for the virus in prisons and jails was limited. Prisons are now mass testing the incarcerated and staff regardless of their symptoms to help slow the spread of the virus (The Marshall Project).
With over 170,000 coronavirus cases affecting the incarcerated and staff across the country, prison activists are demanding the release of vulnerable populations like the elderly. After decades of extreme sentencing as a result of the “war on drugs” and the “tough on crime” era, a large portion of the incarcerated in state prisons are over fifty-five years old and are more likely to be in poor health (The Marshall Project).
Without access to quality medical care, coupled with the brutal conditions of prison, seniors suffer from chronic health conditions such as diabetes, asthma, and hypertension, all underlying conditions that exacerbate COVID-19 (NCBI).
Family members, lawyers, and advocates have placed calls to prisons to grant early-release to the elderly, and the infirm to prevent more deaths as well as decrease the population. Frustratingly, research shows that out of 668 jails being tracked, 71% of them saw an increase in population from May 1 to June 22, while 84 jails had more people locked away on July 22, then they did in March (Prison Policy Initiative).
There has also been a push for those in jail pre-trial, detained for parole or probation violations, or near the end of their sentences to be granted early release.
“For the most part, states are not even taking the simplest and least controversial steps, like refusing admissions for technical violations of probation and parole rules, and to release those that are already in confinement for those same technical violations. Similarly, other obvious places to start are releasing people nearing the end of their sentence, those who are in minimum-security facilities and on work-release, and those who are medically fragile or older” (Prison Policy Initiative Report).
By the end of August, California could see the early release of 8,000 incarcerated people to slow the spread of the virus (LA Times). The releases will occur for those 30 or older, not serving time for what can be deemed a violent crime under state law and are not involved with domestic violence.
During this crisis, we all share the desire to stay connected with our friends and family. Some prisons and jails have begun allowing visitors. Still, most have not, which can be challenging mentally for the incarcerated as they rely on those visits from family, friends, advocates, and lawyers to keep their morale high (The Marshall Project). Because prisons are also a for-profit business, some are charging for phone and video calls during a time where unemployment numbers are similar to or greater than the Great Depression (The Intercept).
When we think of vulnerable populations, we must be diligent in keeping the incarcerated in our minds because they are often forgotten. They are real people, with real stories and families, and their health and safety should be prioritized and valued. Society shouldn’t be judged on how they resolve what can be deemed a crime, but rather how they treat those who’ve committed said crime. Incarcerated people deserve our compassion and advocacy too.
Key Takeaways
Incarcerated people are infected by coronavirus at 5.5 times higher than the overall national rate.
Of the 668 jails tracked by the Prison Policy Initiative, 71% of them saw an increase in population from May 1 to June 22 rather than a decrease.
California’s San Quentin State Prison has the largest cluster of COVID-19 cases in America.
RELATED ISSUES
8/12/2020 | Demand justice for Elijah McClain.
7/26/2020 | Pay attention to the Portland protests.
7/20/2020 | Protect your community from the harm of gentrification.
7/6/2020 | Abolish qualified immunity.
7/2/2020 | Remove police from our public schools.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza
Support athletes in taking action.
Athletes have used the spotlight to demand change for decades. Join them when they rally for change.
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I think I owe you all an apology. HOW have I had this newsletter for 75 whole days and not written a single post about sports?! Perhaps it's because I'm often the worst player on any sports team. But the industry has had a long, deep history of challenging white supremacy – on and off the field – led by outspoken athletes throughout history.
Thankfully I'm not the only writer on the Anti-Racism Daily team anymore letting you down. We've got Renée at the plate teeing up a comprehensive look at how sports are amplifying the current movement. Our action is to get into the audience and be this movement's biggest fans – AND gear up and join athletes center court. There is no I in team. We can only win together.
Our new staff of contributors is made possible thanks to your generous contributions. I'm proud of the company that Anti-Racism Daily is becoming, and committed to continuing this work. If you can, pitch in by making a one-time or monthly contribution. You can give on our website, PayPal, Venmo (@nicoleacardoza) or subscribe monthly on Patreon.
Nicole
TAKE ACTION
Donate to Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Campaign, which works to advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization, and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders.
Have you ever watched the WNBA? If not, now’s the time! Give them the views and support they deserve. Amplify and engage in the issues they are advocating.
Do you have a favorite sports team or league? How are they incorporating diversity and inclusivity into their organization? Does its ownership and management reflect the rainbow of society and players?
GET EDUCATED
By Renée Cherez
Sports can be a great unifier in any society while also acting as a mirror. They bring strangers together from all walks of life for a common cause (a win for their team), while also sharing a universal message of teamwork and comradery. Contrary to popular belief, sports have also been deeply political, especially sports with Black athletes as the majority.
At the 1968 Olympic games in Mexico City, Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised the Black power fist in solidarity with oppressed people around the world, and as a result, their careers were ruined (History).
Muhammad Ali, arguably the best boxer of all time, was convicted of draft evasion, sentenced to five years in prison (this was later repealed), fined $10,000, and was banned from boxing for three years for refusing to join the American-Vietnam War in 1967 (History).
More recently, sharing in the spirit of those before him, Colin Kaepernick, a former quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, peacefully protested by taking a knee during the national anthem to raise awareness about police brutality against Black and brown people in America.
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way.”
Colin Kaepernick for The Undefeated
For the last four years, Kaepernick has been blacklisted by the NFL because of his unwavering commitment to social justice reform. After the murder of George Floyd, it seems the rose-colored lenses used by deliberate detractors of Kaepernick’s protest message have come off. It was never about the military or a flag; it was always about the deliberate state-sanctioned murders of Black and brown people in America.
At the start of the George Floyd protests in Minneapolis, Kaepernick started the Know Your Rights Defense Fund to raise money for legal assistance for arrested protesters (KYRDF). He continues to raise millions of dollars for various social justice causes that disproportionately affect Black and brown communities through his Know Your Rights Camp. Kaepernick has also donated $100,000 for COVID-19 relief providing nutritious foods, access to educational material, and shelter for the unhoused.
Critics have said sports are supposed to be an escape from the “real world,” a neutral space, but Black athletes understand all too well, that they are always Black. There are no “days off” or “neutral spaces” while existing in a Black body. There is no amount of money, fame, or championship wins that can stop racism from knocking on their door. This was evident in 2017 when Lebron James’s home was found vandalized with the N-word. (LA Times).
The racial breakdown of players versus management and ownership of professional sports leagues is staggering. The NFL (National Football League) is made of 70% Black players while the CEO/President roles, league office roles, and head coaching positions are filled by a majority of white men (TIDES). It’s common for retired athletes to take on jobs in broadcasting; however, NFL broadcasters are majority white though most players are Black.
Out of 251 NFL broadcasters in 2018, only 48 (or 19%) were Black (The Guardian). The NBA (National Basketball Association) consists of 74.2% of Black players, while white head coaches make up 70% of the league (TIDES). In terms of ownership, Michael Jordan is the only Black team owner and is one of four people of color who own an NBA team. Black and Latino presidents/CEOs make up a disturbing 7.3% owners, which is just four individuals in this role (TIDES).
After a four-month hiatus due to coronavirus, the NBA has resumed but not without critique by some of its most prominent athletes like Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. They and other players opposed a restart amid racial uprisings that deserve continued attention and demand the conversation continue throughout the season to amplify what is happening in the streets (COMPLEX).
A league of women who do not receive the recognition and respect they deserve is the WNBA (Women’s National Basketball Association). When it comes to activism, the WNBA women are not new to this; they are true to this (SLATE). They’ve been kneeling, wearing the T-shirts, and doing the work to keep their fanbase engaged with daily injustices and social issues, including gun violence (SB Nation).
Maya Moore, a player on the Minnesota Lynx has sacrificed her career (in her prime) to help a family friend earn his freedom after 23 years in prison (The Undefeated). To continue the necessary conversations being unearthed during this freedom movement, the WNBA has dedicated its 2020 season to social justice (WNBA).
The Social Justice Council, enacted this season, focuses on three pillars: educate, amplify, and mobilize working with activists, educators, fans, league staff, and players to create sustainable social change. In an 80% league of women of color and 67% Black women, the WNBA also highlights the women who are always forgotten: Black women (TIDES).
WNBA players are wearing #SayHerName shirts this season to amplify the Black women who are murdered by police, yet we never know their names. The WNBA is unique because they don’t have the fanbase (or income) of their NBA brethren, yet they use the power they do have in intentional and culture-shifting ways. A league of women of color, Black women, and white allies is changing what it means to wield power for radical justice, and this is a league that deserves our support.
It’s eerily ironic that Colin Kaepernick non-violently protested by taking a knee. It was a knee that forced the life out of George Floyd’s body that’s woken up white America to police brutality.
Now is the time to ask ourselves how we will move forward with holding sports organizations accountable, especially our favorites. It’s not enough that they post black squares and put out statements of solidarity. They benefit from our dollars and views. Like the WNBA, it’s time for radical transparency, inclusivity, and diversity in management and ownership to reflect the players and American society at large.
*This post was previously titled “Support athletes in taking a stand,” which promoted discriminatory, ableist language. We’ve changed the title of the web version to “Support athletes in taking action.”
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Sports have always been deeply political, especially sports with Black athletes as the majority.
Both the NBA and NFL consist of 70%+ Black players, yet management, ownership, and coaching roles are predominantly held by white men.
The WNBA enacted The Social Justice Council this season, which focuses on three pillars: educate, amplify, and mobilize working with activists, educators, fans, league staff, and players to create sustainable social justice changes.
RELATED ISSUES
7/10/2020 | Understand the role of cancel culture.
7/6/2020 | Abolish qualified immunity.
6/30/2020 | Boycott as a form of protest.
6/22/2020 | Talk about our right to protest.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
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Travel for diversity and inclusivity.
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It's Tuesday and we're going on a trip! Sort of. Guest writer Renée is guiding us through the lack of representation of Black people in the travel industry, and the danger it brings to both travelers and the industry as a whole.
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TAKE ACTION
Research the diversity and inclusivity efforts of the travel companies you spend money on (hotels, airlines, etc). How are they trying to be inclusive? How did they respond to the protests over the past few weeks?
If you identify as white...
Have you witnessed racism against a BIPOC while traveling? What did you do to stop it? How will you use your white privilege in the travel space to ensure the physical, emotional, and mental safety of BIPOC travelers?
If you identify as Black...
Join the Black Travel Alliance, a group of Black content creators from around the world using three pillars part of their mission: alliance, amplification, and accountability to create a world where Black people are supported and accurately portrayed in the travel industry. Brands who join will have access to a wide range of Black travel creators, including journalists, bloggers, photojournalists, and social media influencers.
GET EDUCATED
By Renée Cherez
When we think about travel, we imagine a worry-free time without interrupting the “real world.” Unfortunately, this level of unadulterated escapism does not ring true for Black travelers.
A quick Google search of the terms ‘traveler’ or ‘solo female traveler’ and pages of young white women against picturesque backdrops of the turquoise ocean with pink sand or famous landmarks like the Taj Mahal appears. Absent are the faces of Black travelers who are most certainly traveling to destinations both near and far. Over the last decade, with the help of social media, the Black travel movement (a movement that encourages Black people – particularly Black millennials – to travel both domestically and abroad to build community while also immersing in other cultures) has grown to unprecedented numbers.
The travel industry, one of the most profitable, fastest-growing industries globally, is worth $8.9 trillion (World Travel and Tourism Council). In 2018, Black travelers spent $63 billion on global tourism, an enormous leap from $48 billion in 2010 (Mandala Research). Additionally, in 2001, the United States Travel Association (USTA) identified African Americans as the fastest-growing segment in the travel industry. With these numbers, it’s clear that Black travelers are ready, willing, and able to spend their money on experiences in their chosen destinations, yet we are treated like we don’t belong.
Over the last few years, more and more Black travelers have been vocal about the anti-Black racism they’ve experienced while traveling in various parts of the world. Black professionals who often fly first-class are notoriously assumed to be in the “wrong line” when they’re on the priority line solely based on their skin color (LEVEL).
Black women have to research their destination and whether or not they will be safe from racialized and gender-based violence. White supremacy has made it so that the sexualization of Black women is worldwide, causing many Black women to experience unwanted advances abroad from men who assume they are prostitutes. Ugandan-American Jessica Nabongo, the first Black woman documented to travel the world, shares her experience with safety as a Black woman:
“...[women] of color are in more danger because a lot of people think we are prostitutes… My fear is always that if something happens to me in a European city, no one will care. I could be running down the street screaming in Italy, and onlookers won’t care because I’m Black. I think this is true no matter where in the world we are.”
Jessica Nabongo, world traveler, for the New York Times
For years, Airbnb branded itself as a way for travelers to stay at or with locals in new places; however, said locals have discriminated against Black travelers on several occasions (Fast Company). Whether it was kicking them out without reason or not responding to their inquiries on their accommodations availability (Fortune).
Also worth noting, 15% of Black travelers stated racial profiling played a role in their destination travel decisions (Mandala Research).
In the travel industry, Black people have played a supporting role in the tourism space. In contrast, white travelers have been the lead actors, not only as travelers but also in leadership positions at marketing agencies and press trips, travel media outlets, and tourism boards. Black people, wherever they are in the world, have been painted as the “gracious host,” “the safari guide,” and “the individuals who need ‘saving’ from white volunteers” but are rarely represented as “the adventurers in far-off lands.”
This lack of representation plays a significant role in the anti-Black racism Black travelers face on the road. For example, if locals from a country have limited real-world experience with Black people, they can only rely on what they’ve seen in the media. This misconception is likely to affect Black travelers negatively. A solution to this is simple: real diversity and inclusive initiatives rooted in anti-racism with a commitment to amplifying Black travelers.
Racism in the travel industry stretches beyond the average Black traveler but impacts the entire industry. Black travel agents make up a mere 6% of agents, while white travel agents make up 72% of the space (Data USA). Luxury travel is primarily represented by white travelers, erasing the Black travelers, journalists, and creators who create luxury travel content. In the PR industry, white professionals make up 87.9% of the space, while Black professionals make up 8.3%, Latinos 5.7%, and Asians a measly 2.7% (Harvard Business Review). With the absence of diverse voices, the stories, reporting, and content created from these trips lack the nuance that Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) can provide.
Tourism boards must create marketing campaigns that reflect the diversity of the world, not the status quo. Black faces and bodies of all kinds should be represented and celebrated in advertisements, not just light-skinned, slim, able-bodied, cis-gendered people. Diverse advertising in the travel industry has a two-fold result: it allows Black travelers to feel welcome while showing locals that we too travel and deserve respect. Recent research shows travelers who identify as ethnic minorities (64%) and LGBTQ+ (67%) say the companies they book their travels with must be committed to inclusion and diversity practices (Accenture).
Like most industries, the travel industry is undergoing a reckoning with its lack of diversity and is being called to do more than post black squares on social media. Black travelers and industry professionals demand real representation in the industry from the highest levels in leadership to the entry-level positions. Anti-racist policies must be adopted in the travel industry on a global scale to ensure Black travelers and Black locals are treated with the utmost care and respect post-COVID-19.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
In 2018, Black travelers spent $63 billion on global tourism and are currently the fastest-growing segment in the travel industry.
Over the last few years, more and more Black travelers have been vocal about the anti-Black racism they’ve experienced while traveling in various parts of the world. It’s not uncommon that Black women are presumed to be prostitutes solely because of skin color.
Black travelers and industry professionals demand real representation in the industry from the highest levels in leadership to the bottom.
RELATED ISSUES
7/9/2020 | Acknowledge the harm of microaggressions.
7/3/2020 | Share these words by Frederick Douglass.
6/15/2020 | Diversify your media consumption.
PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
Thank you for all your financial contributions! If you haven't already, consider making a monthly donation to this work. These funds will help me operationalize this work for greatest impact.
Subscribe on Patreon | Give one-time on PayPal | Venmo @nicoleacardoza