View as WebpageSeptember 2023 Newsletter

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Refusing to Forget is a Form of Protest

What the March on Washington means six decades later

Sixty years ago, on the day before the March of Washington for Jobs and Freedom, W.E.B DuBois died.

He was 95 and had moved to Ghana several years earlier to create an African diaspora encyclopedia. Upon his death, Maya Angelou led a march to the U.S. embassy in Accra. One placard read “America, a White Man's Heaven and a Black Man's Hell."

That simple angry slogan captured the disparity between Black and White lives in America which civil rights leaders of the March on Washington hoped to make visible on August 28, 1963.

The 'hell' Angelou was referring to, was the dire economic conditions to which so many of the 250,000 African Americans, who had come to the Lincoln Memorial, were facing.

King’s dream that day included decent housing, quality education, and full employment. But that economic dream for Black America has been quietly lost in our remembrances of one of the 20^th century’s largest protests.

There is a significant price we pay for this forgetting.

America has chosen to remember King’s most famous line from that hot summer day, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

We have chosen to forget his description of Black economic life. “One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.”

We have forgotten that The March on Washington marked 100 years since the Emancipation Proclamation had freed some slaves.

We have forgotten DuBois’s death and that Roy Wilkens said to the throng gathered on the Mall, “If you want to read something that applies to 1963 go back and get a volume of The Souls of Black Folk by DuBois, published in 1903."

According to Pew Research Center, six out of ten White adults believe today that there has been a great deal or a fair amount of progress on racial equality in the last 60 years. Only 30 percent of Black adults feel this way.

This is one of the costs of forgetting. The inability of those who remember and those who forget to have a shared vision. Instead, we don’t know what is happening with the other, especially the most marginalized. And we don’t want to know.

Throughout the ages, Black leadership, including DuBois and Martin Luther King, Jr., have been embroiled by the question of how to advocate for change in the midst of two Americas with vastly different outlooks.

 “Over a seventy-year career, Du Bois took every conceivable approach to the race problem. He was a provocative propagandist and measured scholar. He was for integration and then for separation. He believed in the American dream and disdained it. He believed in the power of politics and the ambiguity of culture. He brawled and he stood aloof. He embraced indigenous liberation and global communism,” Wilkens said.

After the March on Washington, after receiving his Nobel Peace Prize the following year, King too took a different approach and began to pursue a socioeconomic agenda. He linked the escalation of the Vietnam War to the deteriorating conditions of the poor in the United States.

At his most controversial speech at Riverside Church in New York, exactly one year before he was assassinated, King thundered. "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death."



As we celebrate the 60^th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, we shouldn’t forget that by 1968, the audience that had praised King had turned against him. His approval rating plummeted. Black civil rights leaders disagreed with his tactics. The media denounced his anti-war stance. President Lyndon Baines Johnson, who had fought for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, stopped taking his calls.

Even the ancients knew the power of remembering our triumphs and our struggles.

“Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy son's sons ….” it reads in Deuteronomy.

Remembering is a tribute to those who fought battles we no longer have to fight. Remembering is inspiration for those whose courage we admire. Remembering teaches the values of persistence and resilience that are needed to make change.

Most importantly, remembrance reminds us that in every generation there has been powerful political forces who seek to control memory by imposing superficial narratives devoid of content to facilitate forgetting.

Seven out of ten respondents told Pew Research Center that “they approve of marches and demonstrations that don’t disrupt everyday life are always or often acceptable ways to protest racial inequality.”

They have forgotten that social justice will always demand creative disruption of today’s status quo. It will always demand that we trouble the waters. 

Chad Dion Lassiter, MSW

Executive Director

Please join us Friday, September 15 for an evening event featuring Rev. Dr. Bernice King. It’s happening from 6:00-7:30 p.m. at Lebanon Valley College’s Miller Chapel, 101 N. College Avenue, Annville, PA. Dr. King is the CEO of the King Center, a minster, attorney, and daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King. There will be a Q&A included.

RSVP today! Registration will close Friday, September 8.

PHRC’s Journey to Become Trauma-Informed

By: Ronnessa Edwards

Supervisor, Philadelphia Regional Office

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC) will soon begin the journey towards becoming a trauma-informed agency. Trauma is an emotional and mental response to an overwhelming event. Reactions to trauma can be physical, such as: muscle tension, heart palpitations, chest pains, chills, and dizziness, as well as mental, to include: anxiety, depression, anger, and irritability. Becoming a trauma-informed agency means educating staff and integrating knowledge about trauma into policies, procedures, and practices.

On July 31, 2019, former Governor Tom Wolf announced an executive order to overhaul state services and systems to protect the most vulnerable Pennsylvanians. One of the key directives from Governor Wolf was to establish Pennsylvania as a trauma informed state to better respond to the needs of people who have had adverse childhood or other serious, traumatic experiences. A trauma-informed state requires that all Pennsylvania state agencies transform their policies and internal systems to recognize, understand, and address the effects of trauma on the lives of individuals, to include agency staff as well as civilians, families, and communities as a whole.  

Establishing trauma-informed policies will empower staff to avoid re-traumatization of the citizens we serve. Staff will be educated to recognize that behaviors and outcomes which are perceived as negative, may be merely symptoms of underlying and unhealed trauma. Thus, staff will be trained to deliver services with the responsiveness and understanding of the impact of trauma experienced by Pennsylvania citizens.

A trauma-informed agency also acknowledges the trauma that staff themselves experience, either as part of their own personal lives or as a result of working with clients who share firsthand details about their trauma.

Under the leadership of Executive Director Chad Dion Lassiter, and his appointed senior leadership staff, PHRC will begin the journey of becoming a trauma-informed agency by initially surveying staff to identify existing knowledge of trauma principles, interventions, and resiliency resources. Next will be agencywide training and staff development activities. Simultaneously, existing policies and practices will be evaluated and revised to incorporate trauma-informed approaches. Lastly, each office’s physical layout will be evaluated, and changes will be made to provide a trauma-informed workspace.

The journey to becoming a trauma-informed agency is not linear, nor is it static. It will require a willingness to learn and act accordingly from all personnel, including commissioners, senior leadership, team leaders, investigators, and support staff. “For a program, organization, or system to be trauma-informed, it is not enough to provide trauma-specific interventions. An organization or agency must incorporate trauma-informed principles in its culture, policies, procedures, and practices” (SAMSHA, 2023).

This journey will teach us to recognize that in order to fully realize our mission and provide the essential service we deliver, we must also improve the physical, social, and emotional health and wellness of all Pennsylvanians by acknowledging the impact of trauma and providing services that promote healing.

References:

Jurman, D. (July 2020). Trauma-Informed PA: A Plan to Make Pennsylvania a Trauma-Informed, Healing-Centered State. https://www.resilientpa.org

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). 2023. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: Practical Guide for Implementing a Trauma-Informed Approach. SAMHSA Publication No. PEP23-06-05-005. Rockville, MD: National Mental Health and Substance Use Policy Laboratory.

New School Year: Have Grace

By: Khera Bowman, Outreach Coordinator, Education Division

After two months of soaking up the summer sun, it is time to return to the classroom. Students embark on what they hope will be an exciting school year. Students either love school, dislike it, or learn to accept it. Some people may wonder why one student has such a positive experience compared to the next. Is it the school district, the students and teachers, their home life, or access to resources that make these students experiences unparalleled?

Looking back at my childhood, I was always excited to return to school. I was the student that stayed up all night completing assignments and reviewing my work more times than I needed. As I graduated high school and college and moved on to work in the education field, I realized my school experience wasn’t like many students in the district I worked in. The school district I attended was well-equipped with materials I needed for the year, but this isn’t the same story for the district I worked in. Resources were limited and there weren’t nearly enough supplies for all the students in the classroom. School supplies, backpacks, and pencils were often donated to students during back-to-school night, which many families relied heavily upon. Only then did I realize students were faced with barriers from a young age in an environment they have little to no control.

“Funding disparities for city students are a nationwide issue: Public school pupils enrolled in urban districts receive on average around $2,100 less per pupil that their suburban counterparts, and $4,000 less than students who attend rural remote schools, according to a recent study by EdBuild.”- Bloomberg (2019).

Urban communities on average consist of low income, ethnically diverse families. They are then tasked with getting their children supplies that a classroom should already have. In suburban schools, iPads and laptops were given to students to take home at a young age. I received my first device to take home around 2010. The Covid-19 pandemic pushed urban schools to switch to 1:1, technology to student ratio. It was crucial that learning be conducted online. Reflecting to my question earlier: what makes students experiences so different in school? The lack of resources effect students’ ability to learn and grow within their district and affects them in the long run. The barrier is present when students in urban communities must compete with suburban students who have been well-equipped with the resources and technology from early grade levels.

Students in urban districts carry additional needs to school on top of economic and social discrimination challenges. They also come to school with incredible strengths and school is where their strengths should thrive without additional barriers. One may never know what a student is facing outside of the classroom. One should have grace as they navigate not only school barriers but environmental factors with one priority: learning.

Upcoming Education Division Event

On September 23, 2023, members of the Philadelphia Bar* are welcome to attend "When Hairy Styles Become Hairy Situations: Everything you need to know about hair discrimination in Pennsylvania." The event is happening from 10:30-12 during the Philadelphia Bench-Bar Conference at the Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City. This panel discussion was put together by the Philadelphia Bar Association Committees on Women's Rights, Women in the Profession, and Diversity in Profession in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission. To register, click here.

*Open to members of the Philadelphia Bar only!

The Future is Here

By Robert Taylor (and ChatGPT)

I’m sure by now you all have heard stories regarding Chatbots such as ChatGPT and Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how they will forever change the world. I am also sure that some of you are quite skeptical about the potential benefits of AI in the work that you do here with the PHRC. Afterall, Chatbots can’t just do the work for you and AI isn’t going to help with everything, right? I mean AI can’t be used in litigating civil rights cases, right? Not so fast...

“Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing an increasingly vital role in the litigation of civil rights cases, offering new tools and insights to lawyers and activists fighting for equality and justice. AI technology is being harnessed to address complex legal challenges and advance the cause of civil rights in innovative ways.

One significant application of AI is in analyzing extensive datasets. Civil rights cases often involve a plethora of evidence, ranging from historical records to contemporary data. AI algorithms can efficiently process and analyze this information, identifying patterns of discrimination, bias, or systemic inequality that might be otherwise difficult to detect. These insights can provide a strong foundation for legal arguments and strategies.

Furthermore, AI-powered predictive analytics has the potential to revolutionize civil rights litigation. By analyzing past case outcomes and legal precedents, AI can help lawyers assess the viability of potential claims, predict the potential success of certain legal strategies, and estimate the potential impact of different courses of action. This empowers legal teams to make informed decisions and optimize their efforts to achieve the best possible results for their clients and the broader cause of civil rights.

While AI offers exciting opportunities, its use in civil rights litigation also raises ethical considerations. Ensuring that AI algorithms are unbiased and transparent is crucial to maintaining the integrity of legal proceedings. Additionally, legal professionals must strike a balance between utilizing AI tools and preserving the essential human element of empathy and understanding that is often central to civil rights advocacy.

In conclusion, the integration of AI in litigating civil rights cases marks a significant advancement in the pursuit of justice. By enhancing data analysis, predictive capabilities, and legal strategy development, AI is becoming an indispensable asset in the fight against discrimination and inequality. As technology continues to evolve, it is imperative that legal practitioners wield AI with care and responsibility to uphold the principles of fairness and equal rights in the pursuit of civil justice.”

Well...look at that, I guess I was all wrong about the use of AI in litigating civil rights cases. And as for the Chatbots...not too shabby. Good job ChatGPT.



The quoted portion of this article was generated by ChatGPT (chat.openai.com).  

Upcoming PHRC Events

Join PHRC for 'Once I was You: A Memoir of Love & Hate in a Torn America' on Tuesday, September 19 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. This virtual Hispanic Heritage Month event features Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Maria Hinojosa. The presentation will be in English but there will be Spanish captioning available.

Register today by clicking here.

Interested in being more involved in protecting civil rights in your community? Join the Lancaster County Advisory Council to the PHRC for an informational session on September 7 at 7 p.m. on Zoom.

Click here to register to attend.

Interested in being more involved in protecting civil rights in your community? Join the Beaver-Ohio River Valley Advisory Council to the PHRC for an informational session on September 19 at 7 p.m. on Zoom.

Click here to register to attend.

PHRC on the Road: Building Pennsylvania's Beloved Community

Join PHRC Executive Director Chad Dion Lassiter

in Cumberland County on Monday, September 18 from 5:30-7 p.m. at YWCA Carlisle, 301 G Street, Carlisle.



Click here to register.

Join PHRC Executive Director Chad Dion Lassiter in Centre County on Thursday, September 21 from 5:30-7 p.m. at Penn State Law, Room 114, Lewis Katz Building, University Park.

Click here to register.

Save the Date! PHRC is hosting a free Sexual Harassment Symposium to address the critical issue of sexual harassment. It's happening Thursday, November 2 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Philadelphia Center City, 237 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107.

Registration will open soon.

Outside PHRC Events

On Friday, September 15, the Childrens' Advocacy Center of Pennsylvania will host their annual SHINE Walk to raise awareness about the problem of child sexual abuse, let survivors know they're not alone, and promote the work of CACs.

This is a free event. To register, click here.

DETAILS:

• Walkers will gather at City Island near the Walnut St. bridge.
• Check-in starts at 10:15
• The walk will begin at 11:00 and proceed across the bridge, along Riverfront Park, and down State St. to the State Capitol for photos on the steps.
• The walk is about one mile.

If you are not able to walk and prefer to meet us at the Capitol, plan to be there by 11:30 to welcome walkers.

Once Upon A Preemie, Inc. is holding its second annual Black Maternal Health and Neonatal Equity Conference: Parents, Practitioners, Policies, and Solutions November 16 & 17.

Day 1: A Party for a Cause, an evening of cocktails, dancing, networking, and a silent auction. It's happening 6-9 p.m. at the University Science Center, Quorum, 3675 Market Street, Suite 400, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

Tickets are $75.

Day 2: Black Maternal Health and Neonatal Equity conference. The conference will empower healthcare professionals and parent advocates to eliminate health disparities and center voices, lived experiences, and solutions from black birthing and preemie families. The conference is from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the University Science Center, Quorum, 3675 Market Street, Suite 400, Philadelphia, PA. 19104.

Click here for more information.

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