“We've had a few cases of racial comments here in one of our groups during the first week of camp. As we discuss consequences and action steps, we want to include education. Wondering if you had any suggestions (videos, articles, projects, etc) to use with campers, or maybe another approach to consider? Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!”

“An unusually sensitive work about the racial barriers that still divide us in so many areas of life.” — Jonathan Kozol

It’s been two years since Chanika and I co-facilitated our first webinar together. It was the start of a global pandemic. The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and too many others during 2020 had also forced the country to reconcile with the injustices that plague our systems. As educators, we set out to give folks a space to talk about how racism affects all of us.

The goal of our equity work with camp professionals this summer has been to encourage the creation of spaces and places where commonalities and differences are respected, celebrated, affirmed, and deeply valued.

from “Discussing Identity, Equity, and Authenticity at Camp” Camping Magazine. September/October 2022 issue

"History isn't something you look back at and say it was inevitable, it happens because people make decisions that are sometimes very impulsive and of the moment, but those moments are cumulative realities."- Marsha P. Johnson

“I was a radical, a revolutionist. I am still a revolutionist…I am glad I was in the Stonewall riot. I remember when someone threw a Molotov cocktail, I thought, “My god, the revolution is here. The revolution is finally here!”- Sylvia Rivera

“It has taken 232 years for a Black woman to be selected to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States,” Jackson said. “But we’ve made it. We’ve made it, all of us.”

Chanika and I love to talk, and one of the things we value is that people tell us “how comfortable” we make conversations about race.