Thank you for participating in the 21 Day Racial Equity & Social Justice Challenge!
This is a significant action every individual can take to make a difference for our
campus and community. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the widespread disparities
experienced by Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities, including ongoing
systemic violence in the forms of racism and settler-colonialism. As these issues
affect our students and our communities, it is vital that we all stand in solidarity
with those who are directly affected by inequities and fight for justice. We think the Challenge is one of the most powerful interventions an organization can
do to build community and create an inclusive culture. While we modeled this program
on those done in other areas, this one is unique to our campus and community, highlighting
local issues to help us all better understand how we can take meaningful action. Our theme for the 2022 challenge is, “Centering the Voices on the Margins.” This challenge
will serve as an opportunity to reflect and engage in dialogues about the systemic
racism that exists towards Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities. The
activities will help us explore how racial injustice and social injustice impact our
communities, to connect with one another, and to identify ways to dismantle racism
and other forms of discrimination. The Challenge can lead to transformative results, including:
Building new, positive habits that can change ourselves, our teams, our organizations,
and our communities.
Taking small actions alongside one another to create momentum and a sense of teamwork.
Creating a profound, elevating experience to increase the likelihood that participants
will continue to actively work for racial equity and social justice.
Developing skills to create a positive sense of inclusion and belonging within our
communities and beyond.
We look forward to you joining us in this commitment towards racial equity and social
justice. Systemic change starts with each of us individually, and together we learn
and grow. Although this is primarily a racial equity Challenge, we know that systems of oppression
are linked, and there are many other forms of prejudice and discrimination that affect
our communities. These include, but are not limited to, discrimination against people
of color, Indigenous peoples, women, immigrants, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+
community, working class and low-income communities, as well as people from different
religious groups.
All of these are detrimental to our communities and have profound impacts on communities
of color. In the Challenge, you will see many of these issues addressed, in addition
to the core focus on racism and racial equity. Disclaimer: Cuesta College and partners are not responsible for content created by
outside parties including external links and PDFs. The organizers have made as much
effort as possible to provide accessible links and resources. All advertisements related
to any video, website, or article are not endorsed by the organizers. Acknowledgments: We want to thank YWCA of Greater Cleveland and Dayton for their materials
and resources as well as Dr. Eddie Moore and Debby Irving who first started the 21
Day Racial Equity Challenge, as well as the Cuesta College 21 Day Challenge Committee
who made this year’s event possible.