Blog

2020 Racial Truth & Reconciliation Week Archives

Racial Truth and Reconciliation
State Advocacy
Trauma

Our Mission

To empower the voices and experiences of marginalized communities in acknowledgement of truth to promote healing, reconciliation, and justice.

Our Goals

To educate Virginians on the impact of cultural, historical, and racial trauma.
To encourage allies to participate in advocacy and activism to deconstruct systems of oppression.
To promote equity, inclusion, and justice to combat systematic racism and oppression.
To tell the truths and the stories of Black Indigenous Communities of Color, including the retelling of history and the experiences of communities of color.
To promote diversity and inclusion of communities of color, the LGBTQ+ community, individuals on the IDD spectrum, individuals with different abilities, and other oppressed communities.

State Administration Support

Governor of Virginia recognized the first annual Racial Truth & Reconciliation Week

Dr. Janice Underwood, Ph.D, Commonwealth of Virginia’s Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer OP-ED, Seeds of Hope Become Trees of Change

Local Trauma-Informed Community Network Founders

The Caroline County of Virginia Trauma-Informed Community Network
The Hampton Roads Trauma-Informed Community Network
The Southside Trauma-Informed Community Network
The Winchester Area Trauma-Informed Community Network
The Virginia Peninsula Trauma-Informed Community Network

Huge thanks to the State Trauma-Informed Community Network for your ally support!

Best Practices and Rules

A special thanks to The Truth Telling Project for these guidelines!

Social Media Center

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YouTube Playlist

Did you miss an event? View our YouTube Channel and our Facebook Page

Our Programs

Advocacy & Activism

Voices focuses our analysis and advocacy on developing and championing policies and practices that positively impact the health and well-being of Virginia’s children and families. Our approach is data-driven and evidence-based, and targets issues that cross multiple domains and tend to have the greatest impact on child and family success. We cover several core policy topics, and also work broadly to address the multi-faceted and severe effects of child poverty: early childhood education, family economic security, foster care and adoption, health and wellness, mental health, trauma-informed care and resilience. View our work.

Art & Activism

Join us for Racial Truth & Reconciliation Week! In addressing and promoting justice for oppressed communities, we recognize art as a form of resilience but also a form of social justice. In honor of Racial Truth & Reconciliation Week, we encouraged artists and advocates to submit pieces that address cultural, historical, and racial trauma in addition to pieces that highlight cultural resilience, truth, reconciliation, and justice. Please take a moment to view their truths and share their work.

View the virtual showcase here!

Community Chats

Community chats are conversations that educate and engage the community in different topics, such as food insecurity, Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, the impact of racism on mental health, racism in the foster care system, and how do we as a community move past the end of the week to practice intentionality in combatting systemic racism and oppression.

Our Ancestors’ Wildest Dreams

This series is intended to serve as an intergenerational tribute and conversation. Youth participated in a Q&A with the Legislative Black Caucus to learn about their experiences and triumphs in overcoming the plight of oppression. Members had the opportunities to also learn about the experiences of youth and their hopes for the future. We also launched elder chats, a series intended to empower communities intergenerationally by discussing intergenerational tribulations & triumphs. The goal is to acknowledge the work of the previous generation and to discuss the growth of the younger generation.

Elder Chat 1
Elder Chat 2
Q&A with the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus

Give Us The Mic

Politicians and partner organizations will give advocates of color that have been impacted by their platforms or missions the mic. The advocate will have the opportunity to tell their truths, empower their experiences, tell their stories, and raise awareness to promote justice. Advocates with lived experience should inform the solutions and outcomes they wish to see in their communities as they are impacted by them. We hope that, through this series, organizations and community leaders can be thoughtful and intentional about the way in which they do their work and mindful of who informs the solutions and practices they propose.

Politician & Advocate

Delegate Betsy Carr & Bianca Myrick, Pretty Purposed

Bianca Myrick is the founder and president of Pretty Purposed, an organization with a mission to empower young girls through activities that foster physical, social, and emotional development and mentorship. Through this series, she shares her dream list and personal experiences with Delegate Betsy Carr.

Delegate Wendy Gooditis & Councilwoman Tina Stevens

Councilwoman Stevens is the CEO of I’M JUST ME MOVEMENT and the founder of the Winchester Area Trauma-Informed Community Network. Some people feel like they don’t have an equal shot in life, those who have experienced trauma but also communities that are underrepresented. Stevens believes that being a TICN leader and on Council represents that it is possible to achieve the opportunities to positively impact our community

Delegate Rodney Willett & Egette Indelele

Egette Indelele was born and raised in a refugee camp in Tanzania. She is the oldest of five children and a first-generation honor college student at George Mason University. She is studying psychology with a concentration in cognitive and behavior neuroscience with the hope of opening her own practice in Burundi, emphasizing the importance of mental health while serving children with the hope of healing their traumatic life events. Egette Indelele is the CEO of Safe Haven.

Partner & Advocate

Family Lifeline & Kenda Sutton-El

Kenda Sutton-El works for Birth and Color and serves as a birth justice and maternal health advocate. A graduate of Old Dominion University, and New River Community College, Kenda is also a Holistic Nutritionist, student midwife, Certified Lactation Counselor, reproductive justice and maternal health advocate, Birthworker, and Master Herbalist.

Greater Richmond Scan & Egette Indelele

Partner organizations give advocates of color that have been impacted by their platforms or missions the mic. Egette Indelele was born and raised in a refugee camp in Tanzania. She is the oldest of five children and a first-generation honor college student at George Mason University. She is studying psychology with a concentration in cognitive and behavior neuroscience with the hope of opening her own practice in Burundi, emphasizing the importance of mental health while serving children with the hope of healing their traumatic life events. Egette Indelele is the CEO of Safe Haven.

Voices for Virginia’s Children & Sophia Booker

Sophia Booker Discusses Diversity & Inclusion

Sophia Booker Discusses Microaggressions

Partner organizations give advocates of color that have been impacted by their platforms or missions the mic. Sophia Booker works at United Methodist Family Services and is a Social Work student at VCU. Sophia has advocated on behalf of several policy initiatives to improve the lives of children, including Fostering Futures. Sophia is defying the odds with her success. Her goal is to give back. She wants all youth aging out of foster care at eighteen to have those same opportunities and supports.

Children’s Book Readings

The Racial Truth & Reconciliation children’s book reading series presents an opportunity to engage children and youth in topics that highlight the importance of diversity and inclusion. The children’s books are also written by authors of color. Children’s book readings provide an opportunities for parents to connect with children on topics that highlight multiculturalism, diversity, and inclusion.

Our Ancestors’ Wildest Dreams
The Purple Grasshopper

Resilience-Based Restoration

Refuel with mindful-based meditation, restorative yoga, faith-based resilience, and more. The restoration presents an opportunity to embed resilience-based practices in order to rejuvenate your mind and body after doing this tough social justice work!

Resources & Definitions

Resources and definitions can be used to bridge an ongoing path of learning individually or in professional and community-based settings. Take a look at our resources and definitions page to get started! Thanks Greater Richmond SCAN for putting this together.

View the page.

Blogs & Stories

Blogs highlight educational topics ranging from the pandemic as a trauma, racism as a public health crisis, and more. Stories are either creative or a particular story connected to policy. Throughout the year, we will put out a call for submissions around stories, especially as we prepare for advocacy season and finalize policy agendas that may need supporting stories to personalize the items and display a need.