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UPCOMING EVENTS:
May 9, 2023: Never forget. Never again.
"Never forget. Never again." The Chinese oppression of Uyghur Muslims has been declared a human rights violation by the US Holocaust Museum, the United Nations, and hundreds of independent organizations. It has been called a modern-day Holocaust, its horrors condemned in the news. But the Uyghurs are already familiar with their own persecution, and it did not cease when the media's attention did. It is our responsibility to show that the world has not forgotten and that genocide will not be allowed to happen again. The Hopkins Academy Diversity Club has worked on its part in remembering and helping others in the community gain a deeper understanding of the systematic cultural and physical genocide by China is part of that goal. This project has been completed with the help of Pema Zidig (senior), Marlee Higgins (alum), Sara Wright (senior), Lucy Howard (senior), Emerson Thorpe (freshman), Sarim Chaudry (freshman), Ada Bouthet (alum), Alma Gorman (junior), Palber Zidig (8th grade), Gabby Dyjach (alum), Amy Lanham (club advisor), Aisha Sheikh (alum), Anna Dyjach (junior), and Rocky Bouthet (freshman). Join Hopkins Diversity Club students on May 9th, from 7 to 8:30, for a live online presentation and subsequent Q&A on the human rights abuses in Xinjiang.
Date: May 9, 2023
Time: 7 - 8:30 pm
Location: Zoom. RSVP for link.
Announcing, the
June 15, 2023: 3rd Annual Hadley World’s Fair,
this time in celebration of Juneteenth!
***Featuring a special celebration for Juneteenth and including a sampling of catered authentic soul food; fried chicken, collard greens, mac & cheese and more by Crystal Jac.***
Time: 5 - 7:30pm
Location: Senior Center
Join us for international foods, music, fun and games.
Review the menu here and RSVP today!
PAST EVENTS:
April 13, 2023: Suspect Citizens
This February, we held space for the community to discuss the recent happenings in Memphis and the killing of Tyre Nichols during a police traffic stop. At that time, the community was encouraged to learn that a nationally-recognized researcher of police stops is at UMASS Amherst and lives in Hadley! We’re delighted that Dr. Kelsey Shoub has accepted our invitation to join us to share more about her research, as well as its implications for local policies and practices. Please take in the resources below and join us for the in-person gathering. RSVP today.
1) Read Suspect Citizens: What 20 Million Traffic Stops Tell Us About Policing and Race*. Many thanks to the Freinds of Hadley Library to make several copies of the book available.
2) Read the Medium post, Ten Years of Study and the Protesters are Right.
3) Read the LA Times Op-Ed, Why traffic stops can be deadly for people of color.
Date: Thursday, April 13
Time: 7-8:30 pm EST
(*) Contact the Hadley Library for a copy of the book
February 2, 2023: Killing of Tyre Nichols
This month we are holding space for the community to discuss the recent happenings in Memphis and the killing of Tyre Nichols during a police traffic stop. Please take in the resources below and RSVP to receive the zoom link.
1) Today’s NYT The Daily podcast, The Death of Tyre Nichols:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/30/podcasts/the-daily/tyre-nichols-death-memphis.html
2) This article from the Urban Institute about alternatives to police doing traffic stops:
https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/police-traffic-stops-have-little-do-public-safety
3) A new model for police traffic stop-related searches in 2014 in North Carolina:
Date: Thursday, February 2
Time: 7-8:30pm EST
January 5, 2023: Who We Are
Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America is a documentary feature film on Netflix, featuring Former ACLU Deputy Legal Director Jeffery Robinson, one of the best educators in America. A Marquette University and Harvard Law School grad, Robinson has been a trial lawyer for over 40 years. Join us for a discussion on the film on January 5, 2023. RSVP today.
December
Happy Holidays!
November 3: Housing for Hadley
Join us for a conversation about Housing for Hadley. Special guest speakers include Rosa Tobin of the Massachusetts Fair Housing Center and Alexis Breiteneicher of the Valley CDC.
Date: Thursday, November 3
Time: 7-8:30pm EST
Location: Zoom
Resources to read/listen to beforehand:
1. Hadley Housing Production Plan (Recording from Monday, October 17th at 6:30 PM) https://youtu.be/XVSyM_1D-Kc
2. Hadley's master plan (2005) and the update (2017)
https://www.hadleyma.org/planning-board/pages/master-plan
3. https://www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/2022/06/23/mbta-zoning-law-affordable-housing-massachusetts-andy-x-vargas-kevin-honan-rachel-heller
4. https://www.tbf.org/news-and-insights/reports/2022/June/racial-representation-in-housing-report-20220615
5. https://www.wbur.org/news/2022/06/15/city-zoning-boards-white-male-homeowners-massachusetts
6. https://www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/2018/07/23/affordable-housing-boston-rachel-heller-marc-draisen
7. Why Housing Is So Expensive — Particularly in Blue States. Episode: https://www.podcastrepublic.net/episode/62950362126 . Media: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/chrt.fm/track/8DB4DB/pdst.fm/e/nyt.simplecastaudio.com/3026b665-46df-4d18-98e9-d1ce16bbb1df/episodes/51c895a5-5e12-4142-be86-69b4206000a5/audio/128/default.mp3?aid=rss_feed&awCollectionId=3026b665-46df-4d18-98e9-d1ce16bbb1df&awEpisodeId=51c895a5-5e12-4142-be86-69b4206000a5&feed=82FI35Px . <p>America is experiencing a housing crisis — or, more accurately, multiple housing crises. A massiv...
--longer housing story
8. LLCs buying up housing in Massachusetts, and how it harms communities
https://www.wgbh.org/news/local-news/2022/05/16/across-massachusetts-shrouded-corporations-are-scooping-up-single-family-homes
9. An article in The Gazette came out recently about a UMass housing report that found our region to be severely lacking in affordable housing, an issue that is perpetuating segregation.
10. You can read the full report here. And you can find the first report (from last year) here.
September 23: Hadley Worlds Fair
September 1: Book Reading (Zoom)
Thursday, September 1st, 7-8:30pm. Read, skim or find the cliff notes and come ready to discuss one of the following:
1. The Sum of Us, by Heather McGee (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53231851-the-sum-of-us?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=TnFJLg3m5O&rank=1); and
2. His Name Is George Floyd: One Man's Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice, by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58890953-his-name-is-george-floyd).
August 4, 2022: (Zoom): 2 Choices of Books
Thursday, August 7-8:30pm. Read, skim or find the cliff notes and come ready to discuss one of the following:
1. The Sum of Us, by Heather McGee (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53231851-the-sum-of-us?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=TnFJLg3m5O&rank=1); and
2. His Name Is George Floyd: One Man's Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice, by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58890953-his-name-is-george-floyd).
July (Hybrid): Frederick Douglass' Independence Day
Join us for ice cream sandwiches or patch in by zoom. Read Frederick Douglass' famous speech here: https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/speeches-african-american-history/1852-frederick-douglass-what-slave-fourth-july/.
June (In Person): Pride Pizza Party
Join us for Pizza and bring a side. If you can, listen to this excellent podcast about the racist history of pride marches and how some communities are working to get it right: https://www.npr.org/podcasts/1100084924/march-on-the-fight-for-pride.
June: Holding Space, Buffalo to Uvalde
Just as when our community first came together two years ago, during the wake of George Floyd’s murder and an incident of blackface amongst our school children, we are holding space for anyone who wishes to share what’s on their mind. This session will, again, be conducted in a fishbowl format which means those who wish to speak voluntarily share, and those who wish to listen deeply do just that.
May: A Conversation with Lillian Coleman
We're delighted to present the May Hadley Learns event, featuring a fireside chat, in real life, with long-time African American Hadley resident, Lillian Coleman. Operating an artisanal card-making business, Cards by Coleman, Lillian is a proud great-grandmother. Snacks and light refreshments will be provided.
April Is Climate Action Month
Book discussion on Saving Us by Katharine Hayhoe, a climate scientist, superstar communicator, outspoken Christian, and extraordinary voice on climate change. Hadley library has many copies to lend. And here are some links to other media on the topic:
A podcast about the book. https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/162-saving-us-by-katharine-hayhoe-book-club-with-emily/id1370686322?i=1000546492496
Katharine Hayhoe TED Talkhttps://youtu.be/-BvcToPZCLI
Katharine Hayhoe Interviewhttps://youtu.be/NzYXq5oQDUk
"Christians and climate change"https://youtu.be/UOJuHpeWoPE
March: A Conversation with Marla Miller
Marla Miller, distinguished professor of history at UMass Amherst will join the Hadley Learns community for a conversation about her work uncovering the history of Hadley, MA. The former director of the Public History Program in the Department of History at UMass Amherst is the author of the book Entangled Lives: Labor, Livelihood, and Landscapes of Change in Rural Massachusetts. As part of her research, she uncovered so many interesting stories of women and people of color who inhabited the land before us. Come ready for discussion!
Before joining us, you can…
1. Watch the talk she gave at the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum last summer (details about the topics discussed are here);
2. Read historical documents found in Hadley. Look at the website for the Documenting Black Lives project. Under "Stories" you’ll find a short essay Dr. Miller wrote on Hadley's Joshua Boston. If anyone really wants to dig in, you can download the project database and sort to find all the Hadley entries.
3. Read her book (the Goodwin is setting seven books aside for us; just ask for one at the front desk).
RSVP to receive the zoom link and calendar invite.
February: A Discussion on Reparations
As a follow-up to our Housing Discrimination topic which we explored last Spring, in February we will focus on Reparations. Specifically, will be discussing the Town of Amherst’s progress in advancing this effort, which is now at the stage of forming a Statewide Commission. Watch the 4th Statewide Convening on Reparations below and RSVP to receive a Hadley Learns research document which outlines progress on the reparations conversation in America.
January: Climate Justice
This January we will focus on Climate Justice and will be discussing All We Can Save and the associated project and podcast (your choice about which medium you prefer).
Book: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/53231994-all-we-can-save
Podcast: How to Save a Planet
Project: https://www.allwecansave.earth/
Interviews:
2021 Fall 3-Part Series: Indigenous Matters
Indigenous Matters: The History of Our Region, Indigenous People's Day and Present-Day
Brought to you by Hadley Learns; Hadley Public Library; Hadley Public Schools; Hadley Committee on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; and Hadley Senior Center.
November: Indigenous Matters: Present-Day
Pick one of two books for a zoom discussion on November 4, 7-8:30pm:
I Will: How Four American Indians Put Their Lives on the Line and Changed History, Sheron Wyant-Leonard
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, Robin Wall Kimmerer
October: Indigenous Matters: Indigenous People's Day
Join us on zoom on October 7th, 7-8:30pm for a discussion of the following resources:
Articles:
Indian Country Today: The Wampanoag Side of the First Thanksgiving Story
Harvard Crimson: The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe's Crisis Within a Crisis
Podcasts:
NDN Collective: Indigenous Peoples' Day and The Rise of Indigenous Voices (20:13)
Scene On Radio: S1 E3: The (High School) Mascot Wars (24:50)
Italian American Podcast: Conversations on Columbus (7-part series)
Video, Audio, and Other Resources:
US Citizen Podcast: Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples Day
September: Indigenous Matters: The History of Our Region
Join us on September 20th at 7-8:30pm for a zoom discussion with the Peabody award-winning filmmaker Ted Timreck for his documentary, The Great Falls: Hidden Landscapes Series: Great Falls (trailer). We have purchase access to the full-length film for Hadley community members through the month of September. RSVP to receive the vimeo link. Here’s a recording of the riveting conversation Hadley residents had with the filmmaker, Ted Timreck.
August: Hadley World’s Fair (Learn more)
FOOD + MUSIC + DIVERSE PEOPLE
= A GREAT TIME
Students … Let’s celebrate the great reopening by bringing back the World’s Fair!
Parents … Let’s show off Hadley’s multi-cultural, inter-generational community!
Residents of Hadley … Have you been longing to get out of the house and meet new community members? This is the place for you!
JULY: Part 2: Justice and Community Safety: Looking Forward
Pre-reading: Read both of the following...
1. Police Foundation perspectives on reform: publication Outside the Academy: Learning Community Policing through Community Engagement (PDF), and
2. Alternate methods of safety: book Defund Fear.
June: Part 1: Justice and Community Safety: History - Present
Pre-reading: Choose three of the four...
1. NPR's Policing in America,
2. Podcast Serial Season 3,
3. Netflix movie 13th, and
4. NYT podcasts: May 11, June 2, June 3, June 9, June 29, Sept. 9, and Sept. 10.
MAY: Discussion of equity in local housing policy in three working groups:
Next steps for fair housing in Hadley. This discussion group applied the learnings to local practices, drawing from Dr. Sargent and Meris Bergquist's presentations delivered in April (recording), as well as the themes covered in Color of Law, by Richard Rothstein, (interview with Ta-Nehisi Coates), the podcast Priced Out, and modern-day exclusionary practices of the Real Estate industry (Newsday investigative report).
Reparations. For those interested in starting a dialogue about reparations, this group will discuss examples of what other communities across the nation have done and what those within the Hadley Learns community would like to further explore.
Renters! Let’s connect. Hadley is home to many renters, but the price of civic engagement often feels limited to home-ownership. Participants will discuss their shared experiences, needs, and strategies for civic engagement. Affordable housing and first-time homeownership might be themes that participants choose to bring up. If you know renters in Hadley, please forward this notice.
April: The history of housing discrimination in the US and local housing policy (Recording)
Book, Audio, Video, and Notes (4 resources to choose from for ‘pre-reading’). This session was designed to allow participants to learn from two experts in the region, Professor Brian Sargent, UMASS AMHERST and Meris Bergquist, MASS FAIR HOUSING CENTER, and engage in further discussion at the May program. The Color of Law, Richard Rothstein, was the primary resource recommended for preparation. Participants were given four alternative forms to digest the concepts: reading the book, listening to the audiobook, watching a video recording an interview of the author conducted by Ta-Nehisi Coates, and/or reading the ‘cliff notes’.
MARCH: Exclusion/Inclusion: How microaggressions prevent a culture of belonging
Video (4 resources to choose from for ‘pre-reading’) followed by an update on action in the community: You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey Crazy Stories About Racism, Amber Ruffin & Lacey Lamar; 'Ask Me': What LGBTQ Students Want Their Professors to Know, Chronicle of Higher Education; Microaggressions in the Classroom, Focused.Arts.Media.Education; Why Microaggressions Aren't So Micro, Whitney Grinnage-Cassidy.
FEBRUARY: Ways to address inequity in the K12 education system
Video (3 thought-leaders to choose from for ‘pre-reading’): Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain, Zaretta Hammond; Despite Best Intentions: How Racial Inequity Thrives in Well-Meaning Schools, John Diamond; For White Folks Who Teach In The Hood, and the Rest of Y’All Too, Christopher Emdins.
JANUARY: Crash course in the history of racism in the U.S.
Video and audio resources (4 resources to choose for ‘pre-reading’), followed by an update on action in the community: NYT Podcast 1619; Netflix Documentary 13th; Peabody award-winning podcast Scene On, Season 2; Documentary The Long Shadow.
NOVEMBER:
Book and video discussion (3 resources to choose from for ‘pre-reading’), followed by an update on action in the community: White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo; How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram Kendi; Despite the Best Intentions: How Racial Inequality Thrives in Good Schools by Amanda Lewis and John Diamond.
OCTOBER:
Book and video discussion (3 resources to choose from for ‘pre-reading’), followed by team meetings discussing action: White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo; Despite the Best Intentions: How Racial Inequality Thrives in Good Schools by Amanda Lewis and John Diamond; My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem.
AUGUST:
Book discussion (2 resources to choose from for pre-reading), followed by team meetings discussing action: White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo; How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram Kendi.
JULY:
Book discussion (1 resource for pre-reading): White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo.
A Conversation About Race
JUNE:
A Conversation About Race