Anti-bias and anti-racism resources for teachers

This page is meant to offer an accessible, non-overwhelming list. It’s a starting place rather than a comprehensive, all-encompassing collection. Feel free to use the comments below to suggest resources that have been helpful for you!

Books

These books are a great place to begin when you are ready to unpack your own biases and explore how systems of racism and patriarchy operate. “Troublemakers” is the only book here focused specifically on a school context, but I consider all to be essential reads. I’ve linked to GoodReads below, and encourage you to purchase from independent and Black-owned bookstores if possible:

• We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom by Bettina Love (If you just read one book, make it this one!!!)
• Troublemakers by Carla Shalaby (discussion guide here)
• How to Be Anti-Racist and Stamped From the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
• So You Want to Talk About Race… by Ijeoma Oluo (good for folks brand new to the convo)
• Caste: Origins of Our Discontent by Isabel Wilkerson (this one was mind-blowing for me!)
• Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women’s Anger by Soraya Chemaly
• White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide by Carol D. Anderson
• The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

• This Book Is Anti-Racist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do The Work by Tiffany Jewell (targeted to young people, helpful to all)

• The Inner Work of Racial Justice  by Rhonda Magee

Podcasts

Here are some podcasts which regularly discuss topics that educators interested in anti-bias work maybe be interested in:

• Teaching Hard History
• Teaching While White
• The Black Scholars Podcast
• The Leading Equity Podcast

Episodes of Truth for Teachers

You can see all my podcast episodes on equity topics here. A few specific episodes you may want to check out:

• Using inquiry to help kids develop critical consciousness (with Jess Lifshitz)
• Some things a teacher shouldn’t be “neutral” about…
• We Got This: Cornelius Minor on teachers as agents of change
• Why are most teachers white women, and how can we attract/support diverse faculty? (with Travis Bristol)
• How your response to behavior can disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline
• 10 things every white teacher should know when talking about race

Free Curriculum Resources

These materials are designed to be used with students, and provide additional perspectives and viewpoints than what is likely covered in your textbooks:

• Teaching Tolerance
• Zinn Education Project
• Black Lives Matter at School

Educators to Follow on Twitter

Here are a handful of educators I enjoy following who regularly tweet resources, reflections, and threads on equity work. Please consider these are humans, not “resources,” and enter their space with an intention to listen and learn:

• @edifiedlistener
• @TeachMrReed
• @JoeTruss
• @cleartheairedu
• @ValBrown
• @alexsvenet
• @ericabuddington
• @jennbinis
• @christienold
• @misterminor
• @pgorski
• @triciaebarvia

Educators to Follow on Instagram

Here are just a few educators I enjoy following who regularly post about equity topics. Please consider these are humans, not “resources.” Do not ask people of color to educate you, or use their space to process your feelings. Listen and learn quietly:

• @lovetanesha
• @aproneducation
• @dr.rosalesmeza
• @teachandtransform
• @britthawthorne
• @paul_emerich
• @thebehaviorbunch
• @readlikearockstar
• @literacyforbigkids
• @jillianstarrteaching
• @mrsrussellsroom
• @sarahplumitallo
• @ohgorgeous1/
• @teachhustleinspire
• @chrisemdin
• @blackgirlsteach
• @ilovebooksandicannotlie
• @teachfortheculture
• @teachmrreed
• @estherbrunat
• @valencia_valencia

Educators to Follow on Facebook

These are a few super helpful pages I follow on Facebook. Please consider these are humans, not “resources” and enter their space with an intention to listen and learn:

• The Anti-Racism Project
• Britt Hawthorne
• Embrace Race
• Ijumaa Jordan
• Teaching While White
• The Educators Room
• Raising Race-Conscious Children
• Teach Resistance

4 steps you can take right away to commit to anti-racism

1. Start with self-examination and begin the lifelong habit of rooting out your own biases.  Don’t wait for someone to hold your hand through the journey: take the initiative to do some self-reflection on your own using existing resources (such as books and articles.) Understanding and working through your own limitations and prejudices is the MOST important thing you can do, and will better equip you to begin doing the actual work of fighting for racial justice.
2. Make racial justice a normal part of your conversations. Be cognizant of inequity and white supremacy, and speak up when you see it. Don’t be afraid to call out micro-aggressions and lend an additional perspective in conversations that leave out issues of equity.  This is difficult to do with close friends and family, but your opinion means the most in those arenas, so it’s imperative to speak up.
3. Look for activists who are BIPOC (Black, indigenous, and people of color), and follow their pages on social media so you can hear their perspective on a regular basis about a variety of issues. This is a particularly important step if you feel like you are in a bubble and all your Facebook friends talk about the same things from the same perspective. Diversify your feed, read, listen, learn. You can use the recommendations on this page to start.
4. Amplify the voices of those already doing this work and support them financially. Resist the urge to center yourself and rushing to “do” something when you’re still in the beginning stages of becoming conscious about racial justice. Instead,  look for people who are further along and find ways to support them by sharing/talking about their work within your sphere of influence, and donating to the cause. Give money directly to organizations run by people of color so they can continue the work.