Talking About Racism

Nationwide protests in the wake of the killings of George Floyd and other Black people have brought renewed attention to longstanding issues of racism and social justice. Talking about race can be difficult, but with curiosity, knowledge, and empathy, it’s possible to come together as a community to listen, learn, and work for change.

Community members are invited to join in the conversation through a series of presentations followed by question and answer sessions held via Zoom on Thursdays from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. beginning October 1. is required to receive Zoom information.

Series Presentations:

Session One: OCTOBER 1•DEFINING AND IDENTIFYING RACISM
• Arthur Breese, Director of Diversity, Geisinger
• Teresa Grettano, PhD, Associate Professor of English/Theatre, The �Ӱ�ԭ��
• Moderator: Cathy Ann Hardaway, President, Greater Scranton MLK Commission

Session Two: OCTOBER 8 •UNDERSTANDING WHITE PRIVILEGE AND ALLYSHIP
• Leon John, PhD, Director of Alumni Engagement, East Stroudsburg �Ӱ�ԭ��
• Jessica Nolan, PhD, Professor of Psychology, The �Ӱ�ԭ��
• Moderator: Ida Castro, JD, MLK Commission, GCSOM

Session Three: OCTOBER 15•DISCUSSING BLACK LIVES MATTER
• Glynis Johns, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Black Scranton Project
• Yerodin Lucas, PhD, Interim Director Office of Equity & Inclusion and Title IX Coordinator,
Marywood �Ӱ�ԭ��
• Moderator: Lia Richards Palmiter, PhD, MLK Commission, Marywood �Ӱ�ԭ��

To continue the learning journey, below please find the additional information on these sessions including a recording of the opening panel presentation from each session along with the pdf of the presentation and references with additional readings and materials listed.

As we each consider on our own relationships, behaviors, and attitutes to become a source of change in our commuity, please consider the following Reflection Questions as ways of futher engaging in your own process of growth and work to create a more fair and equitable community for all.

Talking About Racism - Post Series Reflection Questions

For more information or if you have questions, please email community@scranton.edu

This series is a project of the Greater Scranton Martin Luther King Commission in collaboration with: Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, Johnson College, Lackawanna College, Marywood �Ӱ�ԭ��, Penn State Scranton, and The �Ӱ�ԭ��

Session 1 Information

Session One Speaker Bios

Arthur Breese is the Director of Diversity & Inclusion and Director of Title IX at Geisinger Health Care System.He. was the past Director of Diversity and Campus Mediation at East Stroudsburg �Ӱ�ԭ��. A native of the Wyoming Valley, Arthur holds a bachelor degree in psychology from Temple �Ӱ�ԭ��, a master’s degreein organizational management and master’s degree in education from Misericordia �Ӱ�ԭ��.His academic work centers on social work and psychology. He was trained in diversity through the Anti-Defamation League.Arthur is certified as a Train the Trainer for Unconscious Bias with CookRoss consulting.Currently he is the co-chair of the Luzerne County Diversity Commission, the President of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Diversity Education Consortiumand a member of the local chapter of the N.A.A.C.P. In 2012 he was the recipient of the NAACP Diversity Leadership Award and was recently awarded the 2020 Pennsylvania LGBTQ+ Leadership Award.

Teresa Grettano, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of English & Theatre at The �Ӱ�ԭ��,where she teaches courses in rhetoric and writing and directs the First-Year Writing Program. Teresa also directs the Ellacuría Initiative, a group that supports justice-related programming and faculty/staff development,as well as co-leads the Dialogue Across Difference group that works to facilitate dialogue across campus about difficult and polarizing issues.

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Session One References:

Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present by Harriet A. Washington
Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds
Caste: The Origins of our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

Definition of Racism Updated:
Systematic Racism Explained

Session 2 Information

Leon John, Jr., Ph.D. was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., to the son of immigrant parents from the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
His professional experience is exclusive to higher education, where he has worked in various departments that include enrollment management, student affairs, alumni engagement, academic affairs, and university advancement. His published dissertation: Self-Efficacy among Students of Color at Predominantly White Institutions of Higher Education in Northeastern Pennsylvania contains insight to the issues that the ever increasing population of students of color face at colleges/universities in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He is currently the Director of Alumni Engagement at East Stroudsburg �Ӱ�ԭ��, and an adjunct instructor at Penn State �Ӱ�ԭ��-Scranton.

Jessica M. Nolan, Ph.D. is Professor of Psychology at the �Ӱ�ԭ��. She received her B.S. in natural resources from Cornell �Ӱ�ԭ��, her M.A. from California State �Ӱ�ԭ��, San Marcos, and her Ph.D. in experimental psychology from the �Ӱ�ԭ�� of Arkansas. Her research focuses on how to use psychological tools and principles
to understand and solve social problems, including research on how people react to feedback about their implicit biases.
She is a native New Yorker who currently resides in Scranton with her husband, 2 kids, 2 dogs and 3 pet rats.

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Session Two References:

Readings

White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack, Peggy McIntosh
Interrupting the Cycle of Oppression: The Role of Allies as Agents of Change, Andrea Ayvazian
So you Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
White Fragility: Why Is It So Hard for White People To Talk About Racism?, Robin D’Angelo, Ph.D.
Collins, C. (2018). What is White Privilege Really?
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning, Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds

Videos

C-SPAN2 (2019). (Video Bettina Love)
John Amaechi(2020) What is White Privilege? https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=295794844861055
Cracking the Codes: Joy DeGruy, A Trip to the Grocery Store

Links

Scaffolded Anti-Racist Resources "This is a working document for scaffolding anti-racism resources. The goal is to facilitate growth for white folks to become allies, and eventually accomplices for anti-racist work." Provides suggestions based on a person's stage of white identity development."

Session 3 Information

Glynis Johns is the founder of Black Scranton Project, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, local heritage initiative, and public history venture dedicated to archiving and celebrating African American history of Scranton and NEPA. Glynis is also a first-year doctoral student studying 19^th and 20^th century African American history at Rutgers �Ӱ�ԭ��. A native Scrantonian, local historian, sociologist, artist, documentarian, and advocate; Glynis spends a lot of time researching Scranton in attempt to piece together narratives of the black community. She is proud to shift local perspectives on culture, inclusion, representation, and history. For Glynis, passions and projects are indistinguishable from each other. She received her BA and MA in sociology at St. John’s �Ӱ�ԭ��. Highlighted in the March 2020 issue of Happenings Magazine as one of the most “Influential Women in NEPA,” and NEPA Business Journal’s Top 20 under 40 Young Business Professionals 2019 honoree.

Yerodin Lucas, Ph.D. is the Director of Institutional Equity and Inclusion and Title IX Coordinator at Marywood �Ӱ�ԭ�� located in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Arcadia �Ӱ�ԭ�� with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relations. He went on to complete his Master’s degree in Education, and he earned his Ph.D. in Administration and Leadership from Marywood �Ӱ�ԭ�� in 2019. His published dissertation titled: Factors Affecting African American Male Students at Predominantly White Institutions: A Case Study in Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA) highlights the support structures necessary for first-year Black male student persistence. As a Philadelphia native, Yerodin enjoys good food and city life. He moved to Scranton, PA four years ago to complete his doctoral studies. Yerodin has traveled and worked abroad in Asia, Canada, and Europe. He enjoys spending quality time with family and friends.

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Session Three References:

Movies/TV Shows:

Dear White People (Select Episodes) – TV Show
Sorry to Bother You – Movie

Videos:

Mellody Hobson TEDTalk “Color Blind or Color Brave”
White People, Enough: A Look at Power and Control | Jaelyn Coates | TEDxCSU
Race: The power of an Illusion. DVD produced by California Newsreel

Website:

Readings – Books:

Hillbilly Elegy - J.D. Vance
First They Killed My Father - Loung Ung
Citizen 13660 - Mine Okubo
The Things They Carried - Tim O’Brian
The Measure of a Man - Sidney Poitier
My Side of the Bars - Cleo Dunnit
In the Garden of Beasts - Erik Larson
Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe
The Bluest Eye - Toni Morrison
The Other Wes Moore - Wes Moore
The Fire Next Time - James Baldwin
I Am Not Your Negro - James Baldwin
White Rage - Carol Anderson
Whistling Vivaldi - Claude Steele
Raising White Kids: Bringing up Children in a Racially Unjust America - Jennifer Harvey
Decolonizing Academia - Clelia Rodriguez
White Fragility: Why It’s so Hard for White People to Talk about Racism - Robin DiAngelo, PhD
Black Feminist Statement, Combahee River Collective- - republished by Keeanga Yamahtta Taylor with introduction concerning a re-definition of “identity politics”
Choosing the Margin as a Space of Radical Openness - bell hooks
Freedom is a Constant Struggle - Angela Davis
Whistling Vivaldi - Claude Steele
Why are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? - Beverly Daniel Tatum
This Book is Anti-Racist:20 Lessons on How to Wake up, Take Action and Do The Work - Tiffany Jewell
White Washing Race: The Myth of a Colorblind Society - Brown, M et al. 2003 U of California
White Awake - Daniel Hill

Short Stories & Essays:

Essays by Audre Lorde ()

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