The Critical Social Justice: Baltimore 365 keynote “Baltimore in Action: Always Rising” featured a panel of social justice activists and leaders discussing a few of the many issues currently impacting Baltimore City.

• Rev. Dr. Heber Brown, III, faith-based activist and community organizer
• Dr. Marisela B. Gomez, public health advocate and author
• Tawanda Jones, activist and sister of Tyrone West
• Jacqueline Robarge, founder of Power Inside
• Kwame Rose, social activist and hip-hop artist
• Moderated by radio host Marc Steiner

A blog reflection written by Women’s Center intern Julia Gottlieb. 

After reading the Baltimore City Paper’s recent daily Power Rankings, I got to thinking a lot about white women and women of color’s status in the arts. Three weeks ago, UMBC’s Theatre department held their annual New Playwrights Festival, featuring student playwrights.

I attended one night of the Festival, and got to see Elizabeth Ung’s play, a story that on the surface is about a sister and brother surviving in a post-apocalyptic world, but underneath it poses deeper questions of morality and emotional survival. Ung, who is a student of color here at UMBC, explains that she was inspired to write plays after taking a play-writing class through the theater department last semester, saying “[Playwriting] was something that I felt like I always wanted to do, to tell stories. It’s something that I want to do to get my voice out there.” Additionally, her characters are inspired by her everyday experiences and interactions with those around her: “I definitely get a lot from my own experiences, because that’s really the only reliable resource that I can definitely count on. You know, the littlest conversations can inspire dialogue and conflict within the plot.” This is especially important given the severe lack of representation of women of color and their experiences within theater and the arts as a whole.

Here is a helpful infograph to visually show the state of women’s representation in the arts. Even here an intersectional view on this issue is missing, and women of color’s experiences are not represented.

We know that white women have significantly less representation than men in play-writing and in theater overall. Meanwhile, women of color’s voices and experiences are even more underrepresented. Along with this disparity, there is a lack of comprehensive studies that specifically track the numbers of women of color playwrights and directors within theater in both specific cities and across the country. One study finds that of the plays being produced in Washington DC this season, “80% of playwrights are white, 7% are African American, 6% are Latino, 2% are Asian American and 2% are multi-ethnic.” This study gives a sense of the vast disparities that already exist within DC’s theatrical productions. The study’s lack of attention to intersectionality is illustrative of the fundamental problem of representation–the voices of white men and white women have more representation than the voices of women of color. And as long as women of color’s voices are not represented, a vast number of important experiences and viewpoints go ignored and invalidated.

In his piece, Unpacking ‘Diversity’ in Musical Theatre, Michael R. Jackson explains that rather than focusing on fulfilling a diversity quota, theater’s ultimate goal should be “to hold the mirror up to humanity and reflect it back (or distort it) in order to share, person-to-person, what it means to exist in joy and suffering in the world.” Representation matters to me because it affects what stories are being told and who gets to have a place in the world. I want the mirror to reflect an honest view of humanity and its diverse voices.

For example, as someone who identifies as fat (or plus-size if you prefer), the character Rae from the British TV show My Mad Fat Diary was very important to me because I had never seen a larger girl as the main character of a TV show. Seeing someone who looks like me on TV–having the mirror held up to reflect my life and my experiences was so affirming for me and I want everyone to be able to have that experience.

Representation is how we find characters to relate to, take comfort in, and hold up the mirror to and for ourselves. The arts are at a crucial time to make that a reality for more women of color and other underrepresented people. 

For the third year of the Critical Social Justice initiative, we chose the theme Baltimore 365 to learn about how we can cultivate deep and lasting commitments to Baltimore City that are meaningful to us as individuals and as part of the UMBC community. Take a look back at some of highlights from throughout the week and catch up on anything you missed with the linked videos for the events!

Dr. Jodi Kelber-Kaye helped us kick-off CSJ with “Baltimore 101: Why Baltimore Matters,” providing historical answers that explain why things in Baltimore are the way they are.

Later that night, Delegate Mary Washington gave an insightful presentation on LGBTQ Youth Homelessness, and how Baltimore itself is specifically affected.

Before the Keynote event on Tuesday, Dr. Marisela Gomez visited UMBC for a talk-back with the Honors College about approaches in activism.

 One of the issues Dr. Gomez and the Honors College students discussed was the termination of the SUCCESS Program here at UMBC. If you want to learn more about this issue, check out this article recently published by the Retriever and use Dr. Gomez’s words of wisdom to do some activism.

Tuesday night was our keynote event, a teach-in panel called “Baltimore in Action: Always Rising.” It was moderated by Marc Steiner and was broadcast on the Marc Steiner Show on November 2nd. Watch the video!

Thursday, we were joined by Karen Houppert, author and editor-in-chief of Baltimore City Paper, and independent journalist James MacArthur (@BaltoSpectator) who spoke to their experiences of reporting in independent and alternative media outlets in a discussion on Main Street during our Vines, Rhymes, and Headlines exhibit. (Video)

Women’s Center staff members created exhibits centered on the Baltimore Uprising and media portrayal and displayed them on Main Street during the discussion.

Later on that night, The Mosaic Center hosted an Interfaith Dialogue featuring religious and spiritual leaders engaged in social justice activism in Baltimore.

On the last day of #CSJ365, UMBC parents eager to bring a dialogue about social justice home to their kids participated in a roundtable discussion called How To Talk To Kids About -Isms.

 We rounded out the week with Dr. Kate and a very special walking tour of Baltimore City.

CSJ was action-packed and full of important information about Baltimore City and social justice. Check out our Storify, Livestream, and What You Need To Know tag to learn even more. Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook too!

The CSJ Team with Keynote Speakers

“I’m pretty much just a corpse at this point.”

I cannot fully express how many times I’ve said those words in the past few weeks, or how many times the response has been:

“Same.”

Every time someone says “How’s it goin?” the collective response has been:

“Terrible. Everything is awful. Midterms suck. This is the worst.” (Or at least something to that effect.)

It seems like as a student body we’ve officially gone past the “I’m fine. Just tired.” lie and have moved into complete honesty. A large percentage of us are stressed out, malnourished, sleep deprived, and drowning in homework.

But never fear! Shia LaBeouf is here!

With midterms season coming to a close we’re bringing you the Women’s Center Motivational Roundup to help get you back into the swing of things between now and finals. Here is a collection of pictures, videos, and memes that motivate us for a variety of reasons. These might not motivate you as much as they motivate us, but it’s worth a try.

-MJ Jalloh-Jamboria

“He makes me feel like I can do absolutely anything. I’m never more motivated to push through a project than I am after watching this video.”

-Kayla Smith

Parks and Rec gifset!

-Megan Tagle Adams

“They make me feel warm and fuzzy inside and remind me that I am a round, fuzzy ball of cute and I can TOTALLY DO THIS.” – Dan Willey

“Growing up, I didn’t have many role models, other than my mother. I would find myself constantly comparing myself to the girls in my classes. I always wanted to be as smart, as pretty, etc. as some other girl. Needless to say, this ruined my self-confidence and resulted in me being very unhappy because all of my actions were based on being as ________ as someone else. I was too wrapped up in impressing others and failed to acknowledge my own negative perception of myself. While scrolling through Tumblr one day, I came across this quote and it has resonated with me ever since. Not only did it incorporate my love of flowers, but it made me realize that comparing myself to others was pointless and a recipe for unhappiness. I am capable of experiencing growth and doing great things, regardless of anyone else.” – Meage Clements 

“Biblical motivation (if you’re into that kind of thing) This is my favorite piece of scripture and it immediately calms me down.” – Kayla Smith

“I was afraid to go back to school. I thought that if I tired again and had similar results to last time, it would just prove that I was not smart, or capable. I had to get over my fear and here I am! Almost finished!!!” – Carrie Cleveland

“It calms me down and reminds me that I’m okay where I am and I don’t need to freak out. It helps me breathe and stay calm so I can get more work done.” Julia Gottlieb

“Oh Leslie. She just looks like she’s really goin at it – and it looks like something I would do and totally have done!” – Jess Myers

“I have been in school for 10 years and I need to remember that I am SO close to the end and SO far away from the beginning.” – Carrie Cleveland

If you’re looking for some more tangible ways to deal with stress UMBC is definitely a good place to find resources. The Counseling Center on campus located across from Erickson Hall has individual counseling and workshops on stress management. They also have The Mind Spa which offers aroma therapy, biofeedback video games, and light therapy, among other services.

As always, self-care should be high on your list of priorities and the Women’s Center can serve as a place to kick back and relax or just take a break from the library. We also have a meditation room and a quiet study space outside of the lounge.

Take care of yourself this semester. We know it’s hard right now, but just do your best.

As a wise man once said:

“Sometimes in life you’re gonna start slow. That’s okay.” – Apollos Hester

But a wiser woman also said:

“If you think taking care of yourself is selfish, change your mind. If you don’t, you’re simply ducking your responsibilities.” – Ann Richards

by Lisa M. Gray, Assistant Director of Student Life, Cultural and Spiritual Diversity

Get ready for Critical Social Justice: Baltimore 365 with our “What You Need to Know” series. 

As we begin Critical Social Justice: Baltimore 365, Pope Francis’ timely recent visit to the U.S. – specifically his remarks to Congress, helps us explore the ways that religion, faith and spirituality can inform what we do in the public sphere, not just in our private lives.  Like so many religious figures and leaders have shown us – Mother Teresa, Saint Francis of Assisi, Mahatma Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Martin Luther King, Jr., Amma Mata Amritanandamayi, and Rev. Dr. Heber Brown, III to name just a few – religious faith, spirituality, belief systems and social justice activism are often interconnected.  For example, here are some of the social justice topics and calls to action shared by the Pope in his Congressional Address: 

Anti-Violence, Anti-Hatred and Dangers of Polarization

“But there is another temptation which we must especially guard against: the simplistic reductionism which sees only good or evil; or, if you will, the righteous and sinners. The contemporary world, with its open wounds which affect so many of our brothers and sisters, demands that we confront every form of polarization which would divide it into these two camps…”

“To imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place. That is something which you, as a people, reject…Our response must instead be one of hope and healing, of peace and justice.”

Defense of Liberty, Human Rights and Justice

“A nation can be considered great when it defends liberty as Lincoln did, when it fosters a culture which enables people to dream of full rights for all their brothers and sisters as Martin Luther King sought to do, when it strives for justice and the cause of the oppressed as Dorothy Day did by her tireless work, the fruit of a faith which becomes dialogue and sows peace in the contemplative style of Thomas Merton.”

Sustainability and Environmental Activism

“I call for a courageous and responsible effort to ‘redirect our steps’, and to avert the most serious effects of the environmental deterioration caused by human activity. I am convinced that we can make a difference…”

See the full transcript of Pope Francis’ remarks to Congress on Sept. 24, 2015 here.

All of this and more will be explored further in our Oct. 22^nd Critical Social Justice event, From Belief to Action: An Interfaith Dialogue.  This moderated roundtable discussion features religious and spiritual leaders engaged in social justice activism in Baltimore followed by a facilitated audience conversation. Read on to learn more about our invited panelists:

Cara Behneman, Director of UMBC Hillel and Chair of the UMBC Religious Council 

Cara Behneman, originally from southern Maryland, has lived in Baltimore for the past 7 years while working with UMBC Hillel.  She is passionate about bringing together different faith communities and has spearheaded interfaith dialogues here on campus.

Rev. Dr. Brad Braxton, Senior Pastor, The Open Church of Baltimore

Dr. Brad Braxton is the Founding Senior Pastor of The Open Church in Baltimore, Maryland.  His publications have explored how religion can sponsor either injustice or positive social transformation.  His lectures and sermons have addressed topics such as racial reconciliation, social justice activism, interfaith dialogue, and collaborative economic partnerships with developing countries.

Ashley Bryner, Senior Druid of CedarLight Grove, ADF and Member of the UMBC Religious Council

Ashley is the current Senior Druid of CedarLight Grove, ADF, and has been heavily involved in community projects there for seven years. She has organized and taken part in projects relating to building tolerance in a spiritual setting, demystifying Paganism/Druidry to the general public, environmental activism, raised funding to support local charities ranging from women’s shelters and homeless vets to homeless animals and wildlife sanctuaries.

Asma Inge-Hanif, Executive Director of Muslimat Al Nisaa, INC

Responding to the stigmas associated with violence and rape within the community, in 2007 Asma Hanif opened her H.O.M.E. to shelter homeless Muslim women and children as well as Muslim women victims of Domestic Violence. She was the 2006 & 2013 recipient of “Community Service Award” for Social Activism and the 2007 recipient of the Freedom Foundation’s Humanitarian Award.

Historic and present day race and class-based inequities plaguing Baltimore show us now more than ever that there is a need for our personal faith and belief systems to uplift where, with whom and how we live publically.  Freddie Gray’s killing and the subsequent Baltimore Uprising didn’t happen in a vacuum as this week’s Baltimore 101: Why Baltimore Matters kickoff session by Dr. Jodi Kelber-Kaye illustrates.  With the help of our panelists, we hope to learn, dialogue and expand our knowledge and skills for engaging in faith and belief system-based activism and social change making in and beyond Baltimore by:

• exploring how we work in and on behalf of our communities across social identities like gender, race, socioeconomic class, national origin, spirituality/religion, and educational status;
• naming and revealing the ways our privileged and marginalized identities show up in how and when we act on our beliefs;
• reflecting on the role of spiritual and religious institutions during the past and current civil rights movements; and
• unpacking the meaning of justice and equality from a diverse range of spiritual and religious perspectives.

This event is free and open to the public.  All are invited to participate in Critical Social Justice: Baltimore 365, Oct. 19-23. For a complete list of the week’s events, visit critsocjustice.wordpress.com.

Our kick-off event for CSJ 2015 just ended and our brains are still buzzing. Dr. Kelber-Kaye, Associate Director of the Honors College, gave us a history lesson about Baltimore to give context to and explain why things are the way they are in Baltimore City. This information is an excellent foundation of knowledge to have when talking about Baltimore and to take with you to all of our other CSJ events.

Missed the event? No worries! Below is a recap of all the important information. It’s a little longer than most of our blog posts, but all of the information is important. We’ve written it in an outline form to make it easier to read.

Books you absolutely need to read about Baltimore:

1. Black Baltimore: A New Theory of Community
2. The Baltimore Book: New Views of Local History
3. Baltimore ‘68

The Kerner Report, published in 1968, was the first report of its kind to blame structural inequalities for issues like crime, poverty, and public health among African American communities. Previously, these issues had been blamed on individual communities and black people themselves. This excerpt from the Kerner Report sets the tone for the information you need to know about Baltimore and Baltimore history:

“What White Americans have never fully understood– but what the Negro can never forget– is that white society is deeply implicated in the ghetto. White institutions created it, white institutions maintain it, and white society condones it.”

As Dr. K said, when we blame people and not structure, we’ve decided we didn’t cause it and we don’t have to do anything about it. This history lesson shows how structures built on racism led to today’s conditions.

• 1700s
  • Baltimore is very small; it is made up of mostly Fells Point and Harbor East.
  • Grain production increases in northern Baltimore County.
    • Grain producers begin using the port of Baltimore to export grain.
    • This activity inspires the rise of the shipbuilding industry in Baltimore.
    • Industrial jobs draw free Blacks and ethnic whites (Irish, Eastern European, etc) to the city.
    • Whites begin to move to the city in search of entrepreneurial endeavors, many involving the utilization of slave labor.
• 1800s
  • In Baltimore City in 1810, the number of free blacks equals the number of slaves. (Baltimore is the only place in the US where this occurs.)
  • 1830 saw the decline in slavery in Baltimore City.
    • Whites realized paying ethnic whites small wages for jobs was cheaper than keeping slaves.
    • Competition for jobs and housing created a rift between blacks and ethnic whites.
      • Mobs and gangs of ethnic whites begin to form among groups in the manufacturing industry. These mobs use violence and intimidation to keep free Blacks out of the industry and out of the competition for jobs.
      • South Baltimore became predominantly ethnically white because people lived where they worked and the white mobs and gangs had intimidated African Americans out of the industry in that area.
    • Increases in industry increased population
      • Overcrowding and poor living conditions in Baltimore City “slums” lead to disease and poor sanitation.
      • Estates north of the harbor sell their land to developers who build neighborhoods to house the growing population.
      • Using the rhetoric of “Public Health” and blaming individuals for the poor conditions in industrial “slums,” developers are able to keep ethnic whites and blacks out of these new neighborhoods.
• 1900s
  • In 1910, the first residential segregation law in the US was passed in Baltimore City.
    • Blacks could not live on a majority white block; whites could not live on a majority black block.
    • This law was struck down by the Supreme Court in 1917, but racist segregation practices continued. (Some examples are below; this happened in a lot of other ways, too.)
      • Relators would not sell houses to blacks on white blocks or discouraged whites from buying in black areas.
      • Police and home inspectors would seek out and trouble white landlords renting to black people in white areas.
  • 1937: Post-Great Depression Redlining
    • The Federal Home Loan Organization, which later became the Federal Housing Association, worked with local mortgage brokers to outline housing districts.
    • Redlines were drawn around poor, black neighborhoods and divided the city into districts
      • Districts were classified based on crime, sanitation, median income, and “undesirable populations” aka black people.
      • Redlining policy explicitly condoned and encouraged the continuation of the racist and biased housing practices which resulted from the end of Baltimore housing segregation legislation.
      • Mortgage brokers gave different interest rates to different homeowners based on race and district.
      • Neighborhoods within redlines, the poor and/or black neighborhoods, received higher interest rates which made it significantly more difficult for the people in those areas to buy homes.
  • Why is home ownership so important?
    • It’s part of the “American Dream.”
    • Gives people stable housing conditions
    • Allows for wealth accumulation
      • Houses can be passed down through generations. Once it’s paid off, a house is pure asset. Even when someone is cash poor, they will still have housing and a form of wealth.
  • WWII
    • The wartime economy booms.
      • Bethlehem Steel brings more jobs to Baltimore City.
      • People live where they work, integrating some of the neighborhoods around industrial centers.
      • Unionization brings fairer wages to industrial workers.
      • Bethlehem Steel has the first integrated union.
  • Post war economic downturn
    • Population increases
    • Manufacturing jobs decrease
  • Urban renewal plans of the 1940s and ‘50s
    • After the post war economic decline, Baltimore City policymakers create programs for “Urban Renewal.”
      • The city purchases older, more run-down homes at low, unfair prices.
      • City blocks are flattened and new homes are built.
      • The original homeowners who were displaced are not able to afford the newer, more expensive homes.
      • As a result of urban renewal plans across the county, hundreds of thousands of people are displaced. 58% of them are black.
  • 1960s
    • Anger is building as unfair housing conditions worsen in Baltimore City and the Civil Rights Movement grows.
    • Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated in April of 1968.
      • Anger, exhaustion, and desperation trigger riots in Baltimore city.
    • People leave the city in droves and head for the county.
      • Whites move north, centrally.
      • Everyone else moves outward into the suburbs.
  • 1970s economic downturn
    • Public housing projects are implemented to better the housing conditions.
      • Old public housing is torn down and replaced, but with less units than before.
      • More people are displaced and begin to overcrowd neighborhoods again.
    • Banks use the opportunity to provide subprime mortgages to vulnerable populations desperately looking for housing.
      • People who got mortgages they couldn’t afford lose their homes and even more people are displaced and left with massive debt.
• Today
  • 2010-2013
    • Median household wealth for Black folks in Baltimore is one third of what it used to be.
    • The income gap between whites and blacks is the widest it’s been in 30 years.
    • Life expectancy can vary by as much as 20 years between baltimore city neighborhoods.
      • Life expectancy varies based on factors like living conditions, rates of violent crime, access to water and healthy food, and access to healthcare, among others.
      • The median annual income in the state of Maryland is $73,538 compared to Baltimore City at $41,000. 23% of Baltimore city residents live below the poverty line compared to 9.8% of Maryland overall.

If you want to know more about structural inequality in Baltimore City, check out these links:

1. A large, interactive archive of information and personal testimony surrounding the Baltimore ‘68 riots.
2. Original 1937 Redline Districting Map (click to download)
3. Interactive map of inequality in city neighborhoods
4. Another, more in-depth interactive map of inequalities
5. Map of life expectancy by neighborhood