RE Log Spring 2021

30 Ransom Everglades LOG SPRING 2021 T he deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd were not anomalies. After all, racism had taken Black lives before. But they were unique. For one, the reaction was global; protests were held in 60 countries and on all seven continents. But there was also a more intimate, personal reckoning that grew in tandem with the number of protests. Corporations nationwide experienced virtual and actual employee walkouts, long-standing statues and monuments were removed, buildings renamed, even the Mississippi state flag was changed. Ransom Everglades too had its own intimate reckoning. In the months following George Floyd’s murder, RE’s board of trustees established the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee (it was created out of the existing Student Life and Inclusion Committee). Ransom Everglades Black Alumni, reBa, wrote a letter signed by 107 alumni, students, parents, faculty and former trustees that identified how racial injustice is experienced at Ransom Everglades, and provided specific, evidence-based “REquests” for its eradication. ReBa’s letter was followed by a letter from hundreds of current and former students, Ransom Everglades Allies, expressing solidarity with the RE Black community and proposing specific anti-racist principles and action steps. At a virtual town hall meeting that followed, reBa members shared stories of traumatic encounters of racial bias and discrimination at the hands of fellow classmates, faculty and staff. Their stories moved many members of the Ransom Everglades community. The Anti-Racism Task Force was established by the head of school and board of trustees shortly thereafter, and the current members applied to participate and were accepted. This task force, which includes representatives from all constituencies – alumni, parents, trustees, faculty and reBa – is chaired by alumna Victoria Beatty ’00 , RE’s Director of Inclusion and Community Engagement Carla Hill, parent/board member Stephanie Dua and faculty member Dr. Brandon King. REPORT: RansomEverglades “I have committed my life to making high-quality education available to all children. This was an opportunity to continue that work. An opportunity to build a community in which every student, past and present, can thrive and feel proud of their experience, making RE a stronger institution for years to come.” – Stephanie Dua “There is a disparity between the educational experiences of America’s Black and White children. My role on the task force is simply to contribute to the necessary work of ensuring that all children are equipped with the resources they need to succeed in life. When we are done, my hope is Ransom Everglades will serve as a prototype of not only a diverse and inclusive institution, but one of equity as well.” – Victoria Beatty ’00 “I am a member of the Anti-Racism Task Force because I view education, particularly a humanities education, as our society’s solution to problems of social, political and economic inequality. Therefore, any call to help refine RE’s commitment to social justice is one in which I feel compelled to answer.” – Brandon King “My entire career in community engagement has been based on sage advice given to me as a young girl by my mother, Hazel. She would often tell me that in a world that wasn’t necessarily built for me, a Black expressive girl, I must forge through and make space for myself in spaces that didn’t think they’d need to see someone like me. It’s my hope that my work as a member of the school’s administration and on the task force will build trust for underrepresented communities to see Ransom Everglades as a place where they are welcomed to make space for themselves.” – Carla Hill Chairs of the Anti-RacismTask Force