My dear fellow Fordies!
Thank you again for letting me address you! Thank you for attending and engaging the ideas I shared! It was a remarkable honor! ENDLESS THANKS to conference co-chairs Dr. Joseph Flipper and Dr. Teresa Ramirez and the entire conference planning committee for the invitation, to the Fellowships Office staff for making our gathering possible, and to the Ford Foundation and National Academies for their steadfast support of the fellowships program.
Here are some resources related to what I shared in my keynote address for the 2021 Conference of Ford Fellows:
I spoke in terms of self-care. For more, please see, “Identifying White Mediocrity and Know-Your-Place Aggression: A Form of Self-Care” https://muse.jhu.edu/article/715439
Here’s a video clip on white mediocrity and why I published the above essay: https://youtu.be/yq6w_9Eugqs
Here’s one example of my take on how whiteness is overvalued for no good reason and without legitimate justification: https://tmsnrt.rs/3i7KjVG
I spoke of giving yourself the gifts that only you can give. I published on that topic in April 2021 in TIME magazine online, and it was revised and published in the double print issue for July 19/July 26, 2021. Here’s the online version: https://bit.ly/3dScJ54
As is far too common, my (then) department chair told me that my 2007 Ford postdoc was basically financial aid: https://koritha.blogspot.com/2011/07/american-way-mediocrity-when-white.html
I suggested that figuring out your purpose is part of the work, so it’s always worthwhile to do that work and give yourself credit for doing it. For more, see “Should-ing All Over Ourselves.” http://thefeministwire.com/2012/11/should-ing-all-over-ourselves/
When you recognize know-your-place aggression, you see that Black culture is “Not about Protest” (5-minute video): https://youtu.be/Abud9brDKgc
I ended on the note of finding your way and finding your ways. This is a piece from long ago about why I think that’s so important: “Never-Ending Battles Require Sustainable Energy” http://koritha.blogspot.com/2012/06/never-ending-battles-require.html
I also spoke of my investment in making spaces less hostile for more people. Here are a couple examples of my attempts: “Never Supported a Trans Youth Organization? Now is the Time” https://bit.ly/KYCoped and “Love in Action: Noting Similarities between Lynching Then and Anti-LGBT Violence Now” https://muse.jhu.edu/article/521535
I hope these resources are helpful, and I look forward to witnessing all you do!
With every good wish,
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