Equity and Anti-Racism Task Force

Greetings from the Equity and Anti-Racism Task Force. This is our first newsletter of the 2023-24 school year. Please join the Equity and Anti-Racism conversation at Hyde-Addison by emailing hyde.addison@k12.dc.gov and requesting to be added to the Task Force email list maintained by the school, joining us on Konstella, utilizing the resources here, and/or participating in the monthly Task Force virtual meeting at 4pm on the last Friday of every month during the school year. As parents, teachers and staff, we are interested in doing our part to promote equity and end racism in constructive, supportive ways.

September 15 to October 15 is National Hispanic American Heritage Month, which celebrates the histories, cultures and contributions of those whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. This Heritage Month grew out of Hispanic Heritage Week, which was established by federal legislation in 1968. The week was expanded to a month by federal legislation in 1988, with September 15 chosen as the starting point to commemorate the anniversary of independence for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, as well as the independence days of Mexico and Chile, celebrated on September 16 and September18, respectively.

The DC Public Library is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with events, book recommendations and more. And Hyde-Addison faculty have put together a great list of Books to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month.

The website hispanicheritagemonth.gov is a great federal government interagency resource, with a calendar of events held at the Library of Congress, Smithsonian museums and other DC institutions. The website also has a page full of resources for teachers, like the Smithsonian Folkways’ “Estoy Aquí: Music of the Chicano Movement” Learning Pathway, a series of 12 free interactive multimedia lessons on the history of Chicano music.

According to the UCLA Latino Policy & Politics Institute, the “U.S. Latino population reached 62.5 million in 2021, accounting for 19% of the U.S. population—up from 13% in 2000. Since then, Latinos have been the largest contributor to U.S. population growth, accounting for 54% of the growth. By 2060, the Latino population is projected to increase to 111.2 million, or 28% of the U.S. population.”

Our nation’s Latino population is incredibly diverse, descended not only from immigrants from more than 30 countries, but also from families that lived in what’s now the southeastern U.S. before it was part of the U.S. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed in 1848, ended the Mexican-American War. Under the treaty, Mexico relinquished all claims to Texas and ceded 55 percent of its territory, including the present-day states California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, most of Arizona and Colorado, and parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming. This history is the root of the saying “the border crossed us” among Mexican Americans.

Hyde-Addison Elementary prides itself on intellectual freedom and inclusivity. Engaged parents decide which books their children read, respecting the rights of other families to make their own choices. We don’t unilaterally ban books at Hyde-Addison! According to The Washington Informer, “[w]ithin the last three years, as far back as DCPS central office records go, the DCPS Materials Evaluation Committee has not removed any books from public school libraries.” But not all families and children enjoy this freedom. The American Library Association “documented 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years ago” and nearly doubling the 729 book challenges reported in 2021. “Censors targeted a record 2,571 unique titles in 2022, a 38% increase from the 1,858 unique titles targeted for censorship in 2021. Of those titles, the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community or by and about Black people, Indigenous people, and people of color.”

The American Library Association will be holding Banned Books Week from October 1-7, celebrating the freedom to read and spotlighting current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. “For more than 40 years, the annual event has brought together the entire book community — librarians, teachers, booksellers, publishers, writers, journalists, and readers of all types — in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.” Check out this web page with a variety of ways to participate—like attending the Georgetown Library’s “Banned Book Read-Out” on October 1st at 2pm, featuring the works of James Baldwin.

Did your student celebrate any holidays or traditions related to their race or ethnicity recently? Please share any photos or videos related to your celebrations via email: hyde.addison@k12.dc.gov.

Suicide Prevention Awareness Month (September)

Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15)

Rosh Hashanah (September 15-17, 2023)

Yom Kippur (September 24-25, 2023)

Global Diversity Awareness Month (October)

National Disability Employment Awareness Month (October)

Filipino American History Month (October)

Italian-American Heritage and Culture Month (October)

LGBT History Month (October)

Polish American Heritage Month (October)

National Bullying Prevention Month (October)

World Day of Bullying Prevention (October 2, 2023)

Indigenous People’s Day (October 9, 2023)

World Mental Health Day (October 10)

National Coming Out Day (October 11)

Native American Heritage Month (November)

Día de los Muertos / Day of the Dead (November 1-2)

Veterans’ Day (November 11)

Diwali (November 12, 2023)

Transgender Awareness Week (November 13-19, 2023)

International Day for Tolerance (November 16)

Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20)

World Children’s Day (November 20)

Thanksgiving (November 23, 2023)

Native American Heritage Day (November 24, 2023)

Disclaimer: The Hyde-Addison ES Equity and Anti-Racism Task Force is an independent group not associated with DCPS and any viewpoints or activities associated with this group are not endorsed by DCPS.