The Look of Love

Adultification Bias in American Society

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

"This incident underscores the 'adultification bias' that young Black girls like Bobbi face in American society... It’s a very pervasive form of bias that does not know boundaries... In emergency rooms, we’re seeing it affect the treatment and diagnosis of Black girls. In schools, we’re seeing it come up in the form of harsher and more frequent discipline against Black girls... While the police handled the situation with Bobbi extremely well, it is also noted of the times where they didn’t – like last year when a Rochester police officer handcuffed a 9-year-old Black girl, put her in the back of a police car, and remarked 'you’re acting like a child' before pepper-spraying her as she cried out for her father." - Rebecca Epstein, Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality

With all of the progress that we have made as a society and as human beings, it's truly unfortunate that Black children still aren't held in the same esteem and compassion as all the other children of our nation and the world. It's unfortunate that they aren't looked out for equally and that their tears don't matter. From child welfare to law enforcement, to healthcare, education, and beyond, the experiences of Black children are discounted, discarded and of no concern to far too many.

Read the full CNN article here: https://bit.ly/BlackChildrenShouldMatter

Photo by CNN

Anti-Racism Resources

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

"Deepen your understanding of the pervasive discrimination and violence African Americans face with these anti-racism books, TV shows, films, and more. For young people, especially, reading and viewing stories about social injustice can be a powerful way to gain insight into what it really means to be Black in the US."

Books to read: https://binged.it/3GD1TyJ

TV and movies: https://binged.it/3V45ZUH

Books for kids & teens: https://binged.it/3Xqnn7U

Podcasts: http://bit.ly/3tVNara

TED Talks: http://bit.ly/3AHx3ku

By: Bing Anti-Racism Resources

Photo by Getty Images

The Hair Tales by Tracee Ellis Ross

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

Be sure to watch Hulu's "The Hair Tales," a new docuseries hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross!

"The Hair Tales is an intimate and intentional docuseries focused on the parallel journeys Black women have with their hair and with themselves... By centering the stories on Black hair and what it means to be a Black woman in this country, Tracee Ellis Ross will take viewers on a dynamic journey that documents not only how hair has been part of every Black woman’s identity and personal expression throughout history, but also the radical impact that Black women have had on culture and humanity. Through cultural, societal, and historical context, The Hair Tales acts as living documentation of the wholeness of Black women, and ultimately, the wholeness of culture. The Hair Tales will not only demonstrate that Black women are a runway to humanity but also how Black women liberate us all."

Watch the official trailer here:

SB 1085, authored by Senator Sydney Kamlager and signed by Governor Newsom of California

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

#ICYMI, SB 1085, authored by Senator Sydney Kamlager and signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom, prevents child welfare removals based on poverty alone, and paves the way for further combatting unjust and often discriminatory family separation practices.

"We want to make it super clear that poverty should never be the sole reason why these children are coming into the jurisdiction of the child welfare system,” said Stephanie Jeffcoat, a community organizer with A New Way of Life Reentry Project, based in Los Angeles. “There have to be more reasons aside from ‘Oh, their refrigerator isn’t filled with food, their cabinets are bare, or their phone is broken.’ That should never be a reason for family separation.”

Follow along here:

https://bit.ly/SB1085-Kamlager

https://bit.ly/CA-CWBIlls

Activists Seek to Halt Poverty Based Family Separations

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

"The Reimagine Child Safety Coalition calls for legal counsel to be provided for low-income parents at the onset of a social worker investigation, instead of later...

Activists also want agencies to implement reforms that have been introduced in New York City and state that would guarantee parents Miranda-style rights at the onset of a child maltreatment investigation."

Read more here: https://bit.ly/ItsTimeToReimagine

"Motion Picture Academy Apologizes Formally to Sacheen Littlefeather at Celebration of Native American Culture"

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

"In 1973, Sacheen Littlefeather, a member of the Screen Actors Guild, became the first Native woman to stand onstage at the Academy Awards ceremony, on behalf of Marlon Brando. At his request, Littlefeather did not accept Brando’s Best Actor award for The Godfather and gave a passionate 60-second speech regarding the stereotypes of Native Americans in the entertainment industry. She also brought attention to the 1973 Wounded Knee protest in South Dakota. This moment resulted in her being professionally boycotted, personally attacked and harassed, and discriminated against for the last 50 years."

Read More: https://bit.ly/-LittleFeather

Live event on September 17, 2022: https://youtu.be/wNHtImiC90o

Updated October 3, 2022 by the Academy Museum

"Sacheen Littlefeather, who famously stepped onto the stage at the 45th Academy Awards and declined Marlon Brando's Best Actor Oscar on his behalf, died on Oct. 2 at her home in Novato, California. She was 75." https://aframe.oscars.org/news/post/sacheen-littlefeather-actress-and-civil-rights-activist-dies-at-75

The Trauma of Being Black in Foster Care by Dr. Kizzy Lopez

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

In this TEDxTalk, Dr. Kizzy Lopez shares her experiences as a Black child in foster care and "the reality of both the trauma and racism Black foster youth suffer." Today, she uses those experiences to advocate for more just child welfare policies, and reminds us that "our action or inaction creates a society that all if our children live in." She also exhorts us to be honest and "acknowledge that racism exists, get educated about the injustices that happen in communities of color, challenge our own unconscious bias, be engaged in policies and practices that dismantle structural racism, and do better because the lives of African American foster youth depend on it!"

#PassTheCROWN

The Look of Love Niya ParksComment

NEWS ALERT🚨 Massachusetts is the 18th state to make hair discrimination unlawful!! Thank you, Governor Baker, for signing this important legislation!

"Our groundbreaking CROWN research study revealed that Black women are 80% more likely to change their hair from its natural state to fit in at the office. Now, this new body of research illuminates the pervasive nature and deep impact hair discrimination has on Black girls highlighting the horrific multi-generational impact of narrow beauty standards in America... These biases continue to perpetuate unfair scrutiny and discrimination against Black women and girls for wearing hairstyles inherent to our culture. This is unacceptable and why it is imperative that everyone join the movement to make hair discrimination illegal nationwide through the passage of The CROWN Act." - Esi Eggleston Bracey

Email your U.S. Legislator today to end race-based hair discrimination! https://bit.ly/PassTheCrown