Black Lives Matter

George Floyd mural outside Cup Foods at Chicago Ave and E 38th St in Minneapolis, Minnesota by Laurie Shaul. 

The Diablo Valley College Library is committed to providing accessible and informative materials that address racial and social justice in our society. In this guide, you'll find a growing list of anti-racism, social justice, and Black Lives Matter related resources available on and off campus. This collection is by no means comprehensive but, we hope, it will provide our community with some guidance to addressing racism, white supremacy, and state violence while also centering and uplifting the immense cultural contributions of Black Americans.

To get involved, please visit the The Movement for Black Lives website. 

• All books listed are linked to their record in OneSearch. If you see a gap or would like to request an eBook version of any print materials listed, please contact one of the Subject Librarians. We'll do our best to accommodate all reasonable requests.

• If you'd rather purchase your own copy of any resource, consider supporting a Black-owned independent bookstore near you.

• If you'd like to have some structure to help you engage with these varied resources, check out the Anti-Racist Syllabus from Dr. Ibram Kendi.

Dear DVC Community, 

We begin this semester with the brutal reminder that violence against Black bodies is not the exception but appears to be the “unsaid” rule of “American democracy.” The Student Equity and Success Committee joins the Racial Justice Task force in declaring enough is enough! We stand in solidarity with those who have been the targets of racism, bigotry, violence, inequality, and police brutality. James Baldwin reminded us that “You cannot fix what you will not face.” Ignorance and silence can no longer be tolerated; now is the time to acknowledge and act against Anti-Black racism. Yes, racism affects all people of color in a multitude of ways, and Black people are part of that vociferous and untangled web. But Anti-Black racism speaks to the specific ways in which Black people are seen, targeted, dehumanized, and often killed in a manner that is unlike any other group of people in the United States.  

Anti-Blackness is a two-part formation that both strips Blackness of value (dehumanizes), and systematically marginalizes Black people.  It consists of overt slurs but also covert Anti-Black policies, institutions, and ideologies.  Institutionalized racism can occur in conscious and unconscious ways.

Examples:  

• The cultural story that white folks are safer, less violent, and better citizens (prominently communicated through mainstream media), and Black folks are dangerous, violent, and poor citizens.  
• Curricula that teach us to associate white European cultures with “civilization,” “order,” and “advancement” and people of color cultures with “primitive,” “backwards,” and “chaos/violence.”  
• The notion that the values and communication styles of the dominant / white culture are ideal, and that all others should assimilate to dominant culture.  
• The myth of meritocracy-- that we all start from a “level playing field” and therefore if you have wealth, you “earned” and “deserve” it and if you didn’t, it’s because you didn’t work hard enough or didn’t want it enough.  

Unequivocally, we affirm that Black lives matter. We are committed to uprooting Anti-Blackness in ourselves and our institution. Throughout this semester, we invite our community to commit to an integrated plan for combatting Anti-Blackness in both personal and institutional contexts. We are here for the movement and not just the moment. 

Student Equity and Success Committee 

Racial Justice Task Force