The person responsible for creating this guide is a cisgender white woman who benefits from white supremacist systems and types of oppression outlined in this guide. There are likely hidden biases at work in this guide that stem from privileges and perspectives. An attempt has been made to bring together relevant resources on anti-racist issues for the WVC community, and feedback and suggestions for the guide, particularly from the perspectives and experiences of Black, Indigenous, and non-Black People of Color (BIPOC) members of the WVC community are welcome.
Some of the content of this site is modeled after the Anti-Racism Research Guides published by the University of Denver Library, Arizona State Library, and Cornell University Library.
This guide is intended to provide general information for anti-racist learning and practice specific to anti-Black racism. It includes information and resources specific to current conversations within the West Valley College community, and the resources listed here are by no means exhaustive. The content here will be regularly updated.
Saratoga, Calif., June 13, 2024—West Valley College was among 25 community colleges represented in a historic signing event today honoring the creation of seamless pathways for transfer students into the nation’s first Black Honors College at Sacramento State.
The ceremonial signing event took place during the opening day of the second annual Juneteenth Symposium hosted by California State University on the Sacramento campus.
Read more here.
The Black Lives Matter Movement was initiated with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on social media after the 2013 acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a young African-American teenager. Founders Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi formed the Black Lives Matter Network to protest against incidents of police brutality and all racially motivated violence against black people. Garza described the network as an online platform that existed to provide activists with a shared set of principles and goals.
Black Lives Matter also voices support for movements and causes outside the reach of black police brutality, including LGBTQ activism, feminism, immigration reform and economic justice. (Wikipedia and #BLM site)
Led by the College's Committee on Equity and Inclusion, West Valley College went through a systematic evaluation of racism on our campus. After many meetings and thoughtful dialogue, the College developed our Anti-Racism & Inclusion Action Plan.
The primary goals of the Plan are to:
Further information can be found on the College's Social Justice Resources page.