DemocracyIs:
We are living through an expansion of racialized authoritarianism as the country marks its 250th anniversary of independence. DemocracyIs: is a national campaign that builds and deepens our understanding of democracy as a practice of belonging, participation, and shared governance. Over the coming months, we'll bring DemocracyIs: to life through public conversations, essays and storytelling projects, education campaigns, cultural organizing, and opportunities for collective action with communities across the country.
May Day: A Fight for People, Power and A New Narrative
International Workers' Day celebrated organizers, educators, social justice organizations, and everyday people and workers working to fight harmful public narratives. We're putting workers over billionaires.
Momentum Bonus Episode - Fair Housing at a Crossroads
In this bonus episode of Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast, we take a closer look at the state of housing in the United States nearly 60 years after the passage of the Fair Housing Act and why this moment demands renewed urgency.
We hear from Nathan Cheung, Communications Manager for Housing Now California, and Andreanecia M. Morris, Executive Director of Housing Louisiana, who bring this moment into focus through lived experience and on the ground advocacy.
Special thanks to Ryan Curren, Director of Housing, Land, and Development at Race Forward, for his contribution to this episode.
Movement-Builders You Should Know
Here we spotlight 24 women organizers – past and present – whose work we invite you to learn more about. The represent different generations and different fights, but each helped construct the foundation of movements that continue to challenge structural racism, economic inequality, and environmental harm in the United States.
The Builders of Movements
Celebrating the women who have helped shape what justice looks like in education, civil rights, disability visibility and climate.
Dangerous Memories: Dorothy Cotton and Juneteenth Teach-Ins For Action
Emancipation Day Celebration band, June 19, 1900.
In what ways can memory, history, and collective vision inform the necessary pathways that we must create in order to build multiracial democratic power? In “The Long History of Juneteenth,” we ground ourselves within analyses of the historical origins and impacts of Juneteenth and its enduring applications for today.
Hosts:
Dr. Charlene Sinclair (Former Editor, Colorlines)
Dr. Terry Anne Scott (Director, The Institute for Common Power)
Presenters:
Dr. Terry Anne Scott (Director, The Institute for Common Power)
Brianna Brown (Co-Executive Director, Texas Organizing Project)
Attacks on Public Education Threaten the Legacy of Brown
By Avis Weathersbee
Brown turns 70 on May 17, but the vision of a robust and equitable public education system may yet be a dream deferred. Many education experts said the current wave of politicized offensives against a system already under stress pushes public schools toward a tipping point.
Women Transcend
Formerly Incarcerated Women Stand Tall
and Show the Way to Collective Power-building
Untold stories of resilience, impact and transformation are illuminated in Women Transcend, Colorlines’ multimedia and storytelling initiative that disrupts deeply ingrained ideas and value systems around crime and punishment. The Women Transcend film and companion pieces reject harmful narratives that service systems of perpetual punishment, and challenge all of us to see those who are deemed “unredeemable” as guiding lights to systemic change and reform. The film was produced in collaboration with formerly incarcerated Black women activists and leaders.
Explainers
Breaking down big ideas about race, power, and democracy. View all explainers
Organizing Stories
Stories of our journeys through life and organizing. View all stories.
Community Conversations
A variety of voices gathered in conversation in living rooms and around the kitchen table. View all community conversations
Belonging and Radical Love: A Ballroom Community Conversation
Members of the Ballroom community convey stories of security and belonging. Watch now
Community Conversations: Beyond the Vote
How Government Levers of Power and “Dirty Work” Can Deliver Lasting Racial Justice Wins
Members of Race Forward’s Government Alliance on Race and Equity (G.A.R.E.) discuss participatory democracy and co-governance: how structures of government are strategically necessary for translating power-building momentums into public policies. Watch now.
How Georgia Youth Organize for Education Justice
Get inspired by the brilliance and power of members of the Georgia Youth Justice Coalition share their testimonies about how and why they organize. Watch now
Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
Pushing Back Against The Rise of Christian Nationalism Through Faith with Obery Hendricks, Ph.D
On this episode of Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast, Obery Hendricks, Ph.D., one of the most influential Black biblical scholars writing today, and Race Forward’s Chief of Staff Charlene Sinclair, Ph.D., who herself fashions strategies that embrace a liberationist approach to faith and spirituality for racial and economic justice, discuss the immediacy of pushing back against the spread of Christian Nationalism and the urgency of creating narratives based on the gospel’s “true teachings” to reflect the ongoing political moment and fight for progressive policies that stay true to the bible’s "liberationist ideals".