June DEI Update
Coming up: an opportunity to take action regarding a topic on which we reflected earlier this year. Our observance of Black History Month included a discussion about Restrictions Apply, a 2021 documentary that explores the issues of racist covenants, conditions, and restrictions in California home title deeds.
The Contra Costa County Clerk-Recorder’s office recently announced the launch of Mapping Prejudice in Contra Costa County, a community-driven initiative to identify and map racially restrictive covenants and clauses that were inserted into local property records to keep people who were not white from owning or occupying property.
The county is doing this work in partnership with the Mapping Prejudice Project, a research team based in the University of Minnesota Libraries. This group has been working with communities across the country to map racial covenants since 2016. Contra Costa’s new initiative will engage residents of the county to identify and transcribe the information necessary to put these now-illegal restrictions on a modern map.
Volunteers from all over the county are invited to take part in this important work. Training and access to a digital portal to examine historical property records that have been flagged by the research team at the University of Minnesota for review will be provided. These documents offer a powerful hands-on learning experience and create an opportunity for community dialogue about our history and the legacy of housing discrimination.
To learn more about the project and the team, or to sign up to volunteer, please visit Contra Costa Mapping Prejudice.
– By Ogie Strogatz, DEI Officer
May DEI Meeting – Exploring the Controversy: CA Mandate for
Ethnic Studies in High Schools
May 7, 7:00 pm via Zoom
Our session on May 7 was a deep dive into the state-mandated addition of one semester of Ethnic Studies as a required course for graduation from all California public high schools beginning in the 2025-2026 school year.
The Ethnic Studies requirement had been discussed at the SRVUSD Board meeting on April 22, with the Board requesting more information and deciding to revisit the topic at its May 13 meeting. The discussion on May 13 was intense, with over 50 public comments, pro and con, from both students and community members. The Board voted 4-1 to in favor of the course, asking district staff to return this summer to report on modifications to respond to commenters’ concerns, also asking staff to return with evaluative feedback on the course, potentially after the fall semester and definitely at the end of the 2025-2026 school year.
Heartfelt thanks to all of our members who have been able to participate in our local school board meetings!
– By Ogie Strogatz, DEI Officer
April DEI Meeting – Disabled Students in Public Education
April 9, 7:00 pm via Zoom
Our DEI meeting in April is entitled, “Disabled Students in Public Education”. As you’re likely aware, the President recently signed an executive order to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. Among the department’s gravely threatened responsibilities are ensuring that a student’s disability status does not impede their ability to access a quality education (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act).
DAW member Rian Dindzans will share their firsthand insights into the current threats to disabled students’ education, and what we can do to protect their right to knowledge and access to learning. Rian’s presentation will include an overview of the history of educating disabled children, what accommodations are, and how they work.
Rian graduated from CSU East Bay in 2024, Summa Cum Laude with a B.A. in Human Development, and is a former SRVUSD student. Being disabled themself, they have been passionate about researching disability history and connecting current events to challenges the disability community faces throughout and beyond their academic careers.
Our April online session was led by DAW member Rian Dindzans and Juliet Barraza, Senior Education Advocate with the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, joined with Rian to add her insight and perspective to the meeting. Rian and Juliet gave an excellent presentation that included the history of disability rights and public education, fundamental disability rights legislation, current challenges to disability rights, and calls to action. Click here to access their slide presentation.
– By Ogie Strogatz, DEI Officer
March DEI Discussion – “How We Heal”
March 12, 7:00 pm via Zoom
Hello everyone. Tough times, these. Bearing in mind that March is Women’s History Month, and acknowledging that I’m pretty hungry for an extra helping of “tell me something good”, I invite you to join me for an uplifting DEI discussion via Zoom on Wednesday, March 12 at 7:00 pm. We’ll focus on the recently published book, How We Heal, by La June Montgomery Tabron, the first woman and the first African American to serve as President and CEO
of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. Ms. Tabron shares her story of growing up in Detroit in the 1960s and 70s, as well as the racial healing methodology that informs the Kellogg Foundation’s Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation initiative, which helps communities heal and produce actionable change through cross-racial, intergenerational, and cross-sector, community-led collaboration.
No need to read the book; we’ll have plenty to discuss and we welcome your participation! Please drop me a line to RSVP: ogstrogatz@gmail.com.
To learn more about the Kellog Foundation and its comprehensive, multi-year national and community-based Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation process, click here.
– By Ogie Strogatz, DEI Officer
The DEI Team in February – Restrictions Apply Discussion
February 12, 7:00 pm via Zoom
“The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.” — Ida B. Wells, journalist
As we honor Black History Month this February, I invite you all to join me on Zoom, Wednesday, February 12, from 7:00-8:00 pm, for a discussion about Restrictions Apply, a 2021 documentary that explores the issues of covenants, conditions, and restrictions in California home title deeds. The film follows San Luis Obispo resident Jaime Lewis as she discovers racist language in the title deed for her home, then decides to reach out to her neighbors and share the information. When the community learns that the problem is systemic, they act together to remove the language from their home deeds, demonstrating how white activists can address issues in their own communities that are rooted in centuries of racism in America.
I encourage you to watch Restrictions Apply (18 minutes in length) prior to our meeting. Please click here to access the film, and let me know (ogstrogatz@gmail.com) if you’ll be joining us on 
Feb 12. I gratefully acknowledge AAUW California DEI Director, Dr. Lata Murti, for bringing the documentary to my attention.
And another excellent Black History Month (BHM) resource to share, thanks to AAUW California President Charmen Goehring – take the BHM Challenge (at the right) with 28 days and 28 ways to celebrate.
I’ll close by offering a head start on the list: please click here for an indescribably beautiful performance of “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing”; it’s bound to give you a lift!
By Ogie Strogatz, DEI Officer
The DEI Team in 2025
Hello everyone! Guided by our AAUW California DEI Director, Dr. Lata Murti, the 2024-2027 AAUW CA DEI Strategic Plan sets forth the following vision: “to build an empathetic,
supportive, and inclusive environment for the present and sustainable future of AAUW California and its branches”. The mission statement to realize that vision is: “to increase the growth, diversity, and relevance of branch membership, activities, outreach, and collaboration with others”.
The plan commits to working toward the vision and mission by:
- increasing accessibility for all to participate, as well as strengthening the connection between programs and AAUW’s national mission (“to advance gender equity for women and girls through research, education, and advocacy”); and by
- increasing knowledge and awareness of DEI practices, allowing members and branches to create welcoming spaces of belonging for all.
The plan goes on to specify goals, strategies, and tactics to act on these commitments. Now that the electoral cycle has come to a close, I look forward to engaging with you all at our January 8 meeting to discuss the DEI Strategic Plan, and how we can bring it to life most effectively in our branch.
In the interim, I invite you to:
- Mark your calendars, to attend the January monthly DAW member meeting on Tuesday, January 21, at 9:30 am at the Lafayette Library and Learning Center. We’ll learn about California’s Perinatal Equity Initiative to address racial disparities in infant mortality.
- View “The IntraCultural Podcast – Episode 1: Monsters Have Fangs”, a highly worthwhile, 40-minute video about having difficult conversations across political differences. The video is a conversation between two smart, compassionate professors: Dr. Melissa Maceyko, one of our AAUW CA Public Policy Directors, and her colleague, Dr. Lucy Arciniega. Their insights are bound to prove helpful in navigating the holidays and beyond. Now maybe you’re wondering, what’s with the title, “Monsters Have Fangs”? I assure you it’s perfectly relevant, but I won’t say more — check it out!
With warmest wishes for a healthy, peaceful holiday season and new year –
Ogie Strogatz, DEI Officer
Refer to Past Branch DEI Meetings and DEI Information:
To read notes from past branch DEI meetings – click here
To see presentation slides defining the branch DEI committee’s purpose and providing strategies for handling “microaggression” – click here
To read the Open Letter from AAUW Supporting Trans Women and Girls – click here
Our Branch DEI goals for 2023-24:
by Teresa Cheung, Past Branch DEI Officer
- Support the DAW branch to advance learning and expand commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). There is an emphasis on increasing DEI awareness, engagement, and branch participation in DEI efforts, with particular attention to connecting and collaborating with organizations that promote and embody DEI.
For AAUW’s “Diversity Statement”, click here. - Share promising and innovative practices related to DEI.
- Become familiar with National AAUW resources. For AAUW’s DEI toolkit, click here.
- Identify and engage like-minded organizations for potential collaborative opportunities.
- Provide resources to Board and assist board and committees in the development and implementation of DEI goals with strategies and materials to accomplish efforts.
If you wish to participate and have DEI ideas to share, please contact Ogie Strogatz, DEI Leader, at ogstrogatz@gmail.com.
From the AAUW California DEI Committee:
DEI Statewide Chat – View our statewide chat held in October, 2022, that explores AAUW’s efforts around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). The webinar features an intimate conversation with national leaders at the time – Julia Brown, AAUW Board of Directors Chair, and Melissa LaDuke, AAUW DEI Chair.
Learn about the DEI issues our organization faces and National’s efforts to address them. Leave with what we can do individually and collectively to strengthen our understanding and commitment to this work. Click here to see the video.
“The Kindness of Color” – For a DEI inspiration, check out the new “Kindness of Color” program from AAUW CA. Two families: one Japanese American and one Mexican American. Two true stories of their separate battles with racism, incarceration, and school segregation in the WWII era. Unexpectedly, their lives intersect, paving the way for a landmark court decision in California. Join author and descendant Janice Munemitsu for the intimate story of how the kindness of friends and strangers provided hope and strength to persevere against unjust treatment. To view the recorded webinar click HERE.