AN ANTI-RACISM COLLECTIVE (ARC)
Background:
PLAT & Open Letter to RSA:
In the wake of the civil unrest and calls for reform in response to the state-sanctioned violence against Black Americans, the PLAT Team created a survey asking RSA students how our education at Rice has been influenced by whiteness, racism, and bias, while looking at the ways we can harness this momentum to move forward. PLAT then took leadership to organize an open meeting where the student body discussed the results of the survey and refined the draft of the Open Letter to RSA (bit.ly/rsaopenletter), which was sent to the administration on June 19th, 2020.
After the PLAT team acted swiftly and effectively to mobilize the student body, they made the decision to transition the work they started to a new group of students. We have responded to the call for action and are now proposing a new collective to continue PLAT’s efforts. Thank you, PLAT, for the meaningful and difficult work you have done.
Actions in Motion:
The RSA administration has formed two committees led by Dawn and Reto to address the existing conditions and propose systematic changes within our institution:
We also have a few existing facets in our institution that already works with the larger Houston community:
Mission Statement:
While the school’s leadership works toward long-term and systematic changes, we believe that it would be meaningful to establish a student collective centered on immediate action. This collective, led by students for students, will highlight, develop and act upon the anti-racist initiatives echoed by the student body. We hope to bring to light architecture’s inherent biases and affirm the idea that a responsible architectural education must be actively anti-racist.
As a continuation of the platform PLAT established, we hope to foster an environment which encourages students to come together and discuss these difficult issues openly and safely, generating ideas for moving forward. At the same time, we will be actively listening to the demands of the student body and seeing them through, with our own actions and by supporting initiatives through other groups such as Recess, Construct, Society and the soon-to-be-established graduate student collective.
In addition to the work within the school, we hope to act as a liaison between the RSA Student Body and outside entities/organizations such as, but not limited to, AIA, NOMAS, student groups at other institutions, as well as our own alumni network to provide resources for our students and work against racism and bias in architecture on a larger scale.
Ultimately, we seek to generate opportunities in the present for students to learn about, reflect upon, and act against the systematic racism and bias within our education and profession.
Items of Action:
Below are some of the ideas we hope to act on over the rest of the summer, the upcoming school year, and beyond. It is worth noting that this list is by no means conclusive. Rather, we intend to keep updating it, and would love to receive more input as the student body works together for systemic change.
Inward
Outward
In addition to the action items mentioned above, we will also be in full support of our student groups and their anti-racism initiatives, including but not limited to:
Ways to help/areas of interest:
With all above said - we would love any kind of help and will find a way for everybody who’s interested to get involved.
We invite you to join the collective and continue the fight against systemic injustices, racism and bias in our education and profession in tangible ways. In the same spirit as PLAT’s work, we intend to be as inclusive, transparent and non-hierarchical as possible. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Charlotte and will if you are interested, and stay tuned for future updates.
Warmly,
Charlotte Cohen, will sun, and Margaret Tudor
PLAT & Open Letter to RSA:
In the wake of the civil unrest and calls for reform in response to the state-sanctioned violence against Black Americans, the PLAT Team created a survey asking RSA students how our education at Rice has been influenced by whiteness, racism, and bias, while looking at the ways we can harness this momentum to move forward. PLAT then took leadership to organize an open meeting where the student body discussed the results of the survey and refined the draft of the Open Letter to RSA (bit.ly/rsaopenletter), which was sent to the administration on June 19th, 2020.
After the PLAT team acted swiftly and effectively to mobilize the student body, they made the decision to transition the work they started to a new group of students. We have responded to the call for action and are now proposing a new collective to continue PLAT’s efforts. Thank you, PLAT, for the meaningful and difficult work you have done.
Actions in Motion:
The RSA administration has formed two committees led by Dawn and Reto to address the existing conditions and propose systematic changes within our institution:
- Mentorship/Community Outreach Initiative led by Reto: Addresses existing community outreach initiatives while creating new resources in our engagement efforts, particularly the mentorship of diverse students at the early stages of their education.
- Racial Equality Plan of Action Committee led by Dawn: Address curricular changes, courses and studios, and strategies for recruiting.
- New Student Representatives in Committees on Wortham Fellowship search, curriculum change, lecture series, shop/technology and graduate admissions
- The school established The Anti-Racism, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Fund for Architecture, which will be used to help recruit students and faculty of diverse backgrounds and implement curricular changes.
We also have a few existing facets in our institution that already works with the larger Houston community:
- Mentorship - A platform that generates opportunities for students to explore and be involved in the architecture profession, through office and site visits, mentor pairings and externships.
- Recess - An educational outreach group working with the local Houston public schools to teach the concepts of architecture.
- Construct - A design-build program in the form of both a seminar and a studio, engaging community partners and non-profit organizations.
- Rice Design Alliance - An outreach initiative involved in creating the school’s public programs and building relationships with the design community of Houston
Mission Statement:
While the school’s leadership works toward long-term and systematic changes, we believe that it would be meaningful to establish a student collective centered on immediate action. This collective, led by students for students, will highlight, develop and act upon the anti-racist initiatives echoed by the student body. We hope to bring to light architecture’s inherent biases and affirm the idea that a responsible architectural education must be actively anti-racist.
As a continuation of the platform PLAT established, we hope to foster an environment which encourages students to come together and discuss these difficult issues openly and safely, generating ideas for moving forward. At the same time, we will be actively listening to the demands of the student body and seeing them through, with our own actions and by supporting initiatives through other groups such as Recess, Construct, Society and the soon-to-be-established graduate student collective.
In addition to the work within the school, we hope to act as a liaison between the RSA Student Body and outside entities/organizations such as, but not limited to, AIA, NOMAS, student groups at other institutions, as well as our own alumni network to provide resources for our students and work against racism and bias in architecture on a larger scale.
Ultimately, we seek to generate opportunities in the present for students to learn about, reflect upon, and act against the systematic racism and bias within our education and profession.
Items of Action:
Below are some of the ideas we hope to act on over the rest of the summer, the upcoming school year, and beyond. It is worth noting that this list is by no means conclusive. Rather, we intend to keep updating it, and would love to receive more input as the student body works together for systemic change.
Inward
- Town Halls
- Inspired by the PLAT Zoom call, these informal monthly town halls would serve as a safe space for students to reflect how their own education/environment is shaped and how it could be improved.
- Discussion & report from student representatives on committees
- Announced by Dawn & Reto on 7/8
- Bi-weekly/monthly newsletters which introduce a “theme” or narrative each month, featuring related statistics, resources, or interviews. These newsletters will also feature anti-racism happenings at Rice and our greater community.
- Per month, we plan to release a newsletter, hold a town hall, and host a Coffee Talk all pertaining to the same theme. An example of a theme would be “Accessibility to Education.”
- “Pillars of an Anti-Racist Architectural Education” Poster
- The items of this list would be derived from PLAT’s 2020 Letter to the Administration. The publication would serve as a reminder to the student body our westernized architectural education calls for taking matters into our own hands.
- Weekly Articles/tidbit on Non-Western architects/creators and their works
- Anti-racism Book Club/Movie Screenings
- Anonymous survey/reporting mechanism of existing bias and exclusion
- Becoming a point of discussion and place to move forward
Outward
- Reaching out to external resources and RSA Alumni
- Continue the collaboration with our Alumni network on anti-racism initiatives and student development
- NOMAS (National Organization of Minority Architecture Students)
- Sending students to NOMAS conference and possibly starting active chapter
- AIA
- Student groups at other institutions and HBCUs
- Coffee Talks with BIPOC artists, designers and creators hosted at RSA
- Social Media
- Summaries and resources regarding anti-racism in the architectural field as well as our own school.
In addition to the action items mentioned above, we will also be in full support of our student groups and their anti-racism initiatives, including but not limited to:
- Society
- Mentorship
- Recess
- Future graduate student collective
- Construct
Ways to help/areas of interest:
- Attending events and participating actively
- Short-term event volunteers
- Graphic design publications and social media
- Work with Charlotte and Will on a “theme”/on what to focus on for the month, organizes agenda/preparation for Town Hall discussions/surveys
- Help organize/recruit Coffee Talk contributors
- Edit the newsletter, define its structures
- Writers - articles, posters, tidbits, newsletter items
- Generate ideas for reading and movie screenings
- Communicate with alumni and organizations/individuals in the greater community
With all above said - we would love any kind of help and will find a way for everybody who’s interested to get involved.
We invite you to join the collective and continue the fight against systemic injustices, racism and bias in our education and profession in tangible ways. In the same spirit as PLAT’s work, we intend to be as inclusive, transparent and non-hierarchical as possible. Please do not hesitate to reach out to Charlotte and will if you are interested, and stay tuned for future updates.
Warmly,
Charlotte Cohen, will sun, and Margaret Tudor
peaceful protests at City Hall, Houston, Texas
ANTI-RACISM COLLECTIVE IS A STUDENT COLLECTIVE AT RICE ARCHITECTURE ESTABLISHED IN JUNE 2020. OUR PEOPLE ARE EMMA FOSTER, BAY FUJIMOTO, NATHANEL LEAZER, JIMMY BULLIS, ANNA BRANCACCIO, CAROLYN FRANCIS, REBECCA WEEKS, MAI OKIMOTO, GABRIELLA FEUILLET, RAE ATKINSON, LINDSEY CHAMBERS, EZABEL ZHOU, RYLIE DAVIS, JUHI PARIKH, CAITLIN SIMCOX, WENYI ZHENG, XUEYUAN WANG, JESSICA LABARBERA, ADAM BERMAN, CLAIRE WAGNER, TAKUDZWA TAPFUMA, CARRIE LI, AND NATHAN BERGRIN / COORDINATED BY CHARLOTTE COHEN, WILL SUN, MARGARET TUDOR
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READ OUR 1.0 NEWSLETTER HERE
Resources for 1.0 -PEDAGOGY
additional readings
Important links:
Open Letter to RSA
Open Letter to RSA: survey results
RSA Call to Action