Families Organizing for Racial Justice

Dear Underwood Community,

FORJ is a coalition of families in and around Newton, MA who believe change starts at home and in our own communities. We are a learning community educating ourselves, our children, our schools, and our communities about race, racism, culture, and identity. We strive to achieve safe and welcoming environments that enhance the well-being of all people. We promote healing and connection between individuals and communities. We speak out against injustice, support our kids to be upstanders, and take action to address bias and inequity. From lectures on race and diversity, to discussion groups, community events, Dynamic Diversity trainings and more, we follow the lead from our communities and help families like ours foster inclusion in our city and schools.

This year, FORJ will host the following activities:

  • 2019–2020 FORJ Calendar – Meetings for families, where activities and discussions are designed to be inclusive of children, and adult meetings, geared toward only adults
  • Newton FORJ Book Group – books are oriented toward parents and teachers of middle and high school kids, but are open to all parents of Newton students.
  • Story Starters – Preschool families with kids starting Kindergarten in 2020 are invited to participate in Story Starters – an eight-month program that supports families in being color brave! We use children’s literature to engage families in conversations about race and racism.

The Underwood chapter of FORJ will plan to have a meeting in October or November. Please let us know if you are interested in joining small group meetings at FORJatUnderwood@gmail.com. We will also have a table at Curriculum Night! 

To learn about FORJ and how to educate yourself about racial justice and inclusion, please check out the new resources that have been added to our FORJ Online Resources page. The Newton Human Rights Commission also has great HRC ADULT and HRC TEEN 2019 Book Lists.

Check out the FORJ Facebook page for information about events and opportunities: 

https://www.facebook.com/FORJNewton/

Thanks for reading, and we hope to see you soon!

Best regards,

Underwood FORJ families, including:
Erika Holmberg
Elisa Rodriguez
Cristina Schulze