news and updates

New Book Club Starts on Monday, September 20!

equity arcata's next community book club will explore Heather McGee’s book, “The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together,” and will be facilitated by equity arcata’s Ongoing Learning Working Group members Ron White, Meridith Oram and Janaee’ Sykes.

the book club will meet from 4-6 pm on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of the month beginning on Monday, September 20. no reading is required to attend the first session, but if you have the book, please read the introduction! the other book club meeting dates are: October 4, October 18, November 1, November 15, December 6 and December 20.

free books will be provided for 15 participants, thanks to generous funding provided by Coast Central Credit Union. books can be picked up at Arcata City Hall, located at 736 F Street. participants who are financially able to are encouraged to purchase a book at Northtown Books in Arcata. you can also borrow one from the Arcata Library, located at 500 7th Street in Arcata.

please register for the book club in advance by clicking here. after registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the meeting.

for more information, please send us an email at equityarcata@gmail.com or call 707-822-5953.

check out these videos on topics related to the book featuring author Heather McGee:

Home Away from Home Welcomes Local College Students with Free Stuff!

due to the rising COVID-19 case count, the Home Away from Home working group postponed the next free food distribution, and has pivoted to offer free household and school supply bags to local college students in partnership with the Cultural Centers for Academic Excellence at Humboldt State University and the Multicultural & Diversity Center at College of the Redwoods. this supply distribution would not be possible without generous donations from the Rotary Club of Arcata Sunrise, Wildberries Marketplace and GHD Inc.’s Black Empowerment, Action, Teamwork & Success (BEATS) employee resource group.

Humboldt State & College of the Redwoods students! see below for more information on when and where you can pick up a free stuff bag on campus (please note that pick up dates are different for each center based on when they are open in-person):

Umoja Center for Pan African Student Excellence at HSU, located at Nelson Hall East 206. free stuff bags will be available beginning Friday, September 17.
El Centro Académico Cultural at HSU, located at Nelson Hall East 205. bags will be available on Monday, September 20.
Social Justice, Equity & Inclusion Center and the Asian Desi & Pacific Islander Collective at HSU, located at Balabanis House 55. bags will be available on Monday, September 20.
ITEPP Native American Center for Academic Excellence at HSU, located at Brero House 93. free stuff bags will be available on Monday, October 4.
Multicultural & Diversity Center at College of the Redwoods, located at LRC 102. bags will be available on Monday, September 20.

free stuff bags will be available at the centers while supplies last. for more information or to sign up to be notified about our next free meal and household supply distribution, please email equityarcata@gmail.com or call 707-822-5953.

Ongoing Learning Opportunities for the Community

equity arcata’s Ongoing Learning Working Group is excited to offer the community opportunities to engage in conversations surrounding racial equity.

members of the community who identify as white are invited to participate in equity arcata’s virtual Whiteness Accountability Space held every Thursday from 12 to 1 pm. the purpose of holding this space is to mitigate harm caused to BIPOC community members when white people participate in conversations on these topics in diverse spaces. these weekly conversations are led by white facilitators who are members of the equity arcata collective. to participate, email equityarcata@gmail.com for the Zoom link.

Welcoming Businesses Working Group Update

click this link view the latest welcoming businesses newsletter. for more workplace ongoing learning resources for businesses, click here. the next welcoming businesses working group meeting is on wednesday, september 15th from 4:30 to 5:30 pm. email chuckjpowell@gmail.com for the Zoom link.

State of the City of Arcata

Humboldt State University student members of the equity arcata collective presented at the Arcata Chamber of Commerce’s virtual State of the City of Arcata event on Tuesday, February 9. to view a recording of the presentation, please click here.

are you looking for ways to support the local Black community? check out the organizations below:

are you looking for ways to support the local Indigenous community? check these links out:

equity arcata collective statement on COVID-19

as COVID-19 spreads and the public health emergency intensifies, equity arcata calls on local governments and institutional leaders to pay special attention to the impact that this disease and their response to its spread may have on people of color.

we call for an approach that provides accurate information and advances policies based on science. we call on decision-makers to act with compassion and provide comprehensive medical and social services for those most vulnerable to exposure. we are all only as safe as those members of our community who are most at risk.

Race Forward’s statement on racialized disparities reminds us:

“while we know that anyone can contract the virus, we also know that the impacts on communities of color could be severe. people of color are disproportionately likely to be in low-paying or hourly-wage jobs that make them unable to provide care or interrupt work. they are also more likely to have limited access to affordable healthcare, childcare, and transportation. people of color are more likely to face unsanitary conditions inside prisons, jails, and detention centers. funding disparities in communities of color have led to hospital closures; shortages of frontline doctors and nurses; higher incidences of chronic conditions, such as hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease; housing overcrowding; and lack of quality elder care.” in Humboldt County, we see this applies especially to our Native and immigrant residents.

historically, government responses to urgent health concerns have been shaped by implicit and explicit bias. this public emergency has already harmed Chinese and Asian American community members through increased acts of bigotry and discrimination. emergency planning must consider that health inequities and racialized fears may exacerbate infection rates through the misallocation of time and resources, creating additional impacts and problems to solve.

equity arcata strongly urges all leaders and decision-makers to actively dispel myths and racist misinformation, and to collectively work to create a system-wide response needed to end the spread of this communicable disease. local leaders must address the needs of the most marginalized populations in our community while stamping out stigma and blame. all of our health security is at stake.

*adapted from Race Forward Statement on the Coronavirus Emergency, Official Response and its Impacts on Communities of Color, www.raceforward.org.

please click here to find COVID-19 resources.

please click here to read our housing working group’s open letter to landlords & property managers

navigating COVID-19.

to help Humboldt State University students experiencing food insecurity as a result of COVID-19, our home away from home working group is raising funds to benefit HSU’s Oh SNAP! student food program. please click here to learn more about Oh SNAP! and how the program is providing students safe access to culturally appropriate and nutritious food. please click here to make a donation to this much-needed program.

for more information regarding equity arcata, send us an email at equityarcata@gmail.com. or call 707-822-5953.