[Danielle Balocca]: Hey, Medford Bites listeners. Today on the podcast, I interviewed Simi Buck about her business, Loving Little Minds. She shares a personal and professional approach to the importance of diverse representation in children's books. You will also hear a new addition to the podcast today, ads for local businesses. If you're interested in having a free ad run on the podcast, reach out to me at medfordpod at gmail.com. In the second part of today's episode, you will hear an interview with Dr. Divya Anand, about the work she does professionally as a professor and researcher in regards to the well-being and representation of black and brown children in Medford and surrounding communities. Dr. Anand also discusses the work she's doing at the grassroots level with the residents of the Medford Housing Authority. So thank you so much for joining me today. I'm just going to ask you to introduce yourself with your name, pronouns, and just to tell us a little bit about your business.
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, so thank you again for the invitation to join you on your podcast. My name is Simi Buck. I use the pronouns she, her. I'm a Medford resident and I'm an Indian American. And I'm also the president and co-founder of Lovely Little Minds Home Library Project, which is a nonprofit whose mission it is to distribute multicultural children's books to kids and their families. We want to ensure healthy relationships with race and diversity. And we also wanna inspire kids to envision a more inclusive future. And so we have two age groups that we serve, zero to two and three to six. And at the moment we send a hundred families diverse books each month all over the country. And we pick them ourselves and we share them on our social media channels. And the last thing I'll say is that we prioritize sending books to those who cannot otherwise afford it, but everybody can pay to subscribe and receive the books as well. And their subscription subsidizes our costs to provide the books to another family for free.
[Danielle Balocca]: That's so cool. What kind of drove you to start this business?
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, so we're about 18 months old. After the murder of George Floyd last summer, when conversations around race had reached this crescendo and everyone was reckoning with their own personal experiences around diversity, my family and I, like many others, we were wanting to do something and participate in making a change. And we were seeing these sort of systemic societal problems that had come to light so sharply. So the nonprofit was born partly out of my own experiences of growing up as one of the only non-white kids, you know, in my classrooms. You know, diverse voices were often seen as quote-unquote, the other. And at that age, representation matters so much. You know, when you're a kid, they influence what you think you can do and who you think you can be. And I have personal stories that I can share about my experience, but we can start with the facts. And there's well-established research that books, you know, they're a pathway to empathy. They're a way for us to experience and understand somebody else's perspective. And so they're a powerful tool for change. And historically, people haven't wanted to talk about race with kids. You know, they say they're too young, it's too early. But science now says that kids notice skin color as early as six months. And they're making decisions on their playmates by three years. And by four years, they're making negative associations with certain skin colors. So the time to talk about diversity is now and we thought this was a nice way to begin that conversation.
[Danielle Balocca]: Wow, that sounds really impactful. What's been the biggest challenge of your business so far?
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, so at the moment, we package all of our books from our home in Medford with 100 books to package and deliver each month. That sort of becomes a daughter and husband, they are the ones who sort of hand deliver the local books to our local families in Medford. And you know, they, their route is like, you know, they, they stop by at playgrounds, they try to make it fun. And they actually do take a lot of pride in dropping these books off at doorsteps. But at the end of the day, I have two small kids, five and three, and my husband and I, we both have full time jobs. And so what we do for the nonprofit is usually after bedtime or in tandem with the kids. So I would say the hardest part has been balancing all of that. We've been lucky to have help from generous friends, you know, for example, with our website and for example, with our meeting presence. But we could use more hands on deck for sure. You know, more volunteer support for outreach, for example, and even more help with, you know, social media, that kind of stuff.
[Danielle Balocca]: Yeah, I know it sounds like a pretty grassroots company that you're building here. And what's been sort of the most, I mean, it sounds like a really cool opportunity for your daughter to be delivering some of these books with her dad and sort of connecting to the community in that way. What's been sort of the most rewarding part for you?
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, I would say there have been two really rewarding pieces. One has been the feedback that we get from caretakers and families about how this has really opened up an opportunity for them to talk about race when they didn't know where to start. And they talk about, you know, their kids are falling asleep with these books, they're asking their caretakers to read them over and over again, which is always a good sign. asking questions about different festivals that the books show and share. They're very curious and they're interested. And for them, seeing this kind of diversity is going to be the norm. And it's really great that our kids who are sort of in this age range of five and three, they're also sort of benefiting from the books that we're picking, the topics that we're thinking about. So that's really cool to see. And I would say the second most rewarding thing has been the connections that we've made in our community. So we've met are caregivers who have similar missions and are working in a similar space. And we're learning so much from each other. We're building these connections on our social media, on Instagram. And we've heard from authors whose books we've featured, for example. And we've been able to promote marginalized authors' books and give them a platform. So that has been really cool.
[Danielle Balocca]: Wow, yeah, it sounds like a lot of connection to new folks and seeing your kids really benefit from the reading that they're doing. I remember we actually were subscribers. There was one book that we got about that my son was really into kites at the time. And it was just really cool to see him connect with an idea, with somebody who lived all the way around the world in a totally different culture. So that was really cool. And what hopes do you have for the Medford community? And how do those align with the mission of your work? Mm-hmm.
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, so we've been in Medford for about eight years now. We're proud residents. My hope is that Medford continues to build on that momentum that it currently has. I can sense it right now. It's sort of becoming this increasingly inclusive community that welcomes diversity of all different kinds. And I can feel it in my neighbors and all the people that we meet. And, and there have been some pretty big changes in the community, you know, there's more curiosity and more interest in promoting these marginalized voices and giving them a platform. And I really hope that continues and that's what we're hoping for for the next generation through these kinds of books, you know, we want to give them. a foundation where they're able to amplify diverse voices and, for example, be okay with seeing somebody different from them in a position of power. You know, from first-hand experience, I know that this sometimes makes some people uncomfortable. You know, seeing that as a normal thing starts with being introduced to it very, very young. Yeah.
[Danielle Balocca]: Yeah, that's great. Is there anything else that we haven't about some personal stories that sort of drive the work. Is there anything else that we haven't talked about that you want to share?
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah, I can certainly talk about my personal experiences and just go into that a little bit more. So as many people of color with similar experiences to me will say, you know, my definition of the American childhood was a very whitewashed one. So in my classrooms and in my social experiences, there wasn't a lot of room for people who look like me. And I didn't see myself represented in textbooks and in books that I read for fun and the shows that I watched. And I loved to write. And even when I wrote, my protagonists were often white males. It's just what I knew. It seemed like the rules of the road. And whatever experiences my peers and I had about people who look like me, They were often insensitive. So, you know, teachers talking negatively about Indians to an entire class with me as the only Indian in that class and about students who picked up on this and carried it with them as their experience of my culture, you know, and and so you know what they internalized. was just these sort of exclamation marks in my experience that were often negative. So my hope is that we're sort of starting to change that wave a little bit with the introduction of these kinds of themes and introduction of these themes in a positive way. And I would say if people are interested in sort of learning a little bit more about us, they can visit our website at lovinglittleminds.org. And they can find out more about how to subscribe there, to the books that we pick each month. You know, they make great gifts for family members and grandchildren. You know, we have a lot of families who are, you know, whose grandparents are the ones who are subscribing. So I think that's wonderful. And if they want to contact us, they can do that through the website. And if they just want to follow along on what books we're picking each month, along with a few bonus ones, they can follow us on our social media at lovinglittleminds.com on Instagram and on Facebook.
[Danielle Balocca]: That's awesome. Yeah, I follow you on Instagram. I think if you can't subscribe to also follow the books that you're reading and perhaps suggest them to local libraries if they don't already have them. But I also heard in your story, thank you for sharing that, that like this idea of when it sounds like in your experience, like teachers being explicit about in a negative way about race and racial difference. And I like my experience was like having other kids in class that had a racial difference. but there being no explicit inclusivity. Right. And and I think that it sounds like your your books and your your business are trying to work towards that, like being explicit about including people and thinking about equity and diversity and celebrating that rather than ignoring it or or the opposite. Yeah. It sounds really powerful. I've been asking all of our everybody that I interview on the podcast what their favorite place to eat in Medford is and what they like to order there.
[SPEAKER_08]: Yeah. Oh, so I really like the porch in Medford is Southern Fair and Duke joint. And and it's really cool because you can they they have these bands that come play most most weekends. And they also have, you know, an outdoor space where you can enjoy the food. And there's a nice grounds for if you have kids that are restless to to run around and it makes it easy to go to a restaurant. So yeah, so I really like it there. As far as the best item on their menu, I would say definitely try the cornbread. Yeah.
[Danielle Balocca]: Ooh, delicious. Yeah, I've been there. They have a big swing too on the front in the patio, right?
[SPEAKER_08]: Yes, they do. I like that one too.
[Danielle Balocca]: Awesome. Is there anything else that you want listeners to know?
[SPEAKER_08]: No, that's it. Yeah, they can feel free to contact us anytime.
[Danielle Balocca]: Awesome. And we'll put those links in the show notes too, so folks can access them easily. Well, thank you so much for making the time for the podcast. Yeah, absolutely.
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[Danielle Balocca]: Thanks so much to Simi and Loving Little Minds. Please check out the link to their website in the show notes for more information about how you can subscribe or support subscriptions for others. Now on to the next interview with Dr. Anand. All right, thank you so much for joining me today. Would you mind just introducing yourself, saying your name and pronouns?
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Thank you so much, Daniel. So my name is Divya Anand, and my pronouns are she, her, hers. Great.
[Danielle Balocca]: Awesome. So just before we get into our topic for today, I've been asking everybody about their favorite place to eat in Medford and what they like to order there.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: So my absolute favorite place right now is the Neighborhood Kitchen. It's a stone's throw away from where I live. I love their pork griot and their Caribbean chicken, their mac and cheese. Yeah, I just really like the food from the neighborhood kitchen. And another place is Salvatore's. I love their bread and oil that they serve up front. So yeah, those are the two places that I really like in Medford. Great.
[Danielle Balocca]: I'll keep those noted for myself. Thank you. So today I was hoping you could tell us a little bit about your professional work and the research that you're doing.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yes, so I do two roles. One is I teach at a college in Boston, Cambridge College. I teach as a senior faculty and also in the early college program, which is a program for high school students from Somerville and Charlestown to gain college credits and this is a DESE funded program and most of our students are black, brown, African-American or indigenous students of color. And that has been one of the most fulfilling teaching stints that I've had, and I continue to go there. And last year, we taught a course in partnership with the Charles Hamilton Houston House for Race and Justice on community social justice stories and storytelling, which was very well received. It was co-taught by Bob Glover, who's an Emmy Award winning producers. So, you know, that was like the highlight of my... And a lot of what I teach inform the research that I do, which is again on, you know, race and topics of justice. So I also teach psychology of race, think outside the book, which is a course in the early education program allowing, you know, how do you foster critical thinking among young children to ask crucial questions, right? Who's not speaking? Who's passive? So on and so forth. And in my other role, I'm also a co-founder of an education consultancy based in Medford with my business partner and close friend Ariel Fitzhugh. Ariel used to be the director of the Medford Boys and Girls Club before she came and joined me and now she's also the director of the Big Sisters in Boston. So she and I started this organization together and the main aim was to provide training for early educators and parents. And we have done some work with the Metro Family Network as well. But now we are shifting focus to directly work with children and youth of color, rather than train people who are working with them. We are just kind of shifting gears. And we have some work coming up in Lynn, hopefully very soon, and a few other spots as well in that sphere.
[Danielle Balocca]: That's so interesting. What's been your sort of favorite part about all those things you just mentioned?
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: One of my favorite parts, like I said, was interacting with youth and directly with them. As children and as young adults, they don't really have the power. Sometimes they don't have the power to articulate, but yet they do have these experiences. And I volunteered a lot with the Medford Boys and Girls Club before they transitioned to the Y. I used to do book readings using the think outside the book framework, which I would even go as far as to say that the children helped me develop because I would take a book, we would just flip through the first two pages and I would ask them questions and it would go on to an hour-long conversation and a lot of students, the kids in the room, they were always internalizing their experiences in school and this conversation allowed them to hear from each other to think that, you know, this may not be their own fault. Like, you know, if they are being bullied, if they have a different experience from a teacher, you know, if they are not getting the supports or the care that they expect as young kids. So, you know, it really came alive and we got that, you know, like we captured a lot of that. It was published into a paper. yeah so that was a very transformative and very fulfilling experience for me from a research point of view and I always have think that you know whatever community work I do has to give back to those communities that I am researching on because at the end of the day I am profiting off from you know, what is happening to them. And so, you know, I'm also equally responsible and accountable to change that reality without coming in as a savior or without coming in as like, I have all the solutions, but to learn from them and to be at their service. That's how I would frame it. So. So I really cherish those young kids and their families that I met through them. And I'm very thankful for Ariel. She has been really a major influence in the way I shifted my work, my research, whatever I do in the community outside of my family. She has been a big influence, yes.
[Danielle Balocca]: That seems such a like a cool kind of intersection of like their research and like maybe psychology practice right that like Understanding the impact of these books on kids and also just like the messaging about their identity and I feel like when it's not being explored or like upheld it can lead to like that internalized shame that you're talking about right and like I That seems so powerful to be able to use that in practice in the community.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, it's also about, right now we talk about anti-racism and all of these things. In my research, I always think anti-racism, yes, but who is it for? Whose experiences are spotlighting? For whom to learn? Right? And then, you know, who is it, like, all of this benefiting? Who is this being published for? Right? And these are not questions that we often ask because anti-racism or, you know, it's not, or racism, in fact, is not nothing, is not something that's, you know, that people of color need an awakening to. Right? So you have to ask those kind of critical questions around it. And, you know, not just for kids, but for adults as well, I feel.
[Danielle Balocca]: And you mentioned like the sort of giving back to the community and sort of feeling like you're kind of like choosing a way to help that's like informed by what the community is asking for. And maybe that's a good segue to talk about the sort of grassroots stuff you're doing in Medford.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yes, and it is in fact grassroots because when we first moved to Medford, I was looking for organizations that worked in the community where I could volunteer with my daughter. And in retrospect, I really resist the term volunteer, you know, because it's like I'm a giver. And I had a conversation about this with another Medford resident, David Harris, who used to be the, who was a former director. of the Charles Hamilton Houston House for Race and Justice at the Harvard Law School. So I resist that term, but having said that, you know, in my interactions with some organizations, it was really hard to find organizations that were representative of the community, even within social justice spaces. And so I always felt like my voice was drowned out. And this was before George Floyd, I'm talking about 2016, 17. And I also felt that the, you know, like everything, like social justice was done based off on everybody's comfort. So as a person of colour who holds us in between space of privilege and dis-privilege, for want of a better word, I, you know, it was very disappointing. It wasn't, it was always like I felt like I was giving and there wasn't, you know, like it was not an equal footing. I was like all constantly getting frustrated as well because there was no conscious effort to get more, people, right? And when I say get more people who are representative of the city, it's not just inviting them, right? You have to build trust. There needs to be like time and effort invested for families to trust you to come and, you know, and it has to be friendships. It cannot be like, I'm going to save you like you do this, or, you know, you do my survey and I'm good. You know, it cannot be that. So that's when I shifted to the community work and it started with a calendar project which we did in 2019. And this is again another good friend of mine, Kate Gordon. She came up with this idea to do a calendar as a fundraiser for the Housing Authority residents. So I remember we both went to the first time we met with the residents at a Thanksgiving dinner. with Lisa Tonello, another phenomenal person who does a lot of grassroots, you know, work. And when we said that this is what we're going to do, we're going to raise funds like nobody signed up. Nobody wanted to do that and and because we were like just two strangers asking something, you know And they have had like many people come and go through the doors asking for something or giving something without really engaging, right? so we met with the residents over the course of a year and they would decide like what, and there were a lot of seniors, very lovely, you know, like chefs and like who have had like multiple careers, people doing like two or three jobs also, like there were other folks who would come in, you know, and show us these recipes. So we would meet and they would do a demo of the recipes of the dishes in the community kitchen at Edge Early Hall. And we would try and capture, because everybody is like, you know, eyeballing. So Kate and I were like, you know, capturing all of that, like scrubbing the dishes, like chopping up the vegetables, all of the labor we would offer. And then we would go home and then we would together recreate the recipes. And we brought it out and we raised, we met our fundraising goal of like 5,000, which was phenomenal because, you know, there were two things, like we didn't want it to be a savior project. First, we wanted it to be a project that, you know, everybody had a voice from the way it was conceived, executed, how the money was going to be spent. So we had constant conversations. And Lisa Tonella was, in fact, the glue that held it together. Like she had the trust of the community. They showed up for her. And, you know, so it was, you know, it was mainly because of her that we could you know, interact with everybody and build our own small relationships, friendships, like, you know, through the course of the year. So, and then the pandemic struck once we brought the calendars out. But some of the, you know, money we raised came to the direct aid of the residents, which was a big relief. And they decided that's what they wanted to do. And then we also set aside a portion for community programming. Initially, everything was supposed to be community programming that the residents would decide what they would want to do. And our vision, which it still is, is to phase ourselves out. So it would be like an ongoing program. And they already have like the seed money to do what they want without being reliant on any nonprofits or any grants. Like they created this, you know, from scratch and they are like they created the capital themselves. They are deciding how to do it, you know. And so one of the projects that came off of it is called Artaprunas, which we are doing at the Exchange Avenue location in the community center every Wednesday. So we have kids showing up and I have a collection of like, you know, like canvases, used canvases, like used stuff, like how do you repurpose stuff that would go to waste into something that is art and which is also sellable, right? So we have these conversations, the kids just come and go, you know, do, and we talk about like, how much are we spending, right? What is the, you know, where does, how much does it cost for the paint, for the brushes, all of it, you know, we kind of got it for free from donations. But then again we talk because it's also about building their financial literacy and thinking about like entrepreneurship and at the same time conservation and giving creative expression. So we have like the first day when we started we have one child show up. The second time we had like more kids than we could accommodate. And it has been consistent and it's been really good. And the Entrepreneurs' Programme is also co-led by another resident, Josette. So she comes in, she makes these connections, you know, she like, so it's coming, you know, it's coming together really beautifully. And I don't know whether I have to say this, but I'm very protective also of the program and the space because there are, you know, in the past also with whatever we have done, there's a lot of folks who want in and I'm like, this is not a learning space. This is not a volunteering space. This is a space where you are, you know, like you are not giving anything. You just come and you be. And we all like everybody brings in value. Everybody has assets. You are not the only person who's bringing in an asset. And that's the kind of thinking that one has to think, you know, kind of like flip sometimes. So you operate from a place of humility than anything else. And I'm very grateful and thankful for that space because I do think that you know, I feel like it has really helped my mental health. From the past to what it is, you know, like I look forward to Wednesdays when I'm meeting with the kids, with Lisa. She comes, we, you know, like I have two other, my daughter's classmates. We go together and then, you know, they are like talking, chatting, helping each other. It's really, it's really wonderful so far. Yeah. What's the age range of the kids in the urban area? So age range is between 8 and 12 is what we said, but we do have like, you know, second graders popping in and, you know, really talented kids and talking a dime a dozen about what they want to create and what this should be. So we're kind of open to all, but that was the age group that we were looking for. And so they just create art for themselves or what? No, so once they have created, we are hoping that we have like at least 50 pieces and then we would, you know, have an exhibition come sale at at Jolly Hall. And then, you know, so then we would collect, like, you know, raise funds and then the kids can, you know, get some pocket money out of it and then they can decide what else they want to. So it's all up to them, like what they how and what, like we are still in the planning stages. This is just the first phase.
[Danielle Balocca]: That's so cool. And so for now, though, it sounds like helping to support this program would be the form of donating to the GoFundMe or buying a calendar.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yes, yes. So we have the second calendar. Because of the pandemic, we couldn't do a calendar for 2020, but we have one for 2022, which is called Moments in Medford. So we asked all the calendar participants from the previous year what gave them joy. through the year. And we have had really great submissions from eight-year-olds to folks who are seniors. And it's such a great memory as well. We have one page, one month, featuring the women from the fourth floor. They decorated their Christmas tree throughout the year. And they like they were a pod and so that was what was giving them joy and they have a really fabulous photograph and I think three of the folks in that photograph are no more so it's such a You know, it's really sad. But at the same time it's a memory. It's such a great way to capture them like memory of their you know community and friendship, so
[Danielle Balocca]: That description, that makes me want to see it even more. That's beautiful.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean each of those pages has a story like that. I just shared one of those, but each of those has a story. Wow, that's amazing.
[Danielle Balocca]: It sounds like you've been able to really reflect some of the values of the community into those calendars. It sounds beautiful. Something for them to be proud of.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: exactly and you know like not depict you know like there's always this munition or you know like this dualism where we are thinking that you know like you're the giver and there's a taker and there's a set and you know we have a sets and you there's some deficit and I really wanted to cultivate that binary and break in my own head you know to think that I'm not giving or I'm not volunteering, I'm just being there, you know, and this is, I am actually the one who's benefiting from this interaction more than anybody else, you know, because there's so many, and you see that when people offer, like, can I, you know, I would like to, I love Indian food, can I, like, can I, you know, I would like to bring you some Haitian food, and I'm like, yes, you know? And it is, at the end of the day, I think about trust, And that takes time. And I don't see many spaces that are intentional about that.
[Danielle Balocca]: Yeah, when I think what you're describing, that power dynamic of what everybody brings to the table, or this perception of a deficit, that feels like a barrier to building trust. And so what you're saying, trying to address that dynamic and helps to create the trust in that community too. And you shared a lot of reflections just sort of about just your experience living in Medford over the last several years. There's some pretty difficult times it sounds like for many of us. I wonder if you have any like reflections on sort of what's been going on in the city over the past few years or especially the recent municipal election.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I have attended my share of city council meetings. I have been pre-pandemic and also, I think, a few post-pandemic as well. I don't really have to spell it out how it is for a person of color to sometimes sit through these debates which are very dehumanizing. And then again, like, and one of the things that strikes me about Medford, it's always like, you know, this us versus them. Either everybody is completely bad and we are the, you know, great, you know, the good ones versus the bad ones. And there's no middle ground. And when I say that, I also add the caveat that I do not like sit across a table with someone who's an evolved racist. You know, like if you say that, there is no conversation. There is no middle ground. That's it. But then I also see that this us versus them allows for white people to still hold power, because we still have a very white school committee, and we have a very white city council, right? When I say a very white school committee, what I'm saying is that the school committee reflects the same data that there is 82% of teachers in schools in the United States are white and female. identify as white and female. And we have the same in the school committee. But the larger conversation that's happening is like, you know, we got the progressives elected. And it's like a catch-all phrase that everybody who is anointed as a progressive is like saintly and You know, everybody is brushed with the same big, you know, same stroke. And I find that really challenging to understand. To me, it speaks of a lack of critical thinking. It speaks of a lack of, you know, and it allows, actually it allows white supremacy to go unnoticed because, oh, these are the bunch of like the best well-intentioned, you know, great progressive white people who have your back. And I, in my personal experience, I've had different experiences from each of those candidates. I have made, you know, like, sometimes I haven't spoken up about that. And then, you know, and I also, I also wrote, in the, not this election cycle, the last election cycle about the lack of, you know, African American, black, indigenous candidates of color. And then we had the chance to elect a black woman, one of the most highly qualified black women. Where was the support? What happened to the dime-a-dozen book readings and the city-sponsored events and film discussions? You had the chance to elect a black woman. And I hold myself accountable in this space too, that we should have all done more. But then again, I find that there is a conversation, and we have had that conversation too, that she should have signed onto the OR platform, which again, from what I shared in the beginning, for me, I always think twice when it's a white majority organization. However progressive like social justice oriented you are I would not sign off like in my current you know Where I am at in my mind. I will not sign off you know onto a platform, which is a very white and And especially after a year and a half, right? So I don't know what Georgiana's reasons were. She's a very dear friend of mine and I've known her before the election because of the housing authority and she was also an employee at Merrimack where I used to teach. So I don't know what the reasons are, but if your support to a highly qualified black woman is conditional, you are no different than a racist who wants a token, who agrees onto their platform.
[Danielle Balocca]: sure yeah i think that's what you know what we've been seeing a little bit is like that signing on to the our revolution um platform like sort of didn't make space for that critical thinking right so like if somebody's not signed on to that especially a black woman why wouldn't we sort of think critically about like well why wouldn't a black woman sign on to a camp to work with a campaign like that and maybe it doesn't have to do with being on one side or the other but something about her personal experience
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I shared with Georgiana that I was really glad that she didn't. That was me, like from my lens, I was really glad that she didn't. And I can't speak to what her reasons were, but I was really happy that she didn't sign off and she was running on a different progressive slate. And I know for a fact that she was the one who crafted the anti-racism policy for the Housing Authority. She got the staff to sign off on it. She shared it with me when she was doing it. We have had multiple conversations about she reviving the Tenant Association. I have known of her work in this space and her qualifications. Like she's highly qualified. I mean, you don't elect someone just because they are black. Like, you know, I find it insulting when somebody invites me to the table because I'm just brown. I am not. You know, there's multiple other things about me that makes me qualified. And yes, some of us have to, you know, jump double the barriers to get those same qualifications. Right. So you have to have that well-rounded understanding. Again, going to the critical thinking part, I found that really disheartening. And again, I think it's another way that whiteness works, you know, and then nobody is to blame, right? Except for the black candidate, of course, like she didn't, you know, she didn't do that. She didn't do this. But nobody else is to blame. We are the good white people. I just can't sign off on that. So I'm deeply disappointed. And I also want to talk about, like, I'm really happy that Justin won the city council seat. But at the same time, I also am very cognizant of this, you know, the whole Asian American, you know, model minorities projected as a token. And to project this that, oh, we got him elected. So, you know, we are all for diversity. As long as you don't have black women in the plural, you're not there. And creating a space for black women to speak their minds and be the full, all of themselves, all parts of themselves. I don't think, and we are a long way from that in Medford, I think. We are not even having that conversation, I feel.
[Danielle Balocca]: No, I think I really appreciate you sharing that perspective. I think it's something that lots of people felt surprised when she wasn't elected. And I don't know that that's like a fair way to feel given all the context. Right. And yeah, no, it's like really helpful to, I think, have this way of thinking.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: I mean, one one reason why I'm thinking about this now, like to hold myself accountable is like, why did I not speak up like before the elections? Like, you know, like what's happening? I should have been like and And, you know, I think all of us need to ask ourselves that, like, you know, why do we think like, you know, having this... And I think it might be a moment for OR also to hold themselves accountable. What did they take away from getting this woman elected? Why did they not offer their support unconditionally?
[Danielle Balocca]: Yeah, it's all good things, I think, to think about for the next two years, how to position yourself.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, and I hope it just does not, you know, and I hope it translates into action that's tangible.
[Danielle Balocca]: Yeah, no, thank you so much. Anything that you'd like to add about anything we've talked about so far?
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: No. Not really. I would really like to see more representation, more spaces for people of color that are not curated by white people. big, in big bold letters and people of white people who curate those spaces to have some consciousness about that. You know, because there's so much of centering and pontificating and, you know, and one of the things that that benefited me in the past, you know, four years, especially because of my interactions with Ariel is like, who are you? Who do you want to change? Like, who are you doing this for? Right? Are you doing this for, you know, the kids of color to change their minds? Or are you doing this for the white teachers to learn how to change? Like, you know, where do you like, think about that? Like, because when I was, you know, doing this community work, like, I, I just went and did like, whatever organization was there, let me just go along with them without really having that critical thinking. But now I think that, Who is this for? You know, and why? Right. And I and so and also like as an Asian American person, I always I come from a lot of privilege. So I am always conscious about how whiteness can always co-opt me as the token diversity person and make me the spokesperson. And I'm not when as long as there is no black woman, in the room, you will not get me. You know, you cannot use me as a diversity representation. I just, I'm very painfully conscious about that. And that came with time. Yeah, of course.
[Danielle Balocca]: In listening to some of the city council meetings, you know, last year, I think there was this, like, sort of phrase that kept, like, people would say, like, well, if people of color want to have a voice in city council, or they want to have their, like, You know, they want to be heard. They know that we're here and they should come to us. So I wonder what your sort of response is.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: So let me tell you this, you know, so I was for a little while like trying to get the gender equity commission along with Nicole and there were two other women and Ariel was also a part of it. One time I went to city council to speak about this and my daughter, my eight year old was with me in the room. One city councilor will not look at me when he responded, would look at my, you know, the white woman who was next to me. It's not, you know, it was so intentionally disrespectful. They were, you know, mispronouncing my name, laughing when I was, you know, responding to them. And it took a, you know, it was a, we devoted a lot of time to, you know, frame some of the ordinance and all of that. And then they were going like, you know, an ex-Councilor. In fact, he was like, we have a woman mayor and we have had like women Councilors. Why are we talking? This is so divisive. Da da da da da. And I'm like, you know, there are countries like in India and Bangladesh, Pakistan, we have had prime ministers and presidents who are women. Does that mean that every woman down the road is living a life of like, you know, like complete rights and equality? No. So don't use that. And then when did African-American women get the right to vote? Let's talk about that. So I had to school them. And then in the end, there was this white person who was silent throughout, like a white man. I think he is a lawyer. He came up and towards the end, he just pulled the papers up in his hand and he's like, this is a piece of trash. This should belong to the dustbin. We should not even be discussing it. We should not even be talking about it. And then everybody was like, oh, let's listen to him. What's he saying? And even the woman who was with me advocating for the gender, not Nicole. She was like, let's have coffee. Let's let's have a con. And I'm like, stop talking to him. Like all the labor that we did, all of that. And sitting through this whole meeting, the moment the white male spoke, you know, everybody was like, oh, let's listen to him. Let's you know, like whatever, you know, concerns he has. Let's you know, like without even thinking about like what you know like that me with my daughter in the room like you know the whole dynamic and it's very hard once you're conscious of this power play and how these things work to unsee it like for me like I am very cognizant about how like what's working like from an objective space as well in my head like you know the research I do the readings that I like they're like check the box white out like you know like things like happen like this is what is happening so There's that. And I, you know, I also wanted to share like we as an organization also one. So this is my, you know, one of the standout experiences. And then I decided I was never going to take my daughter to the, you know, any of these meetings, because I always used to take her to Human Rights Commission meeting, like everything, you know, but now I have decided not to. And we also had a really negative experience with Arts Medford. So we volunteered with them for a year and a half for a project called invisible Medford, which was an idea coming off from Humans of New York. and this was sometime in 2017, 2018. And at that time, I was like, I would feel like I'm the beggar here, like I don't have the support, the networks to create something by myself, so I need to associate or get the support of organizations that are functioning in MedFed. So I went with this idea, they were on board, did a lot of free workshops and sessions with them, multiple meetings, and then in the last year, They just did the project, advertised for the project without letting us know or without acknowledging us. And there was a lot of disrespect that was also shown to my partner, my business partner, Ariel, who's African-American. So I was like, this is it. Like, there are many things I let go, but I just needed to make a... statement about it. So we filed a complaint with the Medford City through the civil rights complaint process and I also wrote to the Mass Cultural Council because I had written a letter of support to them for a grant which was funded. So they had funding for the project. So I wanted to alert them. And it went like the process was again like textbook like show us the evidence, you know, okay, I already did but like itemize it I'm like, no, I'm not spending enough like the the fact that I'm and both of us are so highly qualified and yet it is so easy to erase and steal our labor and do that without acknowledgement and think that you can get away with it and then come back to us with more and more and more. so common and so disheartening. And I hope the civil rights process becomes more robust than just being like a neutral party to pass the complaints to both the aggrieved parties, but be on the side, like be actually equitable, which means taking sides. And, you know, providing support for those who have been, you know, given the short end of the deal, so to speak. But I would like to see those kind of changes happen. And the Mass Cultural Council paid us a compensation directly. So they kind of saved came to save them and gave us the compensation that we asked for. Although like there was, in the process, there was character assassination, you know, that I'm after money. And there was a lot of like eight page, you know, responses, which I would not go into, but it was very emotionally draining. And I cannot say like, and it was like a civil complaint, right? So I can't even like think about like when it is like a, you know, a bigger grievance, like the kind of how the process in and of itself is punishment, the process to seek redressal in and of itself is punishment.
[Danielle Balocca]: And that's all on you, the person who was aggrieved, right? Like, and you know, your story about city council too is like making me think about not only the like racial difference, but the gender difference and what that angry white guy could do in that room versus like, you know, your, you know, women of color and what, you know, what the expectation would have been of your behavior in that setting too.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Oh, yeah. Yeah. And I speak with an accent. I'm obviously, I look like this, you know, and I, and I own my accent. Like I'm one of those people who will not change my accent. And which is one of the things that I think I connect with my students so much because I look like them. Right. Um, and, but then in white spaces, I am doubtlier, like whatever qualification I have is not good enough. And it's good enough, like ideas are good enough to steal, but not to acknowledge, like with my recent experience, right? So you can understand why I steer clear of like, you know, and I try, I have learned to prioritize my mental health, which is why I have stopped engaging on social media. I'm like, no, it doesn't do anything for me. You know, it's for your benefit if I'm going to walk you through something. And I'd rather, you know, think about some ideas to do with my entrepreneur's career, you know, like with that program or, you know, something else.
[Danielle Balocca]: Well, and I think we've talked about trust a few times, but that example also makes me think about if the message is people of color can come to us and tell us what they need, that there seems to be this implicit mistrust of those people coming to city council, and when really the trust needs to be built between city council and those people whose needs need to be met by the city.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Oh yeah, and the assumption is that the city council is like, you know, can always be trusted. You know, like the city council is inflexible. We are good. We are white. We are, you know, like saints, you know, we are progressive. Come to us. But if people are not coming to us, then you need to sit back and, you know, think about like S to the Y. And yeah.
[Danielle Balocca]: That's a great point. Well, thank you for sharing those stories. They sound painful and I appreciate you telling them to me right now. Is there anything else that you want to amplify for listeners of the podcast?
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: I would, you know, I don't know, like, whether I'm the person to amplify or I have any capacity, but I can only share like, how I'm operating right now. And whether that may be useful or may not be useful, but it's not like, you know, any, like, it might change. I don't know, I'm always like learning. But one thing is to be very intentional, where you expend your energy, especially when you're working with a community, like to ask yourself, who is this benefiting? And to, you know, openly talk about white and whiteness because we often shy away because it's like uncomfortable. But just to ask yourself, like, how is whiteness working here? Which gives you the answers with like how, like for me, it's such a deep disappointment to see the school committee in the city council the way it is, right? And what does that like? And if we are OK with this, why? Right. How is because the thing with all of this is like when we talk about power and its connection to white supremacy, whiteness, it's often invisible. You know, it's often like implicit. It's under the radar, which is again like what I was talking about, like when you have like a progressive slate, all the progressives happen to be white. Why are we not talking about that? Right. Why are we not talking about the whiteness in the progressive slate? What are we doing to change that? And what did we not do when we actually had a black woman running for city council? And so I'm deeply disappointed. But then again, like, you know, being conscious and being intentional. For people who have the time, you know, the luxury of time, I would say the privilege of time because not everybody has time to even volunteer, right? Folks who do three, four jobs. don't have time to volunteer, enjoy the arts, go canvassing, none of that, right? So even thinking about like where we expend our energies, why, and for whom, I think.
[Danielle Balocca]: Yeah, that's great advice. And we'll all share the GoFundMe and the show notes so people can access the calendar too. I can't wait to see it.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: The calendars are a great way because it is about building capacities for people the way they want to be built and amplifying their assets, not what we think is an asset. Right. And the money, whatever we, you know, get will be spent based on their decisions as to how to. And our end vision, like I said earlier, is for myself and Kate to kind of phase out and, you know, they themselves like running the show and they have the seed money. We were not reliant on anybody. You know, we created something, people paid for like, you know, it's very, I'm not really knowing, like it's very self-reliant because I'm also very conscious about the non-profit, you know, industrial complex. You know, it's all connected, right? So in that way, I don't know, like this project, is grassroots, it directly benefits the community in the ways that they want to benefit from it. And they are the decision makers, there are no other curators in place to, you know, so it's direct benefit and asset based. So those are the two things. So if people can contribute, you can buy a calendar, you can donate a calendar, it makes great gifts for teachers and And it's a source of pride. And we have had donations, you know, like we have had folks, a lot of folks who are very generous to donate because the last time when we did the calendar, we could not provide them for free to a lot of residents because we had the goal of, you know, raising funds with that. But this time we were like, let's do donations and sales so that folks can donate if they didn't need. And a lot of folks have donated calendars so we can provide them for free for the residents. That's awesome. Yeah, that's great.
[Danielle Balocca]: Well, thank you so much, Dr. Amada and thanks for talking to me on the podcast.
[VEO0m0tZkkY_SPEAKER_00]: Thank you. Thank you. It was a pleasure to speaking with you. Thanks so much. Thank you.
[Danielle Balocca]: Thank you so much to Simi, Dr. Divya Anand, and Rhea Majum. Links can be found in the show notes for the GoFundMe that Dr. Anand mentions to support the entrepreneurs of the Medford Housing Authority and their community calendar. If you have feedback about today's episode or suggestions for future episodes, you can email medfordpod at gmail.com. You can also subscribe, follow, and rate the podcast on Spotify or Apple podcasts. Thanks so much for listening. Guys, what's the name of the podcast never bites?