January Workshop: Reckoning With Racism for Nurses with Nanette D. Massey

/ Peggy L Chinn / Leave a comment

Register here!

We are delighted to announce that Nanette D. Massey is joining us again to lead a workshop and discussion over three Saturdays in January – the 13th, 20th and 27th from 2 to 4 pm Eastern! And she has two important guests who will each join the discussion on one of the Saturdays – Dr. Robin DiAngelo, author of the book White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard For White People To Talk About Racism, and Dr. Willie Underwood, Chairman of the AMA.  Registrations are open until the start of the second session on Saturday the 20th. After that, registration will be closed. Participants are encouraged to commit to all three sessions. See details below.

https://nanettedmassey.com/

Here is the schedule:

  • Saturday January 13 –
    • 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM – Nanette D. Massey
    • 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM – Dr. Robin DiAngelo
  • Saturday January 20 –
    • 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM – Nanette D. Massey
    • 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM – Dr. Willie Underwood, AMA Chairman
  • Saturday January 27 –
    • 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM – Nanette D. Massey
    • 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM – Q&A

Nanette’s Description of the Workshop

The American Medical Association has declared racism “a public health threat.”

“But I’m not racist,” you say as a white nurse. Still, you work in an industry where appallingly unequal outcomes for white people and others are happening–and normalized. WHO ARE YOU BEING beyond “it didn’t happen on my floor/shift/watch so my hands are clean”? Further, who could you be to make a difference in the dire statistics of our unequal outcomes? To make a difference in the experience of your non-white colleagues?

This seminar takes place in two hour sessions over three Saturdays; January 13, 20, and 27. Registration will be cut off at the start of the second session, January 20th.

  • Dr. Robin DiAngelo, whose book White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard For White People To Talk About Racism spent over three years on the New York Times Bestseller list, will join us on Saturday 1/13 and will be taking your questions.
  • Dr. Willie Underwood, Chairman of the AMA, will be our guest speaker Saturday 1/20 and taking your questions.

The book “White Fragility” has become a cultural touchstone for our time. Most U.S. white people, though, report having no regular contact with non-white people and can only discuss race in an “echo chamber” of other white frames of reference.

With black workshop facilitator Nanette D. Massey of Buffalo, N.Y., this is your chance to contextualize race from an unfiltered, real world experience rather than theory. With Nanette’s hallmark frankness and practicality, you’ll be left with self-clarity and the ability to act on racism within your own personal spheres of influence with genuine confidence, humor, and humility.

Registration

Register for the series on Eventbrite! The fee for all three sessions is $100.

We’re taking registrations until the start of the second session on Saturday the 20th. After that, registration will be closed. Participants are encouraged to commit to all three sessions. The material is progressive.

Participants are also urged to read Robin DiAngelo’s book “White Fragility” before joining the seminar. Audience familiarity with its ideas and terms is crucial to the pace of the discussion.

Nanette Massey calls out racism in cancer care

/ Peggy L Chinn / Leave a comment

Nanette D Massey, who was an inspiration for, and has worked with “Overdue Reckoning on Racism in Nursing” for over 3 years, has written an article in NABJ Black News and Views that describes the appointment of two Black women to the top administration of Roswell Park cancer center in Buffalo, New York, as a result of a report that detailed widespread racism toward Black nurses, doctors and other staff.

Nanette D. Massey

In the article, Nanette describes the situation that the report revealed at Roswell Park, and the changes that the institution is taking to begin making the needed changes. Nanette’s own work has focused on raising the awareness of white people to the widespread realities of racism, and supporting any and all action to bring about change. In the Black News and Views article, she acknowledges the work we are doing in our “Overdue Reckoning” project, including our current October series focused on actions needed by white nurses. Nanette cites Lucinda Canty’s remarks about the systemic ways in which hospitals are designed to sustain racism:

The experiences of Lucinda Canty Ph.D., one of the authors of “An Overdue Reckoning On Racism In Nursing” and an associate professor of nursing at UMass Amherst, add more logs to this fire. 

“Hospital systems,” said Canty, ”were never designed for Black people, as patients or employees. Segregation of hospitals ended with the civil rights movement of the 1960’s.That’s not too long ago. The structures are still in place in the form of leadership, policies, or procedures, all designed so that people of color cannot thrive. When racial issues come to light there is no accountability.” 

Nanette Massey, September 27, 2023

All of us who are nurses and who want to make change can take action anywhere we live and work. We cannot do everything that is required, but each of us can do something. Join in on our Saturday discussions for the remaining Saturdays in October! Here are topics we are planning to kick off discussions for the rest of October –

Oct. 14 – Dismantling white privilege – “What is your experience of remaining silent while people of color speak?”

Oct. 21 – DEI is not enough — “What happens when you attend the dance, but are not asked to dance?”

Oct 28 – Blueprints for action – “What antiracism actions are we committed to take on an individual, group, and structural level?”

You can learn more about Nanette, and the work that she is doing on her website, including information about her in-person workshops in upstate New York, webinars, and writing. Nanette is a highly skilled and compassionate facilitator, and without her inspiration, our work would not have evolved as it did! Connect with her now!

“Overdue Reckoning on Racism in Nursing” October Events!

/ Peggy L Chinn / 1 Comment

There are two things “happening” in October  … 

  • Our traditional “Overdue” zoom gathering is happening on Thursday, October 12th, 7-8:30 pm Eastern!  We will be focusing on the voices of students – so encourage any and all students and recent graduates you know to join us!
  • The 4-week Saturday series focusing on action for white nurses is happening on October 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th, from 3 to 4:30 pm Eastern.  These discussions will be informed by two books (not required reading but highly recommended now or later!) 

To register for these events, and for the latest information, and details, go to our “Overdue” page here!

In AJN Now! “Activism is an Essential Nursing Role”

/ Peggy L Chinn / 1 Comment

The October issue of the American Journal of Nursing includes an article titled “Activism is an Essential Nursing Role!” This article has been brewing for at least a decade, conjured up by Shawn Kennedy, now Editor Emerita of AJN, and me (Peggy Chinn), now Editor Emerita of Advances in Nursing Science (ANS). As nursing journal editors, we had experienced blow-back from readers who objected not only to “political” content in our journals, but also claimed that “politics” is not an appropriate concern for nurses. Shawn had taken a strong editorial stance related to gun violence as a public health issue, for example, and had received threats to discontinue subscription to the journal as a result of this stance. In ANS, we maintained a strong reputation of publishing politically controversial topics but when one of the articles published in the journal addressed explicitly the militarization of nursing education, we also received threats from readers that they would not only not subscribe, but would cease to use ANS content in their reading lists!

Source
Maureen “Shawn” Kennedy

Shawn and I had several opportunities to share our experiences and our mutual commitment to continuing to advocate for nursing’s responsibilities to protect the the health and well-being of all , even when it required taking a “political” stance in our journals. We presented the topic for discussion at several nursing editor’s meetings (INANE), and maintained our intention to publish an article on the topic! Finally, once we each “retired” from our editorial roles, we moved this intention to the top of our “to do” lists, resulting in the publication of the article!

We hope you will take a few moments to read this article, and welcome your feedback! Please add your experiences advocating for activism here — we all are inspired when we hear the stories – we know we are not alone!

A Call to White Nurses

/ Peggy L Chinn / Leave a comment

Are you a white nurse who is concerned about the reality of racism in nursing? Are you a white nurse who believes that racism exists in patient care – but that nurses are not racist? Are you a white nurse who is confident that you yourself are not racist? Whatever your attitudes and beliefs are about racism in nursing, our “Overdue Reckoning on Racism in Nursing” is committed to addressing any and all of these issues. We know that this is a journey, and that each nurse is on a particular part of their own journey. Racism effects all of us, and we all play a part in the dynamics that range from the personal, to the institutional, to the structural. We cannot escape the fact that there is a problem – now we are calling for all of us – including white nurses – to be part of the solution.

We have set aside four Saturdays in October to focus specifically on what white nurses can do – what we must do – to move closer to solutions, to take action. Join us! The topics planned for each session are as follows (open to change by participants as we go!)

Oct. 6 – Developing our awareness of Whiteness.” Discussion Prompt: “When did you first become aware of your privilege as a white person?

Oct. 14 – Dismantling white privilege – “What is your experience of remaining silent while people of color speak?”

Oct. 21 – DEI is not enough — “What happens when you attend the dance, but are not asked to dance?”

Oct 28 – Blueprints for action – “What antiracism actions are we committed to take on an individual, group, and structural level?”

Register now! One registration for all 4 sessions! When you register, you will receive the link to join the sessions. If you lose the link, register again. See our webpage for details and updates!

All are welcome to also participate in our monthly Thursday, 7-8:30 Eastern, “Overdue Reckoning on Racism in Nursing” zoom gatherings! We will be featuring actions that nurses are taking to address racism – our September gathering featured the new book by Tina Loarte-Rodrigues titled “Latinas in Nursing: Stories of determination, inspiration and trust“. Here are the dates for the sessions coming up:

  • October 12
  • November 9
  • December 14
  • January – winter break
  • February 8
  • March 7
  • April 4

There is one registration for all sessions – When you register, you will receive the link to join the sessions. If you lose the link, register again. See our webpage for details and updates!

Register now! One registration for all sessions!

https://umass-amherst.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMudeyhrzsqG9y9gho-ewR85Wbgq-etvFXk