Welcome from Bigelow Families Organizing for Racial Justice (FORJ)!

Welcome to the 2022-23 School Year from Bigelow Families Organizing For Racial Justice. It’s hard to believe September is here already! Bigelow FORJ welcomes all new students and their families to our school! In this email, we wanted to:

  • introduce you to our group;
  • ask if you’d like to be added to our monthly email list; and
  • ask if you might be interested in joining our leadership team.

ABOUT US

We are a relatively new group at Bigelow, and have about 90 people on our email list, including teachers, parents, and administrators.  We are a chapter of Newton’s Families Organizing for Racial Justice (FORJ).

Bigelow FORJ is a group of devoted parents and faculty committed to raising anti-racist children who acknowledge the pervasiveness of oppression and marginalization. We invite parents and children to engage in critical conversations that support questioning, interrogating, and dismantling of white supremacy, including anti-Blackness and all forms of racial injustice.

Last year we:

  • co-hosted our back to school picnic in Boston
  • provided feedback on the One School One Book program discussion around Racial Justice, and organized our own parent discussion group
  • received funding for our kids to participate in a program by Urban Improv about microaggressions in our school
  • organized a rally to support our school leadership around their strong programming to help our kids understand more about recent events
  • sponsored a family discussion group on becoming antiracist
  • worked with Lincoln Eliot to host a Juneteenth celebration· continued our monthly announcement/newsletter for parents

THIS SCHOOL YEAR:

We are looking forward to planning activities for the 2022-3 school year. We are looking for new members and leaders.

Please email us at bigelowforj@gmail.com if we

  • can add you as a member (our monthly email list) and/ or
  • you might be interested in joining our leadership team (we meet monthly)

Looking forward to working with you this school year—

Margo Michaels (one of Liam Opher-Michaels’ moms-8F) and Jeanne Choe-Arrieta (mom to Augie 7D and Becca-6B)