Diversity and Equity Training: An Overview in the Importance of Educating Ourselves Kappa Delta Phi National Affiliated Sorority held a diversity training for the active membership and it was truly an amazing experience. Shantelle Castle, who is a sister from Kappa Upsilon Chapter, gave us an educational presentation on many different areas of racial inequality and how we, as a sorority, can strive for equity in our chapters. She presented activities and visuals to help us understand privilege we may not have recognized, the difference between equality and equity, and how to appreciate our diversity. Everyone was able to leave the session knowing different ways we can be better sisters and citizens. She emphasized not only the importance of becoming an ally but also the importance in listening to the experience of people of color. Overall, I was happy to experience this and hope in the future we can continue to expand on this training to dive deeper into ways we can become greater allies for POC. One of the presentations was recorded and is available on Greek Track for all active sisters. Some of the resources provided to us by Shantelle are ways that we can continue to strengthen our education in creating equity in ourselves and communities. • Get involved in organizations such as the Innocence Project, Campaign Zero, Black Lives Matter, Black Vision Collective, and support business from POC. • Know the legislation in your state, and advocate for bills and budgets that benefit POC. • Watch informational shows and movies such as 13th, When They See Us, 12 Years a Slave, Becoming, and many more. —Marysa Mitrano, Secretary
Virtual Volunteer Opportunities through research tasks, transcription, identification, and writing. Some opportunities require special knowledge or skill and some are open to all. Visit https://www.si.edu/volunteer/ DigitalVolunteers • Amnesty International Decoders: Join AI’s Decoders program and help advance human rights globally. Volunteers assist researchers in sifting through databases of messages, images, documents, and other pertinent information. Visit https:// decoders.amnesty.org/ • United Nations Virtual Volunteers: Team up with others from across the globe to work on tasks to promote peace.
There are over 50 open opportunities right now! Visit https://www.onlinevolunteering.org/en • Reclaim Our Vote: Help reduce voter suppression by mailing out postcards to voters in the most disenfranchised areas. Supplies will be mailed to you ahead of time. Visit https:// actionnetwork.org/forms/reclaim-our-vote-signup Maybe none of these are the right fit, or you want to explore additional options? VolunteerMatch.org, DoSomething.org, and CatchaFire.org all have virtual volunteer opportunity databases! —Lauren Porter, Philanthropy Chair
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