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News from Promise Heights

Women Leading the Way & Opening Essential Doors
Left: Dr. Nadine M. Finigan-Carr. Center: The Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum. Right: Lillie Carroll Jackson, "Mother of the American Civil Rights Movement."
As you travel the streets and sidewalks of Upton/Druid Heights, you're passing along the places where some of our nation's Civil Rights and cultural leaders have lived, worked, and also played while enjoying and enhancing the vibrance of this important community.
 
During the 19th and 20th Centuries, many respected residents of Upton/Druid Heights made significant contributions to American culture, including introducing dynamic means to transform America's racist policies, expanding judicial and political rights, and diligently chipping away at serious systemic inequities. These people serve as enduring role models for youth and adults.
 
In the coming months, we'll be sharing insights into these famed public figures, while illuminating how they continue to welcome and inspire people to build on the rich heritage of this hub of African-American life, culture, and activism.
Please Join our Conversation on March 15
a series of free virtual programs in 2021


The Black Butterfly: The Harmful Politics of Race and Space in America

“The Black Butterfly dissects American apartheid with unflinching precision and poignancy, weaving together fresh historical accounts with unfiltered analysis of our present moment. Coupling diagnosis with prescription, this book provides readers with the necessary tools to dismantle spatial inequity and develop policies and practices for thriving Black neighborhoods and communities.”

Ruha Benjamin, author of ˆRace After Technology: Abolitionist Tools for the New Jim Code"
On Monday, March 15 from 3:00-4:30 pm, Dr. Lawrence T. Brown, director of The Black Butterfly Project, will talk with Dr. Nadine M. Finigan-Carr in a wide-ranging virtual discussion for our second From the Heights Zoom webinar. This Winter/Spring 2021 series of conversations will convey varied timely topics with authors, legislators, and thought leaders, each designed to inform and engage participants in current issues that impact children and families.
 
Not only will Drs. Brown and Finigan-Carr explore an unflinching 90-minute examination of Brown's book, The Black Butterfly: The Harmful Politics of Race and Space in America; they will also discuss vaccine apartheid and healthcare inequities, redlining, and radicalized politics in Baltimore and the nation. (If your daytime schedule is tight, you can opt to reserve a free ticket to join this live event or request a recorded video to view afterwards.) Click here to learn more and also order an autographed copy of Dr. Brown's book from Charm City Books. Click here to register for Dr Lawrence Brown's Webinar.
 
Social Workers: an option for a 1.5 Category One Continuing Education Unit (CEU) to licensed social workers who attend this live event. To purchase your CEU, click here to register and then add your $15 payment at the bottom of the page.
The Lillie Carroll Jackson Museum Now Hosts Virtual Visitors & Welcomes Youth Involvement
Historic photos with informative texts are installed throughout the museum that now seeks to feature virtual multimedia presentations
Alexis Ojeda-Brown is the new Program and Education Coordinator at the Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum. She began in October 2020, when institutions around the world sought to present their public mission in virtual realms. 
 
Well-versed in histories of the African Diaspora and African-American Studies, Alexis feels that too few of us are familiar with the key leaders who advanced our nation’s Civil Rights Movement. This museum is dedicated to reflect that heritage, as it is the former home of a dynamic woman named Lillie Carroll Jackson who worked tirelessly alongside top Black leaders to end the practice of lynching and other racial injustices in America. To learn more, click here.
One Year Later:
Welcoming Back Enthused Students
After Nearly One Year of Remote Learning, Baltimore City Public Schools Reopen
On Monday, March 1, Furman L. Templeton Preparatory Academy & Eutaw Marshburn Elementary Welcomed K & 1st Graders
"Children from economically under-resourced communities need to have and feel the power of being able to tap into the collective knowledge base that drives academic success in this country as well as the knowledge of how they themselves and their communities contribute to that larger narrative....[We seek] to discover what it is you enjoy--what is your passion, what makes you human..."

Dr. Sonja Brookins Santelises, CEO, Baltimore City Public Schools
On March 1, 2021, nearly a full year after schools and teachers throughout the nation reinvented the nature of education, after significant planning and careful preparation, two Upton/Druid Heights community schools reopened their doors to welcome their Kindergarten and 1st grade students back to a hybrid learning experience. Click here to see new protocols that the BCPSS has introduced to maximize safety for students, teachers, and their families. To read more about this story, click here.

Notable
Women
of
Our Community

We plan to honor a number of prominent women throughout Women's History Month
(Keep an eye out for our social media)
Sarah Wise, LMSW
Today we're celebrating our Director of Strategic Planning. Sarah has been a proud member of the UMB community for the past 15 years and joined Promise Heights in mid-March 2020.
Click here to learn about Sarah and the "Proud to Work Here, Proud to Give Here" campaign that makes a substantial difference throughout the year by helping support community-based work in Promise Heights.

To join Sarah by expressing your own pride in helping sustain our work via a donation of any amount, click here.
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