On Point
'Hustlers' makes the case for women in charge Stacy L. Smith is the founder of the University of Southern California's Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, and helped launch the 4 Percent Challenge with actor Tessa Thompson and Time's Up. The challenge was simple: If you're in the movie business, commit to hiring a female director in an effort to increase the number of women helming major motion pictures. (It's hovered at 4% for years.) All of the talent and leadership behind the new hit "Hustlers," from STX Entertainment were signatories to the pledge, including director Lorene Scafaria and stars Constance Wu and Jennifer Lopez. This success "shows us clearly just how much having women call the shots can upend the storytelling landscape," says Smith. This big fat "told ya so," is rewarding reading. Enjoy.
Washington Post
Descendent of former enslavers sues after a newspaper reported that he is a descendent of former enslavers I picture it this way: Edward Dickinson Tayloe II poured a cup of coffee, opened the C-Ville Weekly, of Charlottesville, Va., and read this: "Tayloe, 76, comes from a First Family of Virginia that was one of the largest slave-owning dynasties in Virginia." Turns out, the family had also "antagonized black people" for generations, according to a University of Virginia professor. Tayloe is now suing the paper, reporter, and professor for defamation and asking for $1 million in damages. It appears to be the first lawsuit of its kind.
Washington Post
Is data helping to make the case for socially responsible investing? Could very well be, argues my colleague Matt Heimer in this compelling analysis. There is a growing body of research that suggests that ESG investing strategies, that is, considering a company's environmental impact, social impact, and governance as part of a decision to invest in their stock, can make you real money. But a new report from BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research seems to clinch the case. Click through for details, but the bottom line is that a portfolio oriented to ESG metrics would have outperformed the overall market by up to 3 percentage points a year for the past five years. And tools for measuring ESG behaviors are getting better. "Why would any investor not want to use this stuff?" Savita Subramanian, BAML's head of U.S. equity and quantitative strategy, tells Fortune.
Fortune
The fictional case for reparations Ta-Nehisi Coates has published The Water Dancer , his long-awaited first novel. Set on a plantation in 19th century Virginia that lies along the Underground Railroad network, it's Coates's attempt to bring the lived experiences of enslaved people into sharp relief. It's an attempt to destroy the myth-making around slavery and the Confederacy, he says in this new interview. The facts of slavery aren't enough to make the case for any form of real justice. "Robert E. Lee is a historical figure, and there's a mythological Robert E. Lee," he says. "I felt that maybe there was an opportunity to do the exact same thing with black people who lived under the period of enslavement, that there were stories and myths that could be drawn out and written in a compelling and literary way."
PBS
On Background
What a glorious time it is to be a historian Meet Kelly Lytle Hernández, a UCLA professor who's known as a "rebel historian," and newly minted MacArthur Fellow. Growing up in San Diego near the Mexican border, she was deeply affected by the many "disappearances"—Black youth into the prison system, Mexican immigrants through deportation. Now, as a historian and expert on mass incarceration, immigration, and race, she considers herself a disrupter. "It was growing up in that environment that forced me to want to understand what was happening to us and why it seemed legitimate," she tells NPR's All Things Considered . "And I wanted to disrupt that legitimacy." Her research has led her to create something she calls the "rebel archive," a set of records "that have been authored by the people who have fought policing and incarceration across centuries [including court records]." History now belongs to the rebels, not the winners. "[W]e're talking about developing newly empowered communities, new winners, and so we're beginning to rewrite our own stories."
NPR
The sexist and ableist roots of the attacks on Greta Thunberg We could talk about this remarkable young woman all day, one who stands shoulder to shoulder with young activists who have been fighting for climate action for years. But one thing is clear: She brings out the very ugly in some very powerful people. "Autistic girls tend to face a lot of pressure not just to act like non-autistic people, but also to live up to the same gendered expectations many girls face," Julia Bascom, executive director of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, told Vox . "We always have to be smiling and compliant." While Thunberg herself seems unfazed, the intersection of sexism and ableism is a profound one for others. "I'm not public about my diagnosis to 'hide' behind it, but because I know many ignorant people still see it as an 'illness,' or something negative," Thunberg said in a tweet. "And believe me, my diagnosis has limited me before."
Vox
Look at all these very good dogs Some 12 years ago, 47 dogs were rescued from a dog-fighting operation run by NFL star Michael Vick. Spare a moment to see how beautifully their stories were able to be turned around by some dedicated caregivers and a lot of love. Come to find out, their rehabilitation also changed the animal rescue and care community. The star of this story is the Best Friends Animal Society's 3,700-acre animal rescue sanctuary in Kanab, Utah, a place that anyone can support and visit as a hands-on volunteer. It was one of the best spring break vacations my family ever had, and we can assure you the place is filled with very, very good and happy dogs. (And cats, and horses, and all sorts of other animals who are getting a second chance at life.)
Washington Post
Tamara El-Waylly helps write and produce raceAhead.
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The Support of Her Company
How a company supports employees through the pivotal moments in their lives matters. ThriveXM Index focuses on five key experiences (Career, Family, Health, Financial, and Time). Here, SAP SuccessFactors CMO Kirsten Allegri Williams shares how she reintegrated back to work after beating cancer.
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Quote
"For last year's words belong to last year's language and next year's words await another voice."
—T.S. Eliot (born on this day in 1888).
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