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Welcome back to the weekly COVID-19 resources bulletin for staff, created by the Staff Council office.
We continue to invite you to anonymously share how you're doing during the pandemic through a simple questionnaire. All comments are read carefully and shared with UVM Senior Administration.
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~ The UVM Staff Council Office
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Here is some more food-related information that you may find helpful (see more on the PDF index of all resources, which we update weekly):
- Burlington's North End Food Pantry provides food for pickup on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 9-11 at the back of 1416 North Ave, Burlington (the Odd Fellows and Rebekah Lodge). Saturdays they have canned food, bakery items, milk, produce, and health-related items. Sundays they offer bakery items and produce. Learn more (PDF).
- Food distribution by VT Foodbank is ongoing. Next week's dates/towns are as follows:
- 8/10: South Burlington, Burlington North End
- 8/4: Rutland, Shoreham
- 8/5: Brattleboro, Bennington
- 8/6: Newport, Richford
- 8/7: Barre, Morrisville
To see an extensive list of dates, times and locations, call 2-1-1 or visit: humanresources.vermont.gov/food-help or call 2-1-1. Make sure you pre-register before going to the food distribution site.
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The impact of COVID-19 on Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) continues to be much greater than on other groups. Racism is a risk factor for dying of COVID-19.
To help us understand the dynamics that are having such a devastating impact on on BIPOC during this pandemic, it helps to become familiar with what racism is, the many forms it takes, and how we as individuals and as a society perpetuate it.
This week, let's take a quick look at implicit bias.
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Implicit Bias
What it is: Thoughts and feelings are “implicit” if we are unaware of them or mistaken about their nature. We have a bias when, rather than being neutral, we have a preference for (or aversion to) a person or group of people. Thus, we use the term “implicit bias” to describe when we have attitudes towards people or associate stereotypes with them without our conscious knowledge. A fairly commonplace example of this is seen in studies that show that white people will frequently associate criminality with black people without even realizing they’re doing it.
Why it matters: The mind sciences have found that most of our actions occur without our conscious thoughts, allowing us to function in our extraordinarily complex world. This means, however, that our implicit biases often predict how we’ll behave more accurately than our conscious values. Multiple studies have also found that those with higher implicit bias levels against black people are more likely to categorize non-weapons as weapons (such as a phone for a gun, or a comb for a knife), and in computer simulations are more likely to shoot an unarmed person. Similarly, white physicians who implicitly associated black patients with being “less cooperative” were less likely to refer black patients with acute coronary symptoms for thrombolysis for specific medical care.
What can be done about it: Social scientists are in the early stages of determining how to “debias.” It is clear that media and culture makers have a role to play by ceasing to perpetuate stereotypes in news and popular culture. In the meantime, institutions and individuals can identify risk areas where our implicit biases may affect our behaviors and judgments. Instituting specific procedures of decision making and encouraging people to be mindful of the risks of implicit bias can help us avoid acting according to biases that are contrary to our conscious values and beliefs.
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This text was taken from the Perception Institute's website. Further reading can also be found at the Racial Equity Tools website.
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You may be asking yourself, do I have implicit biases? Harvard University has developed a number of free, 10-minute implicit association tests you can take online to measure your implicit bias on a number of topics. Try out the two tests on Skin Tone and Race, and branch out to some of the others if you wish. Remember, you may not feel comfortable with the results of your tests, but becoming aware of your unconscious biases can be a vital step toward taking effective actions to counter them.
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If you or someone you know worked throughout the Stay at Home order as a front-line worker at a nursing home, assisted living facility, medical or dental clinic, homeless shelter, morgue and more, you may be eligible for grants of up to $2,000 if you worked during the March 13 to May 15 window.
Learn more.
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In a new zine presented by the Burlington-based climate justice nonprofit 350Vermont, writers and artists explore the intersection of the pandemic and Earth's changing climate. It launched on August 2nd and you can check it out now online for free. Among the contributors are Burlington artist and activist Jen Berger, University of Vermont lecturer and long-time 350Vermont board member Brian Tokar, Putney teen poet Emma Paris, and Nobel Peace Prize-winning activist Jody Williams.
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- Check out the Vermont Arts Council statewide arts calendar for enriching and fun upcoming events like live music, art exhibits, and virtual 5k walk/jog/runs for charitable causes.
- The Fletcher Free Library will have a few notable events coming up:
- A pop-up book sale will take place this Sunday, August 9 from Noon-2:30 PM on the library lawn (weather permitting). Cash sales only, so please bring some dollar bills, your mask, and a love of books! All proceeds benefit the library.
- Window Art from Wingspan Studio: On Wednesday, August 12 Noon-4 pm, Maggie Standley from Wingspan Studio will bring the FFL front windows to life with her piece, "All Power to the Imagination". Bring your mask down to the Library lawn to watch as Maggie transforms the windows!
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Each week we've featured ways you can help, through donations or service. We encourage you to check out the index of all the ways to help which we've featured to date in this PDF.
Here is another way to help:
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