“Brave (Faith) Space” in Buffalo
Showing Up for Racial Justice, Buffalo Chapter sponsored “Faith and Anti-Racism: A Meeting for White Allies” in Buffalo, NY on May 21 with following goals: learn what people want to accomplish, and where their congregations stand; leave with concrete ways to talk about anti-racism and move into action; build relationships between folks of faith who want to be engaging with this work; practice engaging other white folks of faith in conversation about racial justice
Rev. Anne Dunlap of SURJ facilitated a breathing/grounding exercise, shifting our focus from intellectual to visceral, creating space for authentic reflection and witness in ways that create “Brave spaces,” which call us out of our comfortable “safe” spaces into risk, letting go of perfectionism. Based on participants’ feedback, key takeaways were: our willingness to create brave spaces for each other; the chance to deepen learning and connection; the SURJ values, specifically “calling people IN.”
Reflecting on feedback that asked for more instruction regarding how to hold conversations with other white people, the facilitators recognized the tension between our need to perfectly call people in, and owning our own white fragility as we all become more vocal, allowing white folks to stay uncomfortable with white supremacy.
Direct actions and commitments made to each other: holding ourselves accountable to speaking up and calling in; taking responsibility for our own white privilege and mistakes (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/heather-wood/10-mistakes-white-people-_b_68694.html, http://www.tolerance.org/supplement/white-anti-racism-living-legacy) ; commitment to exploring our denominations’ historical timelines from a racial justice lens; holding more conversations with individuals on our congregations, working to engage at least 3% in the work.
As one of the facilitators, I deeply appreciated the company!! For most of my life I have believed that we white people need to be speaking about racism to white people; I speak to my family and friends about our need to engage through a racial justice lens; for some reason, failed to create a collective voice, and welcome SURJ work. To have “brave space” to conjure the courage to engage myself and others offered much breathing room, too.
