Like many, we started our week heartbroken and angry. Recent events – from learning about the murders of Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, the profiling of Chris Cooper in New York, to the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, and the unrest that’s emerged in response – have made it painfully clear that we have a long, long way to go in dismantling and eliminating racism in this country. Many of us are hurting and angry; most especially the Black community.
As two white-identified consultants, we stand with the Black community. We believe that Black Lives Matter, and that we need to do our own work in undoing white supremacy — in ourselves, and in the world. We are grateful for our mentors and teachers from Holistic Resistance who we are engaged with in learning about our own whiteness, and how to support others in these difficult conversations. Other teachers include Rev. angel Kyodo williams, Anna Brown Griswold, adrienne maree brown, Layla Saad, and many, many more. We will continue to do our work every day to be in accountability, undo the conditioning of white supremacy, and support racial and social justice in our world.
Yesterday morning, millions of us went back to work, just like every other Monday. Many of us were upset by the events of the weekend. And, many (if not most) of us did not have the space to process these events or tried to do so on social media or with family — probably with not very good outcomes Pretending that these events didn’t happen isn’t an option. Indeed there’s a high likelihood that these events – and the subject of race in general – is going to show up in our workplace conversations.
We believe these conversations deeply matter and need to happen at work. However, if they aren’t held well, they can lead to harm. If you’re looking for support in holding these conversations, we’d be happy to help. Be it supporting white-identified folks in conversation about race (a.k.a.white caucuses) or developing intentional and reflective conversation-based workshops to support your people, we can bring our experience and willingness to stop into the messy conversations with you.
If you are looking for things you can do right now to support ending systemic racism — and, specifically, ending the oppression of Black people, see below for some resources.
At Connection Works, we believe that to create a more life-giving world – which is really our ultimate purpose, our reason for being – we have to do the hard things. This includes disrupting the patterns and systems that have brought us the divisions we feel and experience in the world. This means disrupting white supremacy. We all have our role to play in this. We all have our work to do in connecting to ourselves and to each other in ways that uphold and promote each other’s dignity and humanity.That’s a big part of what we mean by connection works.
Note: In the original posting of this (as well as the email to our mailing list) I had misspelled Breonna Taylor’s name. I have fixed it here. I should have done a better job of checking on the spelling of her name, and not done that to the memory of a Black woman.
Breaking Down Barriers: Getting Close to Blackness
The folks at Holistic Resistance are holding this workshop on Friday, 6/5 at 3:30pm PDT. It’s free, but we strongly encourage you to donate,
“This workshop is a deep dive into exploring topics of racism, oppression, and privilege through the lens of intimacy, closeness, and relationship building. Active listening, sharing, and connection are at the center of our workshops. We will ask questions, check in with our bodies, mold clay, and lean on our creativity when taking on dismantling oppressive systems.”
Standing Together for Love
Join us this Thursday, 6/4, from 1:00-2:30pm for an opportunity to connect and process the events that surround us. This is a space for folks who identify as white to process our feelings. We understand that members of the Black Community, as well as other POC may not want to be present as white folks process their experience. Yet, everyone is welcome to join.
Donate to Black causes
We recommend ActBlue’s fundraiser that will split your donation between 11 organizations fighting for racial justice and against police brutality.
Start Acting Today
Here is a great resource of 75 Things White People Can Do For Racial Justice. Pick one and get to work.