October 2017 – Inclusivity Team Order of Service Insert
Download the PDF of this insert. (full text below)
The Path is There… Put One Foot in Front of the Other
Taking responsibility for racism and disrupting white supremacy culture, may be the greatest challenge we face. But we are in it together, saddled with a heritage not of our making. Our next steps, however, are uniquely ours. We may not have created white supremacy, but only we can disrupt it.
2017-18 UUA Common Read
A Common Read invites participants to read and discuss the same book in a given period of time. A Common Read can build community in our congregation and our movement by giving diverse people a shared experience, shared language, and a basis for deep, meaningful conversations.
Centering
Edited by Rev. Mitra Rahnema
In October 2015, a group of distinguished UU religious professionals of color gathered together in Chicago to embark on a radical project. The conference was sponsored by the UUMA’s Committee on Antiracism, Anti-oppression, and Multiculturalism. The goal was to reframe Unitarian Universalist anti-oppression work by putting the voices, experiences, and learnings of People of Color at the center of the conversation. The resulting book, Centering, captures the papers that were presented and the rich dialogue from the conference to share personal stories and address the challenges that religious leaders of color face in exercising power, agency, and authority in a culturally White denomination. Centering explores how racial identity is made both visible and invisible in UU ministries.
Join the Discussion at Albany UU:
Three sessions
Beginning November 2017
Facilitated by Ministerial Intern Eileen Casey-Campbell
Thought provoking congregational dialog
Available from Skinner House Books, or from Amazon in both Kindle and paperback formats
Will You Make a Personal Commitment to Disrupt White Supremacy Culture?
The path is there… choose as many of these commitments as you’d like, to begin or continue your journey down this path, and feel free to add commitments that are uniquely your own – your journey, your path.
I COMMIT TO:
Taking the responsibility for educating myself about racism and white supremacy culture.
Listening to Robin DiAngelo’s GA2017 talks (available at
http://members.albanyuu.org/secure2/).
Participating in an antiracism discussion group at Albany UU or elsewhere.
Participating in local groups such as CAAMI, Black Lives Matter, Showing Up for Racial Justice, or other social justice organizations.
Reading the UUA Common Read book: Centering.
Including antiracism as part of the discussion at meetings.
Spending a full day mindfully referring to everyone specifically by their race (i.e. Judy, the white woman).
Taking risks in relating to people across lines of difference.
Working to identify racism as it is happening.
Keeping my defenses in check when issues about racism are raised.
Using my voice when I observe a micro-agression.
Seeking to understand and asking questions rather than disagreeing or agreeing when People of Color point out racism as it is happening.
Being present emotionally when individuals need to express feelings about racism.