Quote Credit: http://www.philippelazaro.com/new-blog/antiracismflowcharts
Why We Chose Our Name
To be anti-racist is to understand that the effects of a history of race-based oppression requires active work for justice and equity. It takes courage to step out into unknown territory, and humility to risk mistakes and to learn with grace from those mistakes.
Healing work requires more than words; it requires listening with humility. While stories and forgiveness are the things people often jump to, the real work must be more than hearing stories or seeking forgiveness. The real work involves seeking, learning, and acting for change. The Addressing Racism Collaborative (ARC) hopes to act as co-collaborators with all within PYM so we become an anti-racist organization of Friends.
ARC’s Vision, Mission, and Goals
The vision the Addressing Racism Collaborative holds is of a time when Meetings within PYM have become/are welcoming and safe for all people, including people of all races and ethnicities, so that all will be nurtured and grow.
Our mission to achieve this vision is to provide accompaniment and support to meetings who seek further work on anti-racism.
Our goals to achieve this mission are to:
- Develop relationships with other groups and individuals within PYM concerned with anti-racism;
- Create and update resources on the Addressing Racism Collaborative pages of PYM’s website;
- Visit meetings to invite others to join us in learning and doing anti-racism work;
- Provide or assist meetings with classes, programs, and workshops on anti-racism;
- Continue our own learning and encourage others to continue theirs;
- Making sure there is someone within each quarter that receives our updates/materials.
ARC’s History
We are part of the group who stood at Annual Sessions 2019 when asked who wishes to work on the racism within PYM. We originally thought we were the ones who would actually investigate alternative ways to combat the racism but were told by the Councils a sprint would be created to do this work. We decided as a group that we did not want to go our separate ways and work on PYM becoming an anti-racist organization individually. Instead, we chose to apply to be a Collaborative.
We were accepted by the QLC and in the beginning stages of our work focused on introducing ourselves to each Meeting, Worship Group, and Quarter via an email to their clerks and gathering resources. The next steps centered on building this website and performing survey interviews of all clerks within PYM.
Our future is being worked on with great discernment of where the Spirit leads us. We are looking for more to be involved in our work. If you have any interest in joining us on this path, contact Joan Broadfield at broadfieldje@gmail.com.
