D i s m a n t l i n g R a c i s m A Workbook for Social Change Groups Virginia Organizing acknowledges the work of all who have developed materials used in this workbook. There are contributions from many individuals and organizations; most are identified throughout the work- book. Virginia Organizing is grateful for all those who are dedicated to working together, democratically and non-violently, for change. Virginia Organizing 2015 Virginia Organizing Real People Real Change Mission: Virginia Organizing is a statewide grassroots organization dedicated to challenging injustice by empowering people in local communities to address issues that affect the quality of their lives. As a non-partisan organization, Virginia Organizing especially encourages the participation of those who have traditionally had little or no voice in our society. By building relationships with diverse individuals and groups throughout the state, Virginia Organizing strives to get them to work together, democratically and non-violently, for change. Building Relationships with Other Groups: Virginia Organizing puts a high priority on working cooperatively with a wide variety of diverse groups and constituencies. Trainings/Workshops: Virginia Organizing conducts workshops and training sessions on dismantling racism, heterosexism and oppression, understanding the economy, community organizing and leadership development skills. In addition, we are also developing workshops that address gender equality. Action Alert System: Virginia Organizing has an e-mail/fax action alert system that gives people the chance to act effectively and quickly on issues that concern them. Many thanks to all those who have contributed materials to this workbook. In some cases, the identity is unknown. You may reach us at: Virginia Organizing 703 Concord Avenue, Charlottesville, VA 22903-5208 (434) 984-4655, fax: (434) 984-2803 [email protected] www.virginia-organizing.org www.facebook.com/VirginiaOrganizing www.twitter.com/VAOrganizing Dismantling Racism Workshop Table of Contents Workshop Goals ..................................................................................3/4 Workshop Guidelines...........................................................................5/6 Workshop Assumptions .......................................................................7/8 Race and History of Race.......................................................................9 Three Expressions of Racism..........................................................20/21 Defining Racism and Foundational Concepts ......................................27 Racism Defined................................................................................29/30 Action Planning: Problem/Issue............................................................71 Resource Articles Section.....................................................................82 White Privilege.................................................................................86/93 Organizing Tools Section....................................................................168 Let me give you a work on the philosophy of reform. The whole his- tory of the progress of human liberty shows that all concessions yet made to her august claims have been born of earnest struggle. The conflict has been exciting, agitating, all absorbing, and for the time being putting all other tumults to silence. It must do this or it does nothing. If there is no struggle there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom, and yet depreciate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing the ground. They want rain without thunder and lightning. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters. This struggle may be a moral one; or it may be a physical one, or it may be both moral and physical; but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what people will submit to, and you have found the exact amount of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them; and these will continue until they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress. Frederick Douglas Letter to an abolitionist associate, 1849 "THERE COMES A TIME WHEN SILENCE IS DISHONEST. WHAT MATTERS IS NOT TO KNOW THE WORLD, BUT TO CHANGE IT." —FRANZ FANON 1 Dismantling Racism Workbook 2015 Another basic challenge is to discover how to organize our strength in terms of economic and political power. No one can deny that the Negro is in dire need of this kind of legitimate power. Indeed, one of the great problems that the Negro confronts is his lack of power. From old plantations of the South to newer ghettos of the North, the Negro has been confined to a life of voicelessness and powerlessness. Stripped of the right to make decisions concerning his life and destiny, he has been subject to the authoritarian and sometimes whimsical decisions of this white power structure. The plantation and ghetto were created by those who had power, both to confine those who had no power and to perpetuate their powerlessness. The problem of transforming the ghetto, therefore, is a problem of power — confrontation of the forces of power demand- ing change and the forces of power dedicated to the preserving of the status quo. Now power properly understood is nothing but the ability to achieve purpose. It is the strength required to bring about social, political and economic change. Walter Reuther defined power one day. He said, “Power is the ability of a labor union like the UAW to make the most powerful corporation in the world, General Motors, say ‘Yes’ when it wants to say ‘No.’ That’s power.” Now a lot of us are preachers, and all of us have our moral convictions and con- cerns, and so often have problems with power. There is nothing wrong with power if power is used correctly. You see, what happened is that some of our philosophers got off base. And one of the great problems of history is that the concepts of love and power have usually been contrasted as opposites — polar opposites — so that love is identi- fied with a resignation of power and power with a denial of love. . . Now, we’ve got to get this thing right. What is needed is a realization that power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice and justice, at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love. And this is what we must see as we move on. What has happened is that we have had it wrong and confused in our own country, and this has led Negro Americans in the past to seek their goals through power devoid of love and conscience. This is leading a few extremists today to advocate for Negroes the same destruc- tive and conscienceless power that they have justly abhorred in whites. It is precisely this collision of immoral power with powerless morality which constitutes the major cri- sis of our times. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Excerpted from Where Do We Go From Here, Dr. Martin Luther King’s last SCLC presidential address, 1967. Taken from A Testament of Hope, James Washington, editor. San Francisco: Harper, 1986 2015 Dismantling Racism Workbook 2 Goals To think about our own experiences with racism and to listen to the experiences of others. To have a better understanding of racial problems in your community. To have a better understanding of racism, white privilege and internalized racist oppression. To get some ideas about how we can all actively work to dismantle racism. 3 Dismantling Racism Workbook 2015 M E T A S Pensar sobre nuestras experiencias con el racismo y escuchar las expe- riencias de otros. Tener un mejor entendimiento de los problemas raciales en tu comunidad. Tener un mejor entendimiento de lo que es el racismo, los privilegios de los blancos e interiorizar la opresión racista. Proporcionar algunas ideas de cómo podemos trabajar activamente para desmantelar el racismo. 2015 Dismantling Racism Workbook 4 Guidelines Confidentiality Exercise good judgment and respect if people share things that are obviously not meant to go any further. Respect Show respect for yourself and others. Fully participate, but be sure to give everyone else a chance to talk. Listen to others and avoid interrupting. Value differences of opinion and use inclusive and respectful language. Speak for yourself and from your experience Use “I” statements. When we generalize from our experience, we risk shutting other people down. Take risks and encourage others to take risks also Take advantage of this opportunity to talk to each other as peers. Feel free to be candid and spontaneous with your ideas, even if they seem incomplete or contradictory. Use this opportunity to test new ideas, however brilliant or wacky they might be. Express feelings — emotions are good There are no stupid questions. All questions are valid. Ask questions yourself, and support others when they ask. Our goal is to create a shared experience of learning Constructively challenge each other. We don’t have to agree, and it would be not only boring but useless if we did. Use disagreements as points of greatest learning. Avoid using blame, shame and guilt on ourselves or others. 5 Dismantling Racism Workbook 2015 Las directrices Confidencialidad Usa buen juicio y respeta si personas comparten cosas que obviamente no pretenden llegar más lejos. Respeto Demuestra respeto, para ti mismo y para los demás también. Participa completamente pero asegúrate de dar oportunidades a todos para hablar. Escucha a otros y evita la interrupción. Valora diferencias de opinión y usa idioma inclusiva e idioma respetuosa. Habla por ti mismo y de tus experiencias Usa frases de “yo”: A veces cuando generalizaciones son hechas, arriesgamos poner abajo a los demás. Toma riesgos y anima a otros a tomar riesgos también Aprovecha esta oportunidad para hablar con otros como compañeros. Siéntete libre de ser sincero(a) y espontáneo(a) con tus ideas, aún cuando parezcan incom- pletas o contradictorias. Usa esta oportunidad para probar nuevas ideas. Expresa sentimientos — las emociones son buenas Afirma tus sentimientos y los sentimientos de otros. No hay preguntas estúpidas. Todas son validas. Haz preguntas y apoya a otros cuando pregunten. Nuestra meta es crear una experiencia compartida de aprendizaje: Desafíen constructivamente unos a otros. No necesitamos estar de acuerdo, usa los desacuerdos como puntos de aprender mejor. Evita el uso de culpa, vergüenza y remordimiento en otros y en nosotros mismos. 2015 Dismantling Racism Workbook 6 Assumptions — Growing up in the USA, we have absorbed considerable misinformation, specifically negative information, about people who are ‘different’ from us and our families. We have been imprinted with negative beliefs, prejudices, stereo- types about groups of people we barely know. This began to happen when we were young, when we couldn’t distinguish truth from stereotype, before we could recognize misinformation or object. Now that we are older, we have a responsi- bility to think for ourselves. — It is very important to distinguish between guilt and responsibility. Guilt is not useful and may block us from taking responsibility. We all have responsibili- ty for looking at what we have learned and making a commitment to dismantle oppression in our lives. — Dismantling racism, sexism, homophobia and unlearning the oppressive attitudes we have learned is a lifelong journey. Most of us have been strug- gling with these issues, some for years and years already. None of us are begin- ners and none of us have perfect clarity. This work is a journey; there is no end- point. The greatest commitment we can make is to keep paying attention to how these issues affect us and those around us. — Racism, sexism, heterosexism and other forms of oppression have dam- aged us all. — Individuals and organizations can and do grow and change. But significant change comes slowly and requires work. The changes which happen quickly are usually cosmetic and temporary. Progress on equity issues never happens when we’re looking the other way; it takes our focused attention and commitment. — Racism, sexism, classism, all the isms are connected. While they are con- nected, they are not the same and they cannot be compared to one another. Some experiences of oppression are married to experiences of exploitation (tak- ing advantage of skills and labor for profit), while others are not. We may have more experience with one ‘ism’ than with others; we may feel that one is more important than the others. But we will not be able to dismantle one without under- standing the connection between them. — We cannot dismantle racism in a society that exploits people for private profit. If we want to dismantle racism, then we must be about building a movement for social and economic justice and change. — While single individuals can inspire change, individuals working together as an organized whole, in groups, communities, and organizations make change happen. 7 Dismantling Racism Workbook 2015