Along the Graybeard Trail

April 2, 2014 · 12:24 pm

World Autism Day – 2 April 2014

Holding friends and family in thoughts and prayers this day.

From Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

World Autism Awareness Day is about more than generating understanding; it is a call to action. I urge all concerned to take part in fostering progress by supporting education programmes, employment opportunities and other measures that help realize our shared vision of a more inclusive world.

Ban Ki-moon

From the United Nations

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that manifests itself during the first three years of life. The rate of autism in all regions of the world is high, and the disorder can bring significant hardships to families. World Autism Awareness Day highlights the need to help improve the lives of children and adults who suffer from autism, and promotes international attention to address stigma, lack of awareness and inadequate support structures for individuals and their families. Member States are encouraged to hold educational events to encourage a more inclusive society, highlight the talents of those living with autism and ensure opportunities for them to realize their potential. The UN General Assembly declared this Day in its 2008 resolution A/RES/62/139.

See you along the Trail.

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Tagged as autism, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, World Autism Day

April 2, 2014 · 1:50 am

Understanding and Analyzing Systemic Racism Workshop

One of my friends works for Crossroads Antiracism Organizing & Training and shared about this opportunity to develop and hone skills and to dismantle racism.

The workshop is an excellent opportunity for individuals & institutional leaders responsible for diversity or social justice. Using a variety of interactive tools, it explores the historical development of institutional racism and its continuing impact. Participants will build a common definition of racism and explore the historic development of institutional racism in the US. They will examine ongoing realities of racism including the identity-shaping power racism has on People of Color and White people; explore racism’s individual, institutional and cultural manifestations; and consider the link between racism and other forms of oppression. A strategic methodology to dismantle racism will be introduced, focusing specifically on applying principles of organizing and social/cultural change.

Crossroads workshops are designed to reveal how systemic racism plays a role in often unseen ways, creating barriers to true multicultural diversity and racial justice. We’ll help you struggle with the tough questions and equip you with the skills to dismantle racism and transform your institution.

When

Thursday April 24, 2014 at 8:30 AM PDT
-to-
Friday April 25, 2014 at 6:00 PM PDT
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Where

First Unitarian Church Oakland
685 14th Street
Oakland, CA 94612

The workshop will begin at 9:00 am and end at 6:00 pm on the 24th and the 25th.

Continental breakfast as well as lunch on the 24th and 25th are included in your registration.

Registration

Early Bird Registration: $250 (single) or $230 (2+ participants from one organization)
Regular Registration (After April 20, 2014): $300 (single) or $280 (2+ participants from one organization)
Student: $185.00

See you along the Trail.

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Tagged as Crossroads, Oakland, racism, workshop

March 29, 2014 · 11:26 pm

The Invisibility of Asian Americans: the Feminist Wire

Thanks to Grace Ji-Sun Kim for this reflection on the invisibility of Asian Americans in the news media. She provides examples of how this happens and reflects on why.

Grace Ji-Sun Kim

Kenneth Bae source: http://freekennow.com

There is too much racism within our society. Here is my latest for the Feminist Wire. So thankful to everyone at the Feminist Wire but especially to Tamura A. Lomax and Aishah Shahidah Simmons.

As we reflect on racism….let us continue to pray for Kenneth Bae and his family.

Where is the public face of Asian Americans in our society? As we follow the case of Kenneth Bae, the only Asian American faces we see on the television news are those of Kenneth Bae and his family. Relatively few Asian American analysts, commentators or advocates (with the exceptions of Connie Chung, Julie Chen, Ann Curry, Sanjay Gupta, and Kaity Tong) appear on the news media.

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Tagged as Asian Americans, Grace Ji-Sun Kim, invisibility

March 29, 2014 · 11:12 pm

Dakota 38

Thanks to my friend and colleague Irv Porter who pointed me to Dakota 38, a video about the Dakota Wokiksuye Memorial Ride remembering the 38 Dakota men hung in Mankato after the U.S.-Dakota War and working for healing and reconciliation. Check it out!

See you along the Trail.

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Tagged as Dakota, Dakota 38, Dakota Wokiksuye Memorial Ride, healing, Mankato, reconciliation, remembering

March 29, 2014 · 10:15 pm

Reconciliation Park, Mankato, MN

Driving from Estherville, Iowa (where I did a presentation for First Presbyterian Church) to Minneapolis-St. Paul (where I will meet with youth at House of Hope Presbyterian Church, meet with a group working to end human trafficking, and attend the NEXT Church Conference), I noticed a sign to Mankato. I decided to follow and see what I might see.

December 26, 1862 – in the largest mass execution in U.S. history, 38 Dakota were hanged in Mankato, Minnesota. The U.S.-Dakota war, as it is named, began in August 1862 fueled by hunger and broken promises. When the fighting ended, the Dakota people were driven from Minnesota. 392 Dakota were tried, 303 were sentenced to death, and 16 were given prison terms. President Lincoln reviewed the transcripts and reduced the number of death sentences to 39. One man received a reprieve at the last minute.

I discovered Reconciliation Park, a simple park near the Minnesota River and across from the Mankato Branch of the Blue Earth County Library. The park features a white limestone buffalo that marks the spot of the executions.

It includes a memorial created to resemble a leather scroll. One side bears the names of the 38 men; the other has a poem and prayer. Benches with the inscription “forgive everyone everything” surround the memorial. The memorial was dedicated in 2012 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the execution. Indian Country Today Media Network reports the dedication came at the end of “a year of lectures, discussions, exhibits, newspaper articles, radio broadcasts, concerts and commemorations in the state of Minnesota acknowledging the history of the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862.”

At the simple memorial, I pondered what I know and what I need to learn of past expressions of racism, oppression, and violence. I pondered contemporary manifestations of racism and oppression and yes, even violence from time to time.

And I added my silent prayer that the day might soon come, and that I might have grace and strength to work for the day, when all our relatives live in community.

See you along the trail.