37days of Activism
You wanted to know what role you would have played in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s? Now’s your time to find out. You were shocked by the outcome of the U.S. Presidential election, and the aftermath of racial violence. You didn’t know this kind of racism still existed …
I will not be quiet. I am intolerant of your intolerance.
I am thinking of the singular commitment of the North Carolina General Assembly to being pioneers in bigotry and hatred, willful unknowing, and discrimination because of ignorance and fear. It hurts me, deeply, to know that my lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex friends face this kind of reality daily, …
A is for advocate
We fight for men and women whose poetry is not yet written. –Robert Gould Shaw, abolitionist In 2008, I will be a better advocate for those who need—and want—my advocacy. Long ago on a faraway planet, I once worked in an organization where I sat through a management meeting every …
H is for human rights
Most people, no doubt, when they espouse human rights, make their own mental reservations about the proper application of the word ‘human.’ –Suzanne LaFollette In 2008, I will fight for the rights of human beings I see being dismissed and excluded and not listened to. And killed for who they …
Start a diversity bookclub
In any community, there are diversity issues – the natives vs the newcomers, race issues that pit black against white, gay and straight clashes, classism – and often, we’re not equipped to talk about them. Dialogue that approaches the issues head-on sometimes is too difficult, we avoid it, or we …
Follow the disturbance
“Put down your clever,Let your partner affect you:Tenets of Improv” — review of Keith Johnstone’s Impro on HaikuBookReviews I recently had an interesting experience that revealed to me a big truth, a Big Truth, that is, in capital letters. It was an encounter with a client. My business partner, David, and …
Be outraged by your own racism
“No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgments are wrong. Only racists make them.” –Elie Wiesel When my oldest daughter was in the first grade, she stopped me cold with just 16 words. “Mom,” she said as we stopped at a traffic light near Dupont …
Be an effective ally for LGBT people
Read this if you’re interested in being a more effective advocate for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people. (www.soaw.org/new/ article.php?id=634) These are some guidelines for people wanting to be allies for LGBT people. In today’s world, LGBT issues are being discussed more than ever before. The discussions taking place in …
