Many Friends, wishing to see that of God affirmed in all people, have already committed themselves to dismantling systemic racism within the Religious Society of Friends and beyond. If you have not done so, we prayerfully ask that you join us in the urgent commitment.

Below is the text of the Vital Friends eNewsletter distributed to Friends on June 4th, 2020. We will add resources to this page in the days ahead.

Dear Friend,

On Saturday, Friends gathered for FGC’s weekly Saturday evening worship on Zoom. Our hearts were heavy over the instances of racial hatred that we had witnessed through news reports earlier in the week, from the profiling of Christian Cooper in New York City to the murder of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis. Peaceful protests in response to the incident in Minneapolis had given way to violent rioting in cities across the United States, and for many of us, the sounds of helicopters and emergency sirens could be heard over our heads as we sat in virtual worship together.

Out of the silence, our General Secretary Barry Crossno shared – “As we work to dismantle systemic racism, how can we replace it with systemic love?”

Before we can create systemic love, we need to confront the realities that got us here. People of Color in the United States are being attacked on many levels right now – from the COVID-19 pandemic (which is disproportionately infecting and killing Black patients) and the subsequent economic downturn (which Black workers are feeling the brunt of) to state-sanctioned violence. We are still seeing persistent patterns of police brutality towards communities of color and the murder of Black people at the hands of police officers, and the lack of accountability from the justice system is also an ongoing issue. The murder of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis was the final straw for millions of people, which, when you put all of these factors together, explain the nonviolent protests and the incidents of rioting that are occurring across the United States.

There is also anger among People of Color over white culture’s push to go back to normal (a desire that is rooted in white supremacist thinking). Normal wasn’t working for everyone. When a group of white citizens can storm a state capital with assault rifles, scream in the faces of law enforcement officials about not being able to get a haircut or eat dinner out, and walk away without a scratch while Black and brown community members who are peacefully protesting police officer-involved murders are beaten and tear-gassed by the police and National Guard, it’s clear that there is a different standard of justice at work. Now is the time to focus on the need for change, and to learn about and understand the oppression and the trauma that has defined the lives of too many of our loved ones for so long.

Love can be powerful and transformative.  It can ground us for action, motivate us to set boundaries with those who are perpetuating harm, and help us call for change when there is pain and suffering occurring. Right now, people we love are being hurt and killed by the scourge of systemic racism and structures of white supremacy. Love in this instance means change. It’s time to make a commitment and say:

“I no longer want the people I love to be in pain, and I’m willing to make the sacrifices needed, as a person and as part of a community, so that my loved ones are no longer suffering.”

It was love, commitment to our spiritual principles, and the desire to heal the wounds of racism and white supremacy that helped move FGC’s Central Committee to approve an Institutional Assessment on Systemic Racism in 2016. The assessment led to the creation of the Institutional Assessment Implementation Committee that now holds FGC accountable as an institution to identify and heal the wounds of systemic racism as we face them within the FGC community.

Many Friends, wishing to see that of God affirmed in all people, have already committed themselves to dismantling systemic racism within the Religious Society of Friends and beyond.  If you have not done so, we prayerfully ask that you join us in the urgent commitment.

Members of the Institutional Assessment Implementation Committee have organized a listing of resources to guide Friends and Quaker communities that are seeking ways to respond to systemic racism and bring about lasting change. If, like us, you are mourning George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the many individuals who have been killed by systemic racism in the form of police-involved shootings and the response to COVID-19 that has disproportionately impacted communities of color, we encourage you to explore these resources, materially support those who are pushing back against systems of oppression, and join us.

In solidarity,
FGC Staff  &  Members of the Institutional Assessment Implementation Committee

In this issue:

• Ways to Take Action
• Worship Opportunities for Friends of Color
• Recommended Articles and Recordings
• Self-Care and Mental Health Resources for Friends Who Are Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC)
• Minutes from Quaker Monthly and Yearly Meetings

Ways To Take Action

Recommended by Members of the Implementation Committee

Note: The fundraisers shared below are community-organized and are not connected to FGC.

• The Movement for Black Lives (Note that now through June 7th is the Week of Action to Defend Black Lives)
• List of Bail Funds for Protestors across the Country
• Anti-Racism Resources for White People and Parents to Deepen our Anti-Racism Work
• Justice for Breonna Taylor
• Official George Floyd Memorial Fund
• 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
• Floyd Murder by Police Officer Is an Outrage, Says National Council of Churches USA
• 38 Community Bail Funds to Support Right Now

Responses and Resources Organized by Quaker Organizations

• AFSC condemns police killing of George Floyd and police violence against protesters, from American Friends Service Committee
• Buying Groceries Should Not Result in Death, from Friends Committee on National Legislation
• Racism and Whiteness, A Statement by Diane Randall, from Friends Committee for National Legislation

FGC is setting up a regular Meeting for Worship for Friends of European Descent Confronting Racism. We are planning for it to meet weekly at 12:00pm EDT on Fridays. It will be hosted by the Ministry on Racism Program and co-clerked by Carolyn Lejuste and Janice Domanik.

People can check the worship opportunities page of our website for up-to-date information and to register.

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Worship Opportunities for Friends of Color

One of the most important ways we can further anti-racism work as Friends is to create spaces where People of Color can foster community and share their experiences together in spaces just for them (we share this article from The Arrow frequently to explain why this is so important).

FGC’s Ministry on Racism Program organizes virtual Meeting for Worship (weekly midday and evening opportunities as well as a monthly worship), a virtual Open House, and weekly virtual worship sharing for Friends of Color. This year, we will hold the Pre-Gathering Retreat for Friends of Color and Their Families online as part of the FGC Virtual Gathering. To learn more about our virtual opportunities for Friends of Color and to register for them, visit the Ministry on Racism’s page on the FGC website.

Recommended Articles and Recordings

Suggested readings from Friends of the Institutional Assessment Implementation Committee.

Some of the voices featured below may use profanity to communicate their outrage over systemic racism and oppression. We believe that to truly understand how we got to this point and how we move forward together, we need to hear the words of community members and the creators of these works as they are expressed.

• The Daily Beast – Trevor Noah: ‘Police In America Are Looting Black Bodies’ (Video and Article)
• 14East Magazine – Beware of the White Gaze
• Fellowship of Friends of African Descent Minute Regarding State Sanctioned Violence, 2016
• Vox – The US medical system is still haunted by slavery (an article that provides background information on systemic racism in healthcare)
• AFSC – Standing up to anti-Asian racism
• The New York Times – Remember, No One Is Coming to Save Us
• Teen Vogue – How to Be an Activist When You’re Unable to Attend Protests (an article for disabled community members who want to take action)
• QuakerSpeak – White Quakers Confronting White Privilege (Video)
• The New York Times – The Slur I Never Expected to Hear in 2020
• Al Jazeera – Racism: The most dangerous ‘pre-existing condition’
• The Conscious Kid – Overt White Supremacy (Socially Unacceptable) and Covert White Supremacy (Socially Acceptable) (Instagram image)
• Washington Post Op-Ed – When black people are in pain, white people just join book clubs
• Canadian Dimension – Yes, Canada Has a Racism Crisis and It’s Killing Black and Indigenous Peoples
• Voice of America – Native Americans Want to be Included in Race Talks
• Medium | Race – Five Things White People Need to Know About Anti-Police Protests
• Forge – Performative Allyship Is Deadly (Here’s What to Do Instead)
• Vulture – What Is an Anti-Racist Reading List For?
• Truthout – We Are Witnessing an Uprising Against a World Built on Anti-Blackness
• The New York Times – Debunking a Myth: The Irish Were Not Slaves, Too
• The New York Times Magazine – It Is Time for Reparations (explains the effects of structural racism in the United States on African Americans and why reparations are owed)
• Short Wave by NPR – Fat Phobia And Its Racist Past And Present

Members of the Institutional Assessment Implementation Committee have also appreciated The Atlantic‘s coverage and commentary about systemic racism, white supremacy, and America’s history of racial oppression:

• How Did We Get Here?: 163 years of The Atlantic’s writing on race and racism in America
• The American Nightmare
• How White Backlash Controls American Progress
• The Atlantic‘s Social Distance Podcast – The Racial Contract (Podcast recording)
• The Coronavirus Was an Emergency Until Trump Found Out Who Was Dying (an article that provides background information on systemic racism perpetuated through decisions around reopening the country to benefit the economy, not to save black and brown patients that have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus)
• The People Who Profited Off the Trail of Tears
• James Baldwin Was Right All Along

Self-Care and Mental Health Resources for Friends Who Are Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC)

Compiled by Vanessa Julye and Olivia Pandolfi of FGC’s Ministry on Racism Program.

Workshops

• FGC Virtual Gathering 2020 – Self Care for People of Color with Regina Renee Ward and Sarah Haber

Affirmations

• HuffPost – 10 Daily Positive Affirmations For When Black Lives Forget That They Matter

Articles

• Self Magazine – 44 Mental Health Resources for Black People Trying to Survive in This Country
• Forge – The More Important the Work, the More Important the Rest
• Girls’ Night In – What Self-Care Means to Me as a Woman of Color
• Colorlines – 4 Self-Care Resources for Days When the World is Terrible

Music:

• The ZORA Music Canon – The 100 most iconic albums by African American women

Websites

• ZORA, a Medium Publication for Women of Color

Minutes from Quaker Monthly and Yearly Meetings

• Lake Forest Friends Meeting
• Broadmead Friends Meeting
• Britain Yearly Meeting
• Sierra Cascades Yearly Meeting
• Whidbey Island Friends Meeting
• Bellingham Friends Meeting, Forum on Racial Justice
• Bridge City Friends Meeting
• West Knoxville Friends Meeting
• Atlanta Friends Meeting
• North Pacific Yearly Meeting

Has your Quaker community or organization approved a minute or created a resource that you’d like us to share here? Send it to us for consideration.