Friends General Conference (FGC) is a Quaker organization that runs the Ministry on Racism program. This program serves two important purposes. First, it helps Friends of Color (Quakers of Color) and Friends from other communities at the margins come together and support one another. Second, it strategically guides FGC in becoming an actively anti-racist faith community.
In addition, the Ministry on Racism program supports white and white-presenting Friends working to interrupt racism and other forms of oppression.
Program and Strategic Steward
The Ministry on Racism serves as both a program and the strategic steward of FGC’s commitment to anti-racism across the organization. As a program, it offers events, resources, and community spaces for Friends. As a strategic steward, it guides FGC’s organizational transformation through policy review, training, and accountability structures.
This dual role ensures that anti-racism work happens at every level of FGC. The Ministry on Racism connects individual spiritual growth with institutional change.
Guiding FGC’s Anti-Racist Transformation
A central purpose of the Ministry on Racism is to strategically guide FGC’s organizational transformation. It helps FGC examine its policies, practices, and culture through an intersectional antiracist and anticolonial framework. This work ensures that FGC lives into its commitment to becoming an actively anti-racist faith community.
The FGC Anti-Racism Query
Since 2016, FGC has used an antiracism query to guide decision-making across the organization:
“How does this decision support FGC in its goal to transform into an actively anti-racist faith community?”
The Ministry on Racism helps FGC staff, committees, and governance bodies apply this query. By asking this question, Friends ensure that anti-racism remains central to FGC’s work. The query invites ongoing reflection and accountability at every level of the organization.
Strategic Leadership
The Ministry on Racism provides strategic leadership by:
- Advising FGC leadership on policies and practices that advance racial justice
- Supporting the Institutional Assessment on Racism and its ongoing implementation
- Training staff and volunteers to recognize and interrupt racism in FGC spaces
- Developing resources that help meetings and yearly meetings do their own anti-racism work
- Connecting FGC with broader movements for racial justice in the Quaker world and beyond
Learn more about FGC’s journey to become an anti-racist faith community.
Committees and Working Groups
The Ministry on Racism carries out its work in collaboration with several committees. These committees bring together volunteer Friends and FGC staff to advance anti-racism across the organization.
Ministry on Racism Committee
The Ministry on Racism Committee provides overall guidance and support for the Ministry on Racism program. Members help set priorities, review resources, and ensure the program serves Friends of Color and all Friends engaged in anti-racism work.
Friends for Racial Equity and Education (FREE)
FREE develops educational resources and learning experiences for Friends. This committee creates workshops, guides, and other materials that help meetings and individuals grow in their anti-racism practice.
(Adult) Young Friends Advisory Group
This advisory group centers the voices of young adult Friends in anti-racism work. Members advise on programming and resources that meet the needs of younger Friends.
Addressing Racial Wounding Committee
The Addressing Racial Wounding Committee focuses on healing and accountability when racial harm occurs in Quaker spaces. Members develop processes and resources for addressing racial wounding in meetings and FGC programs.
Ongoing Online Events Committee
This committee plans and supports virtual worship, fellowship, and learning experiences. Members help co-create accessible online spaces for Friends of Color and all Friends engaged in anti-racism work, including Worship for Friends of Color, the BIPOC Womxn’s Space, and Worship for White Friends Confronting Racism.
Institutional Assessment Implementation Committee (IAIC)
The IAIC provides additional support to the Ministry on Racism, as needed. This committee oversees the implementation of recommendations from FGC’s Institutional Assessment on Racism.
Who Does This Program Serve?
The Ministry on Racism program welcomes:
- Friends of Color seeking community with others on a similar spiritual path
- Friends from communities at the margins, such as those who are Indigenous, immigrants, refugees, 2SLGBTQ+, disabled, or from low-income backgrounds
- White and white-presenting Friends who want to learn how to address racism and other forms of oppression, and support social justice
Programs and Events
The Ministry on Racism program offers several ways to get involved:
- Worship and fellowship spaces for Friends of Color and Friends from communities at the margins to connect and support one another
- Retreats for People of Color focused on building community and strategic planning, with opportunities to include family members, including children
- Antiracism workshops and trainings for all Friends, including white and white-presenting Friends who want to take action against racism
- Support to attend related conferences and trainings, including the yearly White Privilege Conference, Center for the Study of White American Culture workshops, and experiences with Crossroads Antiracism Organizing and Training
- Money to help Friends of Color attend FGC events, such as the FGC Gathering
Help for Local Quaker Groups
In addition to serving individuals, the Ministry on Racism program also helps local Quaker groups. These groups are called “meetings.” Meetings are places where Quakers gather to worship together.
FGC helps meetings learn about racism and other forms of oppression. This includes understanding the intersectional nature of oppression (how racism connects to other forms of oppression). Furthermore, the program provides tools and training for groups that want to become more welcoming to people of all backgrounds.
Meetings can also use the FGC anti-racism query in their own discernment processes. By asking “How does this decision support our goal to transform into an actively anti-racist faith community?”, meetings align their work with FGC’s broader commitment to racial justice.
Whether a meeting is just starting or already well underway, FGC works with meetings at every stage of this journey. Resources include guidance on becoming an antiracist Quaker meeting and anti-racist clerking advices.
Working Toward Change
The Ministry on Racism program helps individual Quakers and Quaker groups take hyperlocal action against racism and other forms of oppression. This work aims to help heal the harm caused by white supremacy and colonization. The goal is to co-create communities where all people feel welcome, valued, and able to participate fully.
FGC believes this work requires all Friends. Friends of Color and Friends from marginalized communities lead and guide this work. White and white-presenting Friends play an important role by listening, learning, and taking action in their own communities.
The Ministry on Racism program partners with groups like the Quaker Coalition for Uprooting Racism. Together, these groups help Friends connect and grow stronger in this work.
The Anti-Racism Query in Action
The FGC anti-racism query shapes how Friends approach decisions, large and small. Here are examples of how meetings and organizations might apply the query:
- Budget decisions: How does this budget allocation support our goal to transform into an actively anti-racist faith community?
- Hiring and nominations: How does this staffing or nomination decision support our anti-racist transformation?
- Programming: How does this event or program support our commitment to becoming an actively anti-racist faith community?
- Policy changes: How does this policy change move us toward being an actively anti-racist faith community?
By consistently asking these questions, FGC and its affiliated meetings hold themselves accountable to their stated commitments.
Get Involved
The Ministry on Racism program welcomes new participants. Whether you want to join a worship group, attend a capacity-building experience (training), or help your meeting become more actively antiracist, the program has resources to support you.
Friends interested in serving on a committee are warmly welcome to explore this opportunity. Committee service begins with discernment, reflecting on what gifts you bring based on your lived experience and personal journey in anti-racism. Friends who have engaged in anti-racism work and who resonate with the Ministry on Racism’s approach often find committee service especially meaningful. Wherever you are in your journey, the Ministry on Racism team is happy to talk with you about how you might contribute.
Please email the Ministry on Racism team at alician@fgcquaker.org or shainar@fgcquaker.org to learn more or get involved.