Submit a Report of Racial Wounding to the Racial Wounding Committee:

FGC Racial Wounding Reporting Form

Click above to report an incident of racial wounding at an FGC-affiliated event. The committee welcomes reports from any Friend who has experienced harm. All submissions remain confidential.

The Addressing Racial Wounding Committee provides support to Friends who have experienced racial wounding at an FGC-affiliated event. This committee is part of the Ministry on Racism program, which guides FGC’s commitment to becoming an actively anti-racist faith community. The guidelines below describe how the committee supports Friends and holds FGC accountable.

Since its formation, the committee has received and provided support for 24 reports of racial wounding at FGC-affiliated events.

man and woman holding hands

Understanding Racial Wounding

First and foremost, racial wounding is what a Person of Color says it is. The committee offers this definition, knowing that many other definitions exist.

Racial wounding occurs when someone protects power, white supremacy culture, institutions, or the status quo above the well-being of a Person of Color. This protection can take many forms, including:

Harm and Diminishment

  • Harm to a Person of Color, whether intentional or not
  • Acts, sentiments, or behaviors that reduce someone’s humanity to a race-based stereotype

Exclusion and Erasure

  • Othering, exclusion, silencing, or erasure of a Person of Color
  • Denial of a Person of Color’s lived experience
  • Dictating the appropriateness of a Person of Color’s emotional response (tone policing)

Boundary Violations

  • Appropriating, tokenizing, or exotifying the cultures of People of Color
  • Disrespecting the boundaries of a Person of Color
  • Nonconsensual entitlement to People of Color’s time, attention, emotional labor, bodies, or spaces
  • White people entering POC-only spaces where their presence is not appropriate

Committee Priorities for Addressing Racial Wounding

The Addressing Racial Wounding Committee focuses on four priorities:

  1. Healing and restoration shaped in collaboration with the person who experienced harm; the committee prioritizes impact over intent while honoring the dignity and humanity of all involved
  2. Deepening relationships among Friends and strengthening our community
  3. Accountability and amends when desired by the person who experienced harm; the committee offers tools that honor the dignity and humanity of all involved
  4. Organizational accountability by holding FGC responsible for harm that occurs at its events, meetings, and communications

How the Committee Works

The committee maintains enough members to ensure that at least three members can convene as a support circle on short notice. This structure allows the committee to respond quickly when a Friend brings a concern.

Friends who submit a report have options. They may recuse specific committee members from handling their case. They may also request specific committee members. Additionally, Friends may invite one or two other Friends outside the committee to join their support circle. These invited Friends serve as ad hoc members for as long as that support circle meets.

Core Principles for Addressing Racial Wounding

The committee operates on several core principles:

Friends will be heard and believed. This process serves people who have experienced racial wounding within the FGC community. Committee members place unconditional trust in each Friend of Color who engages in this process. They listen fully and believe the experience and self-knowledge of these Friends.

Impact matters more than intent. The committee prioritizes the impact of harm over the intentions behind it. Good intentions do not erase harm. By focusing on impact, the committee creates space for genuine accountability and the possibility of healing.

Collaboration shapes the path forward. The committee follows the lead of the person who experienced harm in determining what support they need. Together, they shape a path that may open the way toward healing and restoration. This collaborative approach honors the agency and wisdom of the person who was harmed.

Dignity and humanity guide the process. The committee honors the dignity and humanity of all involved. This includes the person who experienced harm, the person who caused harm, and the broader community. Accountability processes work best when they recognize that of God in everyone.

Relationship comes first. This process builds relationships and maintains community. It does not follow a checklist of goals or steps. Committee members build trust, stay in relationship, and check in often – not just about the harm.

Consensual communication is key. The committee does not force Friends to relive an experience of racial wounding. Instead, it supports the possibility of healing by creating space for Friends to share only what they feel comfortable sharing.

Confidentiality matters. The committee respects the privacy of Friends engaging in this process. It shares information publicly or only with collaborating parties at the explicit request of the Friend who raised the concern.

Possible Remedies for Racial Wounding

The committee works collaboratively with Friends to explore what remedies may support them. Together, they identify options that align with the scope and capacity of the committee, the Ministry on Racism, and FGC. This conversation honors the needs of the person who experienced harm while being honest about what the committee and FGC can offer.

Some possible remedies include:

  • Being heard and held in worship by the support circle
  • Documentation of the incident
  • Being heard by the person who caused harm, without that person’s reply
  • An invitation for the person who caused harm to offer an apology
  • Recommendations for policy changes that may help prevent similar harm
  • An invitation for the person who caused harm to participate in an accountability process
  • In situations where other approaches have not resolved the concern, a request is made for the person who caused harm to leave the FGC event

The committee brings patterns of oppression to the attention of the larger body through designated noticers. Additionally, the committee may connect Friends with resources beyond what FGC can provide when their needs extend past the committee’s capacity.

Addressing Racial Wounding at Individual and Structural Levels

Some cases involve harm between individuals. Other cases reveal the need for structural changes. In all cases, the committee does what is necessary to fulfill the affected Friend’s request.

This work may involve inviting Friends who caused harm to participate in remediation or accountability. It may also mean passing concerns to appropriate standing committees to continue holding FGC accountable. When the committee passes a concern to another body, it maintains contact until the measure is clearly addressed.

Support circles call on the larger committee’s resources when necessary. The committee members in a support circle may differ from those maintaining a related accountability process.

Documentation and Transparency

The committee keeps confidential records of all submitted Racial Wounding Reporting Forms. To promote transparency and raise awareness, the committee may share anonymized, aggregate data with the larger community. For example, it may share the number of reports submitted per year. However, the committee never shares identifying information.

Connect with the Committee

The Addressing Racial Wounding Committee welcomes questions about its work. Current committee members include:
Volunteer Friends

  • Amy Rowland
  • Braveheart Gillani
  • Cy deVries
  • Inaara Neal-Shiraz
  • Marijke van Roojen
  • Melanie Gifford
  • Miriam Mulsow

Ministry on Racism Staff

  • alicia nance
  • Shaina Robinson

Friends can learn more about these guidelines for addressing racial wounding by contacting the Ministry on Racism program.

To submit a report, use the Racial Wounding Reporting Form at the top of this page. To learn more about FGC’s broader anti-racism work, visit the Ministry on Racism page or explore resources on becoming an anti-racist Quaker meeting.

Please email the Ministry on Racism team at alician@fgcquaker.org or shainar@fgcquaker.org with questions.

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