Monthly Topics

Resetting the Frame – Creating the World We Want

May 12, 2015

siskDespite the futility of Ferguson, Baltimore and North Charleston, things are about to change dramatically. Our guest presenter will be author and global leadership development specialist Chet W. Sisk.   He will talk about something that is hidden in plain sight.  In his view the world is in the middle of a dramatic and powerful paradigm shift that will re-arrange everything. In his new book, Above And Beyond All That We Know: How To Thrive And Succeed In The Current World Paradigm Shift, Chet outlines the 54 biggest world transforming trends and how they are affecting our associations, our families, our employment opportunities, what we eat, where we go, and how it will recast our relationship to white privilege and the current power structure.  Instead of only protesting and marching about injustices, Chet will describe a framework of what can be done to actualize our biggest dreams of peace, empowerment and connectedness. This data-driven research provides a blueprint for our future and the future of our children.

Please see the introduction to his book Here:  Above and Beyond - Introduction

Or you can hear him read his introduction at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6BqRVCeOW4

American Denial

April 2015

We will discuss the documentary film American Denial, which tells the story of researcher and Nobel Laureate Gunnar Myrdal whose study, An American Dilemma, provided a provocative inquiry into the dissonance between stated beliefs as a society and what is perpetuated and allowed in the name of those beliefs. His inquiry into the United States' racial psyche during Jim Crow becomes a lens for modern inquiry into how denial, cognitive dissonance, and unrecognized, unconscious attitudes continue to dominate racial dynamics in American life. The film’s unusual narrative sheds a unique light on the unconscious political and moral world of modern Americans.

The discussion will prepare us to go deeper with Ian Haney López when he comes to speak at the History Colorado Center on the evening of April 28 at 6PM. His topic will be “Race Whisperer: Decoding the Silent Language of Politics in America.” Please see the separate flyer attached as a PDF.

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Also see the attached PDF below for an announcment of the upcoming Building Bridges Circles of Change Luncheon on April 17th, where Harold Fields will receive an award.

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During last month’s discussion Arthur McFarlane pointed out that when race is talked about in our society, we are not having the same conversations. The perceptions of race can seem so different. The roots of this divide are deeply rooted in the history of separation.

In the March discussion we will look at contemporary events that give us insight into the nature of disparate attitudes. And we will explore ways to align the different narratives about where we’ve been and where we are going.

 

The February discussion will focus on the dynamics of speaking truth to power.  This can take many forms, such as dealing with political power, interacting with police, or starting a movement.  We will view this through the perspective of the life and writings of W.E.B. Du Bois, who challenged the oppression African Americans faced during the first half of the 20th century.  Our guide will be Du Bois’ great grandson, Arthur McFarlane, and will look at how his grandfather interacted with the power structure of his day and how that relates to contemporary patterns and events.  He will share his thoughts on how the Civil Rights Movement has changed and the new nature of racial tension in the US.

The January discussion will look at the process of dehumanization of a population and especially its children.  Professor john powell indicates that dehumanization is the route to moral exclusion and the denial of basic human protections to a group or its members.  We will discuss some of the mechanisms that are still in play that cause so many children of color to be seen and treated as “less than” and the impact it has on those children and all of us.

 

You are invited to take a look at powells report “Poverty and Race Through a Belongingness Lens” at: http://www.nwaf.org/content/uploads/oldsite/FileCabinet/DocumentCatalogFiles/Other/PMpowell.pdf