As many of you know our June meeting is traditionally the Juneteenth celebration of the slaves in Texas finally getting word of the Emancipation Proclamation. I am sorry that I need to cancel the meal this year. I’ve been so engaged in the planning for Dr. Vincent Harding’s memorials and family remembrances that I have delayed the planning for Juneteenth too long. John Ferguson will be out of town. And I am pretty exhausted. So we will start our summer break a month earlier this year.

I want to thank all of you for being part of a great season of enlightening and deeply meaningful conversations and exploration of race. I am also grateful for the new voices that have joined the discussions this year. We will continue in September with another series of challenging topics. This month I will be attending A Gathering of Leaders Conference in Oakland that focuses on boys and men of color. I expect to give you a full report. See http://www.agatheringofleaders.org/#movement    for more information.

In the meantime, I recommend taking a look at a recent issue of The Atlantic Magazine which has a compelling piece, “The Case for Reparations,” by Ta-Nehisi Coates. It is a great review of history that connects the dots of oppression in America to today’s reality. You can read it online at: http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/05/the-case-for-reparations/361631/

I also want you to know that a memorial service for Dr. Harding is scheduled for July 25-26. It will be a two part event with the first evening a community sharing and reception. The next day will be a more formal ecumenical, multicultural celebration of his life and accomplishments. In August there will be a similar celebration in Atlanta. I will send out a message and post details on our website when we finish the details.

Have a great summer!

Harold Fields

 

Our monthly meeting of the Second Tuesday Race Forum will be on Tuesday, May 13th at 7 PM at the Park Hill United Methodist Church at Montview Blvd and Glencoe St. in Denver. Won't you please join us!

We will continue our exploration of hidden racism and its methods by discussing the new book Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented Racism & Wrecked the Middle Class, by Ian Haney López, Professor of Law at U-Cal Berkeley.  “Think about a term like ‘welfare queen,’ or ‘food stamp president,’” Haney López told Bill Moyers. “On one level, like a dog whistle, it’s silent. Silent about race — it seems race-neutral.” But on another level it has a shrill blast “that can be heard by certain folks … a warning about race and a warning, in particular, about threatening minorities.”

Professor Haney López helps us connect the dots and see clear evidence that racism does not only impact its targets, but all of society.  You can watch highlights and examples he provides at these links.

• http://billmoyers.com/2014/03/10/interview-highlights-ian-haney-lopez/
• http://billmoyers.com/content/six-case-studies-in-dog-whistle-politics/

We are also fortunate to have the opportunity to hear Professor Haney López at the University of Denver on April 22.  He will speak at noon at the Sturm College of Law, Room 165.  It is open to all.

Our monthly meeting of the Second Tuesday is coming up next Tuesday, April 8th at 7 PM at the Park Hill United Methodist Church at Montview Blvd and Glencoe St. in Denver. Won't you please join us!

 AIDS/HIV in the Communities of Color

 We don’t hear much about AIDS and HIV in communities of color, or talk much about them either. Yet they are growing problems that deserve open and honest dialogues to give our communities information that is very much needed and address the resistance to dealing with it. The April discussion will be an opportunity to get your questions answered and understand the basics of this health challenge.

Our guests who will lead us in dialogue will be Ms. Penny DeNoble, Mr. Brent Dysart and Dr. Carroll Watkins Ali.

Penny DeNoble is the Founder and Director of the community-based organization The Issue of Blood Outreach and Consulting Services. Its purpose is to bring awareness, education and information to the communities at large about prevention of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS, and unplanned pregnancies. She sits on the Board of the Greater Denver Interfaith Initiative, volunteers for the Denver-Colorado AIDS Project, Positive Women’s Network-Colorado, and is a member of the Mayor’s HIV Resources Planning Council.

Brent Dysart has been president of Rocky Mountain CARES, the second largest AIDS service organization in the Denver area. He was appointed the HIV Resources Planning Council in 2008 by then Mayor John Hickenlooper, and served as a board member of the Boulder County AIDS project in 2011. Both Mr. Dysart and Ms. DeNoble have been living with and advocating for HIV/AIDS.

Dr. Carroll Watkins Ali received her Ph. D. in Theology and Religious Studies from the University of Denver and Iliff School of Theology.  She is the author of Survival and Liberation: Pastoral Theology in African American Context.  Dr. Watkins Ali is currently the Executive Director of the Greater Denver Interfaith Initiative and founder/CEO of Watkins Ali & Associates, a marketing, management development, training and technical assistance firm.  In addition to lecturing and teaching throughout the country, Dr. Watkins Ali also devotes part time to a private practice in pastoral psychotherapy.

 

Our monthly meeting of the Second Tuesday is coming up next Tuesday, March 11th at 7 PM at the Park Hill United Methodist Church at Montview Blvd and Glencoe St. in Denver. Won't you please join us! 

 Updating “The Talk”

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Our monthly meeting of the Second Tuesday is coming up next Tuesday, February 11th at 7 PM at the Park Hill United Methodist Church at Montview Blvd and Glencoe St. in Denver. Won't you please join us!

We have invited PJ Damico to organize the meeting this month to focus on being homeless in Denver. Here below is PJ's description of his plans for our conversation.

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