Yes You Can Be an Ally in Your Community with Paths to Understanding
Be an ally in your community. When communities of wisdom stand with and stand up for each other it is a much-needed sign that we share common values, that our diverse perspectives are a strength, and that we can build a positive future together.
Read MoreTurn Back From the Precipice
In recent weeks anti-Semitic attacks have risen sharply. This is after many years in which our Jewish neighbors have experienced increased hate crimes. Over the last year we have seen a rise in violence toward those perceived to be Asian Americans. A society experiences anxiety and change. Some important event happens. Public leaders apply collective…
Read MoreNext Up for the Paths Network
I can’t think of any other work I would rather be doing right now. We all know the deep challenges that face our nation and our world. We believe we can face them when we share our deep wisdom and work for our common good together.
Read MoreWhen You’re Weary, Feeling Small
I noticed that I was feeling a great deal of resistance to sitting down at my desk. Things that once came easy were getting more difficult. I still felt motivated by the work. But I could not access my energy for it.
Read MoreWhy We Say What We Don’t Mean to Say
We have been formed by a status-keeping system in our nation. It has shaped much of how we see the world. It has formed our “common sense” in ways that make no sense at all.
But not only can we be formed, we can be re-formed to see our common humanity. This is painful work. Real growth always includes pain. This work will never end, as long as I live.
However, the work of living more fully into our stated ideals, into our common humanity and the future we can build together is also blessed and enjoyable work. As we break the mold we have been formed in, we find ourselves freer to move, to stretch, to relax.
Small Things Matter in the Practice of Allyship
My perception was that people were trying to be subtly disrespectful of the chairperson, and therefore the tribe. This did not surprise me. But I felt angry and sad about it. I thought to myself, “What can I do?”
Read MoreNeed an Ally, Be an Ally
Since then, these leaders and many, many others have continued to stand with each other, and to stand with others who needed them.
Read MoreThree Ways to Ally
We live, as Isabelle Wilkerson describes, in a caste system based on skin color and other factors. Our relationships to other human beings has been deformed by this system. Allyship is necessary because this caste system exists – and because we want to take that system down so that the dignity and value of every person can be honored and celebrated.
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