Saturday, September 11, 2021 |
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A Message from the CMM Community |
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Dear Friends and Supporters of CMM,
It is hard to believe that twenty years has gone by since the events of this day. So much trauma and healing is still needed in this nation as old wounds resurface, particularly after the garden of remembrance was recently desecrated. But just as random citizens and Boston city workers came together to pitch in for its renewal, so too must we all pitch in and continue to look out for one another. We invite you to look up the events happening all around the Greater Boston area and stand with your family, friends and neighbors in remembrance. Here are just two events happening amongst many others:
Come to the Charlestown Navy Yard on Saturday, September 11, 2021 for a day of service and remembrance. Together with the crew of USS Constitution and Boston National Historical Park, we will commemorate the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks with a ceremony honoring those who served and those who tragically lost their lives. After the ceremony, join the USS Constitution Museum and Operation Gratitude on this National Day of Service & Remembrance by giving back to the military community that selflessly serve our country.
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UN International Day of Peace - Boston Commemoration:
"Recovering Better for a Sustainable and Equitable World"
Sunday, September 19, 2021, 2pm
The event will include speakers, poets, musicians, and dancers making presentations related to the theme. Program participants will include Emma’s Revolution, Extinction Rebellion’s Robert Lauer, Issa Bibbins, The LOOP, Rev. Vernon K. Walker of Communities Responding to Extreme Weather (CREW), cellist Miranda Henne, Cambridge’s Peace Commissioner Brian Corr, Kaci Rose Goldberg and Skye Lam of MEER:ReflEction, Boston City Singers Tour Choir, and Cambridge Children's Chorus Training Chorus.
The Reverend Rodney E. Dailey, co-chair of the organization and Associate Minister of the Bethel AME Church in Lowell, MA will emcee the event. As we have for several years, we will close the program with the reading of the names of murder victims over the past twelve months. Traditionally, we have handed out flowers during this segment and then carried the flowers with us on a walk to the nearby Garden of Peace on Somerset Street. Albioni’s Adagio in G Minor, famous for being performed by Vedran Smailović in ruined buildings during the siege of Sarajevo, is another traditional feature of the program.
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Values over Violence: Redirected Aggression and Anger Management
Thursday, September 23, 2021, 6:00pm - 8:00pm
Cost: $25
Online Via Zoom
(Registration ends at 5pm on the day of, and the Zoom link will be sent right after that.)
Did you know anger is an intense temporary emotional reaction to feeling hurt or threatened. However, responding prior to processing anger and holding on to anger generally produces harmful results.
ABOUT VALUES OVER VIOLENCE:
Values over Violence is a program to foster dignity through creating a civic culture based on forgiveness and reconciliation.It trains youth and adults to examine their emotions, learn to identify events which trigger anger and revenge, and look at choices about how to handle these events. We focus on the need to address the emotional issues stemming from violence felt by victims, perpetrators, and the community. Without emotional and spiritual healing, it becomes impossible to step beyond violence and chart a new direction. Participants are trained to help move persons from the onset of violence through possibilities of forgiveness and degrees of reconciliation toward constructive civil engagement.
ABOUT THIS WORKSHOP:
In this workshop facilitated by Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries we explore the use of the ESPERE process for personal transformation and peace-making. ESPERE stands for para Escuelas de Perdón y Reconciliación (School of Forgiveness and Reconciliation.) It was created by Leonel Narváez Gómez of Fundación para la Reconciliación as a response to his experience of violence in Africa and Colombia. ESPERE is being implemented in many Latin American countries and is now being taught in the USA. ESPERE is implemented in Oregon, Texas, Boston and Chicago. ESPERE is used with youth, police, in Houses of Corrections, with survivors of violence, in schools, churches, youth detention centers, Shriver Job Corps in Devens, MA, housing developments and other institutions. The benefits of ESPERE are to:
- understand the cycle and impact of violence and conflict
- decrease anger and resentment caused by trauma
- increase compassion toward others and ourselves
- encourage positive relationships, and
- promote nonviolence as a way of life
Participants in this highly interactive workshop will gain an understanding of Redirected Aggression & Anger Management as we focus on Common Ways of Expressing Anger, Management of Rage and the Circle of Anger and How it Ended. Participants will receive a certificate of completion to go towards professional development. Groups from organizations, nonprofits and corporations are encouraged to sign up early. Limited spaces are available.
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Facing Our Racism: Becoming Conscious Partners Workshop
Sunday, September 26, 2021, 12 - 4:30pm
Online Via Zoom
(Registration ends at 11am on the day of, and the Zoom link will be sent right after that.)
Cost: $25
The killing of Daunte Wright, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor galvanized White people to become “conscious partners” with our Black sisters and brothers to end racism. Crucial to this new understanding and awareness is the formation of genuine, open, truthful relationships between Black and White community members. You are invited to take part in a “Facing Our Racism: Becoming Conscious Partners” workshop which analyzes the systemic, institutional, policy, and power-driven persecution and discrimination against Black Americans since the very beginning of slavery. The anniversary of George Floyd's death reminds us that the work to combat racism is far from over.
Recommended Pre-Viewing:
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Dr. Ibram X. Kendi: Creating A More Equitable Society Is In White Americans' Self Interest: https://youtu.be/dCUOX3NMd4U
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Deconstructing White Privilege with Dr. Robin DiAngelo: https://youtu.be/DwIx3KQer54
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How Racial Bias Works – and How to Disrupt It with Jennifer Eberhardt: https://www.ted.com/talks/jennifer_l_eberhardt_how_racial_bias_works_and_how_to_disrupt_it
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A Blueprint for Reparations in the US | William "Sandy" Darity: https://youtu.be/hv88_R-XDDw
About the Facilitators
Dr. Connie Holmes, EdD, psychologist (ret.), counseled cancer patients and their families for 28 years in Boston and in the San Francisco Bay area. She is a member of the Reparations Community of Practice and Clerk of the Vestry of Good Shepherd Church in Watertown, MA. She is available to conduct these workshops throughout the United States. Her great-grandfather perished in Theresienstadt, a World War II concentration camp. Her exposure to the horrors of the Final Solution has motivated her to join the struggle for racial justice in the United States.
Dolores Moorehead, MS, APCC is the Lead Navigator/ Multi-Cultural Client Support Clinician at the Women’s Cancer Resource Center in Berkeley with over 30 years of experience that includes the American Cancer Society. She has worked with diverse populations including LGBTQIA+, African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Pacific Islanders. She is committed to improving communication between doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals about the medical needs and access to care of diverse populations.
Testimonials
The Rev. Tyrone Fowlkes, Rector, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Raleigh, NC: “In an era of George Floyd, increased voter restrictions and racial disparities across vital areas of health, income and education, the time is now for us to wrestle with the ubiquitous and persistent racist policies and structures in our society. People of faith are not immune to such forces and have a significant role to play in this effort if ‘faithful witness’ has any meaning at all. Both Connie Holmes and Dolores Moorehead not only help us confront the damaging and lasting impact of systemic racism in both church and society but also why it matters. The bottom-line stares at us with an unsettling gaze: our failure to untangle the racist threads which have long woven patterns of dehumanizing pain and disenfranchisement, will eventually strangle us all."
Jean Kilbourne, Senior Scholar, Wellesley Centers for Women: "Dr. Connie Holmes has been passionately engaged for more than 50 years in the struggle for civil rights and the work of making authentic partnerships between Black and White Americans possible. Her energy, imagination, and eloquent leadership bring new life to the essential conversations we must have in order to make the progress we all so urgently need.
Rev. Dr. David Killian: "Connie Holmes and Dolores Moorehead are superb facilitators to help us to 'face our racism' and dismantle embedded structures of racial inequality and oppression. Their work is transformative and life-changing for the participants and vitally needed in our society today."
Dolores Moorehead, MS: "Dr. Connie Holmes and I worked together at the Women’s Cancer Resource Center in Oakland for four years. She has been able to use her family's experiences to discuss how more alike we are as humans than different. Taking her commitment over the years to the civil rights movement, Dr. Holmes creates an environment for Black and White individuals to talk about the topic of racial discrimination. She facilitates a conversation that allows participants to address their pain and shame so as to begin the healing process."
Rev. Dr. Rodney Petersen: “Facing our Racism” (FOR) presents a challenging workshop. Just when we thought we were beyond all that, Connie and Dolores take one down to deeper levels of engagement with racism and anti-racism."
Brenda Vaccaro, Psy.D.: "As a psychologist and mental health innovator, Dr. Holmes has forged and promoted therapeutic environments that prioritize social justice and heighten multicultural awareness. A tireless advocate for equitable access to support, she has been a pioneer in acknowledging and addressing issues of oppression, privilege, and power. Her work reflects a deep commitment to redefining mental health services in a way that is more attuned and responsive to the race-based traumatic stress that burdens communities of color. Her approach empowers people to heal and to reclaim the path toward their best possible lives."
Sponsors
Grace Church in Newton, St. Mary’s Church in Dorchester, the Charles River Deanery, Temple Shalom in Newton, Temple Beth Zion in Brookline, ten other congregations, and Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries (CMM), the greater Boston area’s oldest interfaith social justice organization that has been fighting racism since 1966.
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Upcoming Community Events |
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Refugee Immigration Ministry's North Shore Cluster Walk for Refugees
Sunday, September 12, 2021, 3:00pm
Lynch Park, Beverly, MA 01915
One hundred percent of the funds raised by the cluster go directly to aiding asylum seekers living in each cluster's region. The resettlement support we provide includes housing in host homes or apartments, food, transportation, community support and friendship.
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Nonviolence365®
September 13 - 15, 2021
Join the King Center for ActivateU: The College Edition. ActivateU is a three day virtual experience where attendees learn to understand and apply nonviolence today for societal, cultural, and personal transformation. This interactive virtual experience is tailored for all college students Dr. King’s philosophy of nonviolence is relevant, powerful, and strategic for challenging and changing unjust ideologies, policies, systems, and practices. For more details and scholarship information visit thekingcenter.org
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Castle of our Skins "Back to School" Festival
September 14 - 24, 2021
Castle of our Skins was so pleased to announce the publication of Black Composer Miniature Challenge Vol.1, that we decided to share it with other music organizations in the Boston area.
The reception was overwhelming: nine outstanding students replied with performance recordings of select pieces! We would like to share their work with the Castle of Our Skins community, so tune in September 14th - 24rd each day at 4pm for a BCMC Student Showcase Festival!
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MIRA's Citizenship Clinic
Friday, September 17, 2021, 9 - 1pm (in-person)
Save the Date! On Sept.17th, MIRA will be hosting our Citizenship Clinic! If you or someone you know needs citizenship application aid - don't wait until it's too late! Make an appointment TODAY by emailing citizenship@miracoalition.org — time slots fill fast!
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National Vaccine Day: Boston 2021
Saturday, September 18, 2021, 12 - 8pm
Malcom X Park, Roxbury, MA 02119
The creation and spread of COVID-19 vaccines offer a unique opportunity to promote vaccine education and honor healthcare workers. Boston Vaccine Day will build trust in vaccination by putting a festive, positive spotlight on vaccines, providing a platform for local leaders to serve their communities, and enabling outreach to underserved communities. Boston Vaccine Day will involve live music, dancing, food trucks, and interactive art exhibits. There will also be a memorial service and a space for remembering the lives lost. Attendees will be able to get vaccinated on-site and have questions answered by healthcare professionals. The event will take place at Malcolm X Park in Roxbury. This location both honors Boston’s civil rights history and enables more effective outreach to an underserved population—Roxbury has a disproportionately low vaccination rate compared to other Boston neighborhoods.
The event will take place Saturday, Sept 18th from 12-8pm with a Remembrance Ceremony from 2:30-3pm feature guest speaker, Rev. Erica Williams, who is a leader in the national Poor Peeople's Campaign movement.
Feel free to share within your communties and on social media with the hashtag #bostonvaccineday
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Globe Summit: The Great Recovery
September 22 - 24, 2021
Experience the Globe Summit virtual conference this September 22‑24, accessible from anywhere you are. Join Boston Globe journalists and editors for thought‑provoking interviews and panel discussions that will convene the conversation about our region's future across verticals representing some of our region's greatest strengths: economy, health, innovation, and sustainability.
Featured speakers:
- Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director, NIAID
- Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, Author and Antiracist Scholar
- Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director, CDC
- Jenny Slate, Actress/Comedian
- Senator Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts
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MA Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence MVP Awards
Thursday, September 23, 2021, 7pm
Online via Zoom
This year for their annual Peace MVP Awards they are honoring the Peace Commissioner herself, Cindy Diggs. In addition to being one of the original members of the Coalition, the founder of Peace Boston, and a longtime activist for peace and economic security in Boston neighborhoods, Cindy is a force of nature.
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Dr. George Walters-Sleyon: A Public Presentation of the Research Findings/ A Book Signing and Panel Discussion with Prison Chaplains
Friday September 24th at 5:30pm
Roxbury Community College Auditorium
Prison Chaplains on the Beat
Summary: This book is about prison chaplains and their care for aging, dying, and dead prisoners in the penal systems of the United States and the United Kingdom. Since the 18th century, prison chaplains have served as priests and pastoral caregivers to prisoners and prison staff. The book traces the historical roles of prison chaplains in developing the managerial aspects of prisons, focusing on their presence, best practices, and ways of conceptualizing their prison experiences in the modern prison cultures of the United States and the United Kingdom. While prison chaplains have historically provided care to prisoners, prison chaplaincy after 1970 has transformed. This book shows how prison chaplains face new challenges in caring for prisoners under the penal policies and practices of mass incarceration. Prison Chaplains on the Beat demonstrates how prison chaplains have conceptualized the practice of providing pastoral care to aging, dying, and dead prisoners in the United States and the United Kingdom through a person-centered approach. The book is both theoretical and empirical. The empirical aspect focuses on the prison experiences of 31 prison chaplains from the United States and Scotland. The theoretical aspect provides a conceptual understanding of the multi-faceted roles of prison chaplains in the United States, Scotland, and England and Wales. As research in comparative criminal justice, it argues that prison chaplains are fundamentally indispensable to prison management practices and managerial theories in the United States, Scotland, and England and Wales post-1970. The goal is also to provide best practice development from an international perspective. Prison Chaplains on the Beat in US and UK Prisons consists of interview sessions with prison chaplains in the Scottish Prison Service in Scotland and prison chaplains in the United States: Alabama, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. The book is a good resource for prison chaplains, academics, religious leaders, prison volunteers, students, and anyone interested in the intersections between chaplaincy, prison ministry, and the penal system. It also provides insights about navigating the prison culture and caring for prisoners during COVID-19 and the post COVID-19 era.
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WHAT IS CLIMATE PREPAREDNESS WEEK? (From CREW)
During September 24th–30th each year, we mark Climate Preparedness Week, dedicated to learning, service, and actions that better prepare our communities for extreme weather events. By coming together to host events, we provide the resources and space to think about the ways that climate change affects us all and disadvantages some communities more than others.
THEME: THE WEATHER IS CHANGING: ARE YOU PREPARED?
By coming together to host educational and service-oriented events, we can equip ourselves and our communities with the resources, tools, and mindsets to build resilience in the face of changing weather and our changing climate. We’ll explore how severe weather and climate change affects us all--locally, globally, publicly, and personally. Additionally, we’ll learn about how the impacts of climate change and extreme weather intersect with racial, social, and economic justice and how we can respond to these changes from the ground up and the top down.
JOIN US AS A HOST (host an event for your community)
JOIN US AS A PARTNER (promote Climate Prep Week events to your membership via email and/or social media)
Our central events will be posted on the Climate Prep Week 2021 website by the week of September 13th after they are finalized.
See this link for website:
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Fabric of a Nation: American Quilt Stories
Starting today, you can buy tickets for the MFA’s newest exhibition “Fabric of a Nation: American Quilt Stories.” Opening October 10, the exhibition upends expectations about traditional quilt displays and tells inclusive, human stories that articulate a rich story of our shared history. Made by an under-recognized diversity of artistic hands and minds from the 17th century to today, including female and male, known and unidentified, urban and rural makers; immigrants; and Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian, and LGBTQIA+ Americans, the quilts on view range from family heirlooms to acts of political protest, each with its own story to tell.
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Virtual Homeless Youth Providers Engaging Together (HYPET) Meeting
Thursday, October 14, 2021, 10 - 11:30am
Online via Zoom
Our October guest speaker will be Marie Elianor from the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley. Marie is the Project Director for Rising to the Challenge, and will provide an overview of Rising to the Challenge, share updates and data on the plan's progress, and also discuss available resources for youth and young adults. In the meantime, you can learn more about Rising to the Challenge on the City of Boston's website.
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Episcopal City Mission - 2021 Annual Meeting
Saturday, October 16, 2021, 9am
Online via Zoom
You are cordially invited to our 177th Annual Meeting. Each year, ECM's members gather to conduct business and learn how we can better partner in the work of God's transforming love for racial and economic justice in Massachusetts. This year, despite COVID keeping us physically distant, we will gather. During this year’s meeting, we will elect ECM Board members, hear about ECM's work, and engage with your community's journey for racial and economic justice. We need you there to learn how the Spirit is moving in our Diocese and how we can be more supportive of your work.
We will gather via zoom on October 16th, from 9am-12pm. The day will begin with prayer and a business meeting, including an address by ECM's President, the Rt. Rev. Alan Gates. Following this, ECM's Executive Director, the Rev. Arrington Chambliss, will offer a presentation about this last year and where our mission alignment process is guiding us. The event will conclude with an experiential learning session that introduces participants to ECM's Justice Network.
In the past year, ECM's Justice Network has brought together Episcopalians, grassroots, and faith-rooted leaders monthly for conversations about how the Church can seek justice. We share what works and identify opportunities to act - collectively or individually in our communities. This Justice Network Gathering will conclude our discussions of Healing Justice, focusing on the importance of repentance and healing. We will feature a speaker whose experience will invite us to examine our role in repentance and repair within racial and economic justice.
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CAIR-MA 7th Annual Gala
Saturday, October 30, 2021, 7:30pm
Registration is now open for our 2021 Gala, which this year will again be a fully virtual event taking place on Saturday, October 30th at 7:30 pm. In addition to hearing reflections on the importance of CAIR-MA's work by local community leaders, they'll be joined by one of the most prominent Muslims in America: Ustadha Yasmin Mogahed, with a motivational message by Dr. Altaf Husain. Please Register Today and put the invite on your calendar!
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Tenth Annual Needham Diversity Summit (NDS 10.0)
Sunday, November 14, 2021, 12pm
Online via Zoom
Keynote Speaker: Professor Gary Bailey is currently a Professor of Practice at Simmons School of Social Work and at the Simmons School of Nursing. At the School of Social Work he coordinates the Dynamics of Racism and Oppression sequence. He chairs the School of Social Work Awards Committee; is Chair of the Simmons University Black Administrators, Faculty and Staff Council (BAFAS); is a member of the Simmons Faculty Senate; is vice chair of the Simmons President’s Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council (PDIAC) and co-Chaired the Simmons University Initiative on Human Rights and Social Justice.
PLUS +
- HEAR Needham leaders, residents & students share their diverse journeys,
- ATTEND 8+ interactive, breakout sessions on topical issues and what’s next in activism,
- BE INSPIRED by multimedia video & musical presentations and MORE.
The Needham Diversity Summit is a wonderful event that brings together community leaders, friends, neighbors, and students to explore, foster, strengthen, and celebrate Needham’s diversity – of socioeconomic status, race, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion, ethnic identity, age and ability.
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