As seasons go, October serves as the turning point. The month before is the last call for summer fun and the month ahead whispering reminders for holiday planning and the realization that the year will soon end. But October lands with a fury - clashes of crisp color that, in an instant, fall to our feet surrendering to the winds of time. There is a beauty in that surrender because it makes way for new growth, new energy, new ideas and possibilities. For a moment, can we imagine these marvelous trees - diverse in color, texture, and size - as monuments to the glory of nature, and can we see the falling leaves as the constant and necessary movement representing evolutionary change? Breathe in the winds of this transformational season; the evidence is all around us.
In the past year, we have watched many monuments fall but for a moment, let’s reflect on one that still stands. On October 28, 1886, the Statue of Liberty was erected in New York Harbor, a gift from the French government to acknowledge freedom, the end of war and hopefully a new beginning for the American people. Take a minute to grasp that - she is a monument acknowledging a movement (how cool!) for equality, civil justice and emancipation, and a tribute to the blended allies who believed in the possibility of a Constitution for all people.
“A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand glows world-wide welcome;”
Dare we take that one step further? We are a nation of the indigenous, the enslaved, the oppressed, the migrant. No matter how we got here, we are now united as bold challengers of unfair policies and systems of oppression. Make no mistake, we love this country. Even with its historic scars from wounds that have not healed, this is home. Like the arrow on the mall directory says, YOU ARE HERE, and we are here together.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she with silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Today, as we witness monuments falling, rest assured there are new monuments being erected every day. Not the brick-and-mortar ones, but the ones that really matter - the ones made at the table. These are strong relationships, cemented by the commitment to racial healing and concrete devotion to steady intentional actions until the change we seek in our democracy materializes. This month, we encourage you to breathe in the winds of change. Step out into this season of brilliant colorful inclusion and step up to the challenge of nation building that stands before us. You are a monument. This is our moment. We are a movement.
We are in the home stretch on our Family Reunion Giving Campaign and we are hoping you will join us around the Table with a monetary donation this month! You can click on the Birdies for Charity logo below and they will add an extra 10% to your donation that will come straight to CTTT-RVA! As an extra incentive – if you donate any amount before Oct 15, we will put your name in a drawing for 2 complimentary day passes for the Dominion Energy Charity Classic at the Country Club of Virginia Oct 22, 23 or 24. So come on out and help us Raise the Roof!
In the video above (we encourage you to listen) RVA Co-CEO, Danita Rountree Green, explains a family tradition that her African American family follows.
We invite our CTTT-RVA family members and friends to help us celebrate our work toward racial justice and healing, and this "family", by making a generous donation to our growing organization. We are birthing new programs, creating new partnerships, and expanding educational opportunities for our Frontline Facilitators and African American Ambassadors!
Your donation goes directly to CTTT-RVA and makes a difference in our community!
THANK YOUfor being a part of our family, and for helping to RAISE THE ROOF!
CTTT-RVA
3rd Tuesday
Family Gathering
Tuesday, October 19th
via ZOOM
6:30 - 8:30 pm ET
~ Monuments and Movements ~
We look forward to seeing you on Zoom for stimulating and action inspiring conversation about Monuments and Movements on October 19th at 6:30 pm ET!
We will hear from members of Black Lives Matter 804 and Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice and Equality about their activism in RVA and beyond in the areas of monuments and movements. We'll learn about what each organization stands for and how you can support the work of these dynamic groups and "BE the change you want to see in the world!"
Click below to register for the event and receive the Zoom information. Email our planning team if you have any questions, suggestions or feedback. We'd love to hear your ideas for future program themes for conversation.
Our October book is One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy by Carol Anderson. The site Goodreads.com has the following description of this book:
"From the award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of White Rage, the startling—and timely—history of voter suppression in America, with a foreword by Senator Dick Durbin.
In her New York Times bestseller White Rage, Carol Anderson laid bare an insidious history of policies that have systematically impeded black progress in America, from 1865 to our combustible present. With One Person, No Vote, she chronicles a related history: the rollbacks to African American participation in the vote since the 2013 Supreme Court decision that eviscerated the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Known as the Shelby ruling, this decision effectively allowed districts with a demonstrated history of racial discrimination to change voting requirements without approval from the Department of Justice."
Contact the Reading For Change Book Circle co-conveners to be added to their mailing list.
October's CTTT-RVA theme is Monuments and Movements, so we have chosen a movement. We will be watching The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution. Released in 2015, this 2-hour documentary takes us through the history of the Black Panthers close to the 50th anniversary of their origin. Do you really know what the Black Panthers stood for? Or were you influenced by the media, then and now? Click to view trailer.
If you would like to receive the latest information about our Movie Circle events, please be sure to click here to join our mailing list.
And definitely be sure to click the blue buton below to REGISTER for our upcoming Movie Circle Discussion on October 25th.
Join Coming To The Table - RVA for our Racism At Work (RAW) Truth Session on Wednesday, October 27th, 2021, 7:00 - 8:30 pm ET on Zoom! This month's session, Racism As A Public Health Crisis, will feature Detroit native, Dr. M. Norman Oliver who presently serves as the Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Health.
The presentation is sure to be thought provoking and inspiring to action.
Everyone is welcome!
Recommended Reading:Racism Is the Public Health Crisis, Kehinde Andrews, The Lancet, Volume 397, ISSUE 10282, pp 1342-1343, April 10, 2021.
Click hereto read a summary of our September, 2021 RAW Truth Session presentation by Genevieve Siegel-Hawley, PhD on Systemic Racism in Education.
Planning is underway for the Winter/Spring series of RAW Truth Sessions. If you have suggestions for future topics for consideration related to systemic racism, please email our Working Group.
What Is RAW?
Racism At Work (RAW) Truth Sessions allow participants the opportunity to explore how the social constructs of race and racism have been intentionally and systematically woven into the very fabric of American society in general, and Richmond in particular.
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***The RAW Working Group welcomes anyone interested in volunteering to proofread summaries or review documents prior to their posting to the RAW Library to email our Team.
Education For Action
Book Circle
(1st Thursday of the month)
Thursday, November 4th
via Zoom
6:30 - 8:00 pm ET
Throughout 2021, the Education For Action Book Circle is taking a deep dive into:
Black Reconstruction in America, 1860 - 1880
by W.E.B. Du Bois
For our November 4th circle, we will be discussing Chapter 16 of the text, Back Toward Slavery.
Du Bois’ game-changing reading of the vital role of the enslaved liberating themselves and taking up arms in the ending of the Civil War should be required reading, especially for anyone living in the South. Join us as we continue to mine Du Bois’ analysis of the first reconstruction period for indispensable insight about how we understand and act in this Third Reconstruction moment. Contact Darren for more information.
Above left: Pastor of First Presbyterian Church and CTTT-RVA Board Member, Rev. Amy Starr Redwine honoring the members of her church for their courage to work toward racial justice and healing during our Friday night candle lighting ceremony of commitment.
Above right: CTTT-RVA Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Danita Rountree Green shares about the next retreat activity on Saturday, creating 3-minute CTTT-RVA "commercials" within our small groups....with her usual hijinks and humor belying underlying depth.
On Friday and Saturday, September 24 - 25, 2021 Coming To The Table - RVA held its FIRST EVER Joint Leadership Retreat at First Presbyterian Church of Richmond! 25 volunteers and staff participated in this very interactive, fun as well as meaningful retreat! It was a "joint" retreat in that members of the Board, Staff, Frontline Facilitators and African American Ambassadors participated.
We connected with each other, some for the first time, building relationships, learning, healing and growing together in order to better serve our community, acting in service to racial justice and healing. Forward together....bringing LOVE to the fight!
ASÉ!
Above: Retreat staff and participants Hayat Bain, Meldon Jenkins-Jones, Ellen Arginteanu, Jo Booker, and Stephen Batsche.
Above photo on L: CTTT-RVA Co-CEO Marsha Summers with L. Robert Bolling, CEO of ChildSavers, who worked with our Board members for some training and reflection sessions on their own.
Above photo - top R: Facilitators Session with Trainer, Shelli Jost Brady (not pictured) - Hayat Bain, Anne Westrick, Dr. Rosalind Banbury, and Dr. Andy Smith. Above photo - bottom R: Jo Booker, Meldon Jenkins-Jones and Jonathan Davis.
The Coming To The Table monthly Guided Meditations are an opportunity for centering, healing and connection with other like-minded CTTT members. They last about 45-60 minutes, and include a short check-in time with participants and a time after the guided meditation for sharing about our experience while in the meditation. They are a healing respite from some of the daily stress we encounter, particularly as we are working toward greater cross-racial understanding, justice and equity.
These monthly guided meditations are facilitated by members of the CTTT national Mindfulness Working Group. This month's meditation is being guided by our very own Hayat Bain, a CTTT-RVA staff member. She has been meditating and working with and teaching about other healing and centering practices for many years. Most recently, Hayat and a colleague in Dances of Universal Peace North America had their proposal accepted for an experiential workshop session at the virtual Parliament of the World's Religions, which is October 16 - 18, 2021. Their session is entitled, Singing and Dancing Our Peace Into Action: Dances of Universal Peace, and will be offered to event registrants at 11:00 am ET on Sunday, October 17th.
If you'd like to participate in our CTTT Guided Meditation on October 16th at 4:00 pm ET on Zoom, click below to register and receive the Zoom info.
Virginia Rep is introducing a new play to Richmond audiences penned by exciting playwright Dominique Morisseau. This regional premiere of Pipeline will be directed by Katrinah Carol Lewis at the November Theatre, October 15 - November 7, 2021.
Timely and riveting, Pipeline was one of the most-produced plays in the country in 2019. It tells the story of a mother who fights to give her son a future without turning her back on the community that made him who he is.
Director Lewis adds, “Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher, sends her son, Omari, to a private boarding school to give him opportunities her students do not have. The question the play asks is whether she will be able to reach him before a world beyond her control pulls him away.”
Truth & Reconciliation ~ Remembering our Ancestors
DECEMBER
Giving Back ~ Reparations
CTTT-RVA Facilitators Circle Training Meeting
2nd Thursdays:
October 14th
November 11th
7:00 - 8:30 pm ET
Our facilitators are the "frontline" in the work of racial healing. We value them as not only the first face of our team but also the trusted guardians of our courageous yet often uncomfortable and clumsy conversations.
The facilitator sets the agenda, reminds participants of the ground rules (Coming To The Table Touchstones), initiates the discussion, facilitates circle process, and allows the session to flow - modeling deep listening and fostering a safe and brave space - stepping in only when needed.
In virtual breakout rooms and at the table, facilitators represent the mission, vision and approach of CTTT. As a facilitator, you enable participants to share stories, learn new insights, and move through personal pain. Facilitators stand in the gap for change.
Contact Bonnie if you are new to our Facilitators Circle and would like to learn more or participate in our monthly meetings.
19th Annual Gabriel Gathering
Sunday,
October 10th
5-6:30 pm ET
Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground
This year’s theme:Reclaiming Sacred Spaces
Sunday, October 10 will mark the 221st anniversary of the day the great slave rebellion leader Gabriel was executed at the town gallows at what is now known as the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground.
As we have done every year on that date since 2003, the Sacred Ground Historical Reclamation Project of the Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice & Equality will hold its annual Gabriel Gathering at the burial ground. The program will focus on sites in the Richmond area that are sacred to the Black community and are in some stage of reclamation and memorialization.
So many times the question is asked “What can I do? The problem seems so large. Can what I do really make a difference?” Each act of individual repair is incredibly important because it proves that repair and reconciliation can happen. If you would like to join the Reparations Circleand learn more about opportunities with which you can help, click below.
Come Learn More About The Center For Common Ground's Democracy Centers
Democracy truly only works when EVERY CITIZEN is engaged. In this country, underserved communities have routinely been shut out or just ignored when it comes to politics. The Center for Common Ground plans to change that through the implementation of Democracy Centers.
"What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments but what is woven into the lives of others.”
-Pericles
EMANCIPATION AND FREEDOM MONUMENT UNVEILING
Photo from CBS News
On September 22, 2021, the brand new Emancipation and Freedom Monument on Brown's Island in Richmond, VA was unveiled.
"...Several people shed tears during the ceremony, including elected officials.
The ceremony itself contained its own symbolism of resilience and perseverance. It began in a downpour of rain, with gloomy skies overhead, and ended with the sun beginning to peak through the clouds as the cloth was pulled off the statues.
The unveiling of this powerful new symbol of racial justice came just two weeks after the largest state-owned symbol of white supremacy and Black oppression — a state-owned statue of slavery-defending Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee — was taken down from Monument Avenue..."
Excerpt from Richmond Free Press article by Jeremy M. Lazarus
"Today is a good day to dismantle racism. Do something you love with someone who looks different than you."
ARE YOU
CREATIVE?
Can you condense ideas down to eye catching phrases or visuals? Do you like to have FUN? If so, the Fund Development team is looking for a few good advocates to help with an online donation campaign coming up for Giving Tuesday – Nov 30. We want to take our message to the greater Richmond Community – and maybe even to the Nation! Contact Leslie Crabbs for more information.
In an era of lots of good causes, companies get lost as to where their money should go. Many of our Richmond based companies want to put their money and time into organizations that are impactful to their employees. Does your company have a matching donation program or a corporate responsibility department?
If so, contact Leslie Crabbs at Leslie@Comingtothetable.org and let’s talk about how we can partner with your company to move toward our beloved community here in Richmond!
Abolitionist Edouard de Laboulaye originally conceived of the statue in 1865 to memorialize those enslaved by the United States. Laboulaye shared his idea with sculptor Frederic Bartholdi. Bartholdi’s original model for the statue included Lady Liberty holding broken chains in her left hand and at her feet. But the statue was funded by American backers (who likely earned their fortunes through enslaved labor) and they refused to fund the statue in its original version. So Bartholdi replaced the chains in the statue’s hand with a book.
“One is astonished in the study of history at the recurrence of the idea that evil must be forgotten, distorted, skimmed over. We must not remember that Daniel Webster got drunk but only that he was a constitutional lawyer. We must forget that George Washington was a slave owner… and simply remember the things we regard as creditable and inspiring. The difficulty, of course, with this philosophy is that history loses its value as an incentive and example; it paints perfect men and noble nations, but it does not tell the truth.”
– W.E.B. Du Bois
Connect with our parent organization!
Coming To The Table (National) invites you to become a member. There is no membership fee, and donations are certainly needed and welcome! There are now 50+ local affiliate groups in 18 states plus the Virgin Islands!
