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Assertive Engagement Newsletter
March 2025
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Hello everyone,
This Women's History Month month we are talking about resistance. Assertive Engagement was developed at Multnomah County in resistance to the status quo method of delivering social services, where the "service provider" was the expert with the power and resources, and the client was defined by their struggles. By incorporating Assertive Community Treatment, Strength-Based practices, Motivational Interviewing, Unconditional Positive Regard and empathy (among other practices and concepts), our initiative works to balance the power dynamic between provider and client. We resist gatekeeping and instead view the client as the expert in their own lives, and seek to deliver services in a way that supports the humanity of the client.
If the status quo does not serve us or our community, then we must resist and create a new way. We will share stories of what resistance has looked like in the past and what it could look like in practice now. We will share resources for learning and encourage you to click through and explore stories of resistance, many with women leading the way.
We do this while experiencing the social turmoil in our community. We are looking at budget cuts in the city and county that impact our colleagues and community; these are not merely numbers on spreadsheets, they will result in significant loss of staff and services. These proposed changes will impact the stability and quality of life of many of us. If you don't read any other section of this newsletter, please read this: Rest is Resistance. There is no fight we can win when exhausted. We can not show up for others if we don't take care of ourselves.
Warm wishes from your newsletter team,
Helen & Rhea
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“I urge you, ask you, gentle you, to please not spend your spirit dry bewailing these difficult times. Especially do not lose hope. Most particularly because, the fact is, we were made for these times.”
— Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés
From Letter To A Young Activist
During Troubled Times, 2003
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Photo of Tricia Hersey in a yellow gown napping on a bench in front of a brick building over rows of cotton.
Credit: Charlie Watts Photography.
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Author Tricia Hersey resists with naps. As the founder of The Nap Ministry, she speaks on the way our bodies have been used to build wealth for others while depriving ourselves of the rest needed to stay healthy and connected. It disrupts the narrative that our bodies need to always be on the go and producing, that our worth is based on how much we do.
Tenets of The Nap Ministry
- Rest is a form of resistance because it disrupts and pushes back against capitalism and white supremacy.
- Our bodies are a site of liberation.
- Naps provide a healing portal to imagine, invent and heal.
- Our DreamSpace has been stolen and we want it back. We will reclaim it via rest.
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You can find out more by reading Hersey's two books (Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto, We Will Rest! The Art of Escape) or by checking out The Nap Ministry's Rest Deck, with beautifully printed cards that share 50 practices to resist grind culture.
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One affirmation from the deck is, "I am not a machine. I am a divine being. I can rest." Try saying that out loud to yourself right now. How did that feel?
When you have a chance, try this rest practice from the Rest Deck:
- Sit, stand, or lie down in a comfortable position.
- Place your hand over your heart and breathe slowly. In a culture focused on hyperproductivity, it can feel uncomfortable to be still and do nothing, just letting silence wash over you.
- Cultivate a space for silence right now.
- It can be a few seconds. It can be a minute. A lifetime. Trust your body.
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With your hands over your heart repeat, “Grind culture cannot have me. I will resist. I will rest.”
- Keep slowly repeating this to yourself.
- Slow down each word until it covers you. This is rest.
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Curtice organizes the the book into four realms which are arranged by color, season, and other characteristics. Here are the realms as Curtice defines them:
Personal realm: This realm's color is red, to represent our lifeblood, the connection to our dé (heart center). It is the season of winter, the time when we go inward to understand, ask questions, rest, and process.
Communal Realm: This realm's color is brown, to represent aki—dirt or earth. It is the time to honor our connection to the land and each other, and the time to plant seeds and make changes on the communal level. It is spring, the time of planting and waiting.
Ancestral Realm: This realm's color is blue, to represent mbish (water), fluidity, movement, and the space we inhabit as we interact with our ancestors. Resistance is fluid, moving work. It is the season of summer, when we notice what grows and blooms for future generations, what comes out of the hard work of planting that we did in the Communal Realm.
Integral Realm: This realm's color is yellow, and it is at the very center of who we are, our shkode (fire). In this realm, we integrate all the embodiment, presence, and work of the other realms. The Integral Realm, the season of autumn, is the time to harvest, to gather in all that we've learned, unlearned, and embodied in the other realms.
The book explores each realm and encourages the reader to make resistance an integrated lifelong practice. Curtice ends each chapter with "Resistance Commitments" or actions the reader can take throughout their reading journey. One commitment asks the reader to "Explore art in a new way. Find or create a piece of artwork that expresses resistance in some way, and put it where it can speak to you often." What is one resistance practice you can incorporate?
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A Force More Powerful
Throughout history violence has been used to conquer lands and subjugate people, but in the film A Force More Powerful, the filmmakers show how non-violence methods like marches, sit-ins, and civil disobedience have been used to overcome oppression and authoritarian rule.
Content warning: the film contains footage of violent acts.
| | A Force More Powerful movie poster | | The Lower Albina neighborhood in Portland was once a thriving community for Black Portlanders to live, create, work and thrive until racist urban renewal policies bulldozed houses schools and churches to build highways, areas, and the Portland Public Schools headquarters. Now the Albina Vision Trust is working to "buy back the land, rebuild community and reroot Black legacies and Black futures in the heart of Portland's central city." This project represents resistance in action, executing a plan years in the making, where the belief in a better future on reclaimed land is coming to fruition. For more information, watch the 3 minute minute Albina Vision trailer or visit their website. | | |
"We could either sit and watch it change, or influence it changing over time."
-Rukaiyah Adams
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Free Trainings with Right To Be _____
Incidents of harassment based on a person's race, gender expression, culture,
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or other identities are on the rise. It can be challenging to know what to do or how to respond when you observe an incident happening in front of you. Right to Be wants to help by offering free trainings on bystander interventions and conflict de-escalation. These sessions are about an hour long and offered virtually throughout the month and include:
- Bystander Intervention to Support the Immigrant Community
- Bystander Intervention to Support the LGBTQIA+ Community
- Bystander Intervention to Support Trans* Equality
- Bystander Intervention to Stop Antisemitic Harassment
- Conflict De-Escalation in Protest Spaces
Click the link below to view the training calendar and register.
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SAAM 2025
Resources
April is Sexual Assault Awareness (and Prevention) Month, and if your organization
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wants to spread awareness or plan an event, there are toolkits, graphics, event ideas, and campaign resources at the National Sexual Violence Resource Center page.
The national theme "Together We Act, United We Change" highlights the importance of working together to address and prevent sexual abuse, assault, and harassment.
Locally, the sixth annual Multnomah County Sexual Assault Awareness & Action Month (SAAM) Conference will be held on April 25, 2025, and will have a focus of Building Community in Uncertain Times and Know Your Rights: LGBTQIA2S+, Reproductive Justice, Immigrant and Refugee Communities. This free conference will provide training and connection for survivors, community-based and systems-based providers.
Registration is required, and given the limited number of spaces, a percentage of spaces will be prioritized for people who self-identify as survivors of sexual violence, domestic violence, sex trafficking and/or exploitation in the sex trades.
| | | Applications must be submitted by April 15, 2025 | |
College to County Applications Open
Each summer the county provides college students from underrepresented communities with paid summer internships, increasing participants' understanding of career pathways at the county. There are positions open across all departments, with a variety of positions available. Please share this paid internship opportunity with college students in your community!
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Question(s) of the Month
How are you resisting right now?
Share your ideas with us at aeinfo@multco.us!
| | What is one way you can resist consumer culture? | |
February Poll Results
Last month we asked what might get in the way of practicing self-compassion and here's what you said:
It's difficult to break the habit of negative self-talk 55%
I feel like being hard on myself makes me better 27%
And 18% of you don't find it challenging to practice self compassion - Hooray!
It can be difficult to break the habit of negative self-talk, but it is possible with practice, patience, and kindness. Next time you catch yourself being unkind to yourself, try this affirmation from Kaitlin B. Curtice's book Living Resistance, "I am a human being. I am always arriving."
Thanks to everyone who completed our poll last month!
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Community of Ongoing Practice
(COOP)
This March and April during our Community of Ongoing Practice (COOP) sessions, we're going to define colonization and decolonization, explore barriers to decolonization, and bring our collective wisdom to how these present in society and the workplace. The group will participate in activities that embody decolonization as a tool for healing and resistance. Join guest facilitator Lesley Delapaz and your AE training team for this two-part COOP learning opportunity.
March Virtual COOP Session
Decolonization Part 1
March 27
2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
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April Virtual COOP Session
Decolonization Part 2
April 24
2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
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In February the COOP focused on self-compassion. The discussion looked at the 3 threads (self-kindness, common humanity and mindfulness) that weave together to create the foundation for self-compassion in our lives. We examined how our self-talk impacts not only our relationship to ourselves but also the relationships we have with others. We also talked about ways to develop a positive and healthy relationship with ourselves. It takes courage to embrace self-compassion. Thank you to everyone who joined us during the COOP in growing their self-compassion muscles.
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What is a Community of Ongoing Practice?
A group of people who share a common interest and interact often to learn from each other and advance their work. It is open to all, but is most valuable to folks who have already completed the Assertive Engagement 101 training and are seeking ongoing refreshers of the curriculum, supplemental training to deepen their understanding of AE core concepts, and community building with AE practitioners.
Sign up to join our community of practice email list and get updates on future programming and events.
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AE Blended
Learning Course
| | | | Assertive Engagement certification is now available to contracted community partners via our Blended Learning Video Series | | |
Community partners are able to register for six self-paced video learning modules to watch when and where it works for you.
After successful completion of the e-learning modules, you'll enroll in a four-hour Skills Practice & Demonstration Workshop where you'll actively practice Assertive Engagement skills in community with other AE learners. Upon successful completion of the workshop and e-learning modules, you'll become AE certified!
We hope by offering training in this format we can better meet the needs of our learning community. Thank you all for your patience as we've developed and launched this training series!
For now we are offering the training to community partners who contract with Multnomah County's Department of Human Services (DCHS) and the Joint Office of Homeless Services (JOHS). If you work with one of our contracted partners, please visit our website to register.
Upcoming Skills Practice and Demonstration Session dates:
Tuesday, April 8, 8:30am-12:30pm
Thursday, April 10, 1pm-5pm
Thursday, April 17, 1pm-5pm
Tuesday, April 22, 8:30am-12:30pm
(CEUs offered for this training)
We will post all new training opportunities in this newsletter.
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