Through MSPS this month, it’s free.
ERAC/CE (Eliminating Racism and Claiming/Celebrating Equality), a community organizing group based in Kalamazoo, MI, is sponsoring a two-and-a-half day antiracism community organizing and training workshop coming up on September 27-29 and MSPS at Notre Dame is taking a group of students up for the retreat.
From the ERAC/CE website:
“[The] 2½-day Analyzing & Understanding Systemic Racism Workshop, [is] an intensive organizing workshop to understand and analyze racism in the U.S. The definition of systemic racism is explored. Three manifestations of racism – individual, institutional, and cultural – are examined, along with their effects on both communities of color and white communities. The issue of racism and the task of dismantling racism are viewed from ethical, political, social and spiritual perspectives, with the goal of equipping people to combat racism within their institutions and in the larger society.”
The itinerary for the trip is simple: We will depart from Notre Dame on Thursday, September 27 in the late afternoon to arrive for the 6:00pm start time. Following three hours of workshop on Thursday evening, there will be two full days of workshop on Friday and Saturday. We will be staying overnight two nights in Kalamazoo, MI. We will return to campus by 8:00pm on Saturday, September 29.
Registration, hotel, and meals are provided FREE by MSPS.
Spots are limited for the upcoming workshop. But if you are interested, please fill out this very brief Google form and look forward to an email soon with further information regarding the retreat and its departure time on the 27th.
PLEASE BE 100% SURE OF YOUR COMITTMENT WHEN YOU SIGN UP.
Having attended these workshops in the past, I personally think this is a remarkable opportunity, one that I am happy to talk about if you have any further questions (tblake@nd.edu).
Among its major tenets, MSPS supports the continued struggle and movement for racial equity and social justice both at Notre Dame and in wider society through educational programs and training, including community organizing.
This immersion experience is part of the MSPS Martin Luther King, Jr. Series for the Study of Race.