|
Ernie Dixon self-identifies as Black or African American and has been an Anti-Racism Commission member since May 2023. In 2021, Ernie joined the Adult Formation Book Group at Trinity Episcopal Church Ambler (Book Group), which meets every Wednesday night on Zoom. Book Group offers a safe space for all members to engage in challenging conversations about race and racism and to reflect on past experiences with an open heart and mind.
Members of the Book Group are constantly searching for ways to learn about racism and how to eliminate racism. The Book Group occasionally invites guest speakers to give presentations, and sometimes conducts in-person activities and trips.
A few years ago, the Book Group read a book that referenced Goree Island. Goree Island was a stop along the trans-Atlantic slave trade where Africans were held captive before embarking on the long, perilous journey across the ocean.
Two of my sisters along with my mother and two nieces traveled to several West African nations about 30 years ago. The Book Group invited my two sisters to share their Goree Island experience. It’s one thing to read about Goree Island, but hearing my sisters’ experience provides a much better perspective of what enslaved Africans endured. It was unimaginable. My sisters’ presentation, which included many photographs, allowed us to connect with the author’s depiction of the atrocities described in the book.
Later this year, my wife and I will travel to Ghana and we will visit Cape Castle, a site where enslaved Africans had their final bath before crossing the Atlantic. I’m sure this will be a very moving experience similar to what my sisters felt. We will share our experience with the Book Group.
In January 2023, the Book Group went to Glen Foerd, a beautiful mansion in Northeast Philadelphia built in the 1800s, to see the play The Ways of White Folks. A theatrical staging of Langston Hughes’ 1934 classic, the play is a series of short stories about absurd and tragic interactions between White and Black people across systemic divides. Some plays were very light-hearted; others were quite sober.
The audience moved from room to room to watch short plays. The close proximity to the actors during the performances allowed me to relate to the complex circumstances and relationships depicted in each play.
The Book Group discussed the play at the following Zoom session. The play complemented our readings as it provided a different way to learn about racism and the various impacts of racism.
I believe the work we do in the Book Group aligns with ARC's mission: to educate, advocate and act to eliminate racism, discrimination and intolerance; to build living relations; and to restore and repair ourselves and each other.
Check out the list below of titles we hope to read in Book Group in the future.
| 
