The Anti-Racism Commission's monthly newsletter goes out to all ARC supporters and training participants. Please forward it to others who might benefit from our resources and workshops. And check out our blog site for past articles, training information and ongoing resources.

Sat. May 14, 2022 from 2 to 5 pm

The Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral, 23 S 38th St, Philadelphia, PA 19104

Fee: $15. Scholarships available.

Proof of COVID vaccination must be provided at the door.

In this workshop, Church musicians, clergy, and lay people are invited to learn more about how to introduce the repertoire of the African American Spirituals to their choirs and congregations. Special attention will be given to the historical context of the music, and the ways in which those who are not direct descendants of the enslaved people who originated the Spirituals can develop their own authentic connection to the music with respect and integrity. Music for these selections will be provided to attendees as part of the workshop. Sponsored by the Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral and the Diocesan Anti-Racism Commission.

The Omicron variant spike has led us to reschedule this in-person singing event from its original January date. The same registration link is in place, so if you had already registered and would like to attend the new event, you don't have to re-register. Refunds are available for those who cannot attend the new date. Please contact ARC Co-Chair The Rev. Barbara Ballenger (barbballenger@gmail.com) for more information.

Parishes that were unable to attend the Adaptive Leadership training offered by the Loving Presence Initiative in December will have the opportunity to bring teams to an in-person version of the training on Sat. May 14 from 9 am to 5 pm at St. David’s Episcopal Church, 763 South Valley Forge Road, in Wayne. The workshop, Adaptive Leadership Skills: Continuing the Loving Presence Journey, is also open to parishes that attended in December but wanted to return with a larger team in place. Read more on our blog THE ARC.

If you have any questions, please contact The Rev. Canon Jordan Casson (rector@stmichaelsyeadon.org), Canon for Peace and Reconciliation.

Sat. May 28 from 9 am to 12 pm on Zoom

Fee: $15. Scholarships available.

This prerequisite training explores the multi-layered manifestations of systemic racism.

The Anti-Racism Commission is here to connect you to trainings, resources and support that are rooted in our baptismal covenant. The next training will be Racism and Institutions on Jul. 30.

University City Town Homes is located a block away from the Cathedral between Market and Ludlow, 39th and 40th streets. Thirty members of the congregation completed the national church's Sacred Ground course together in 2020-2021 over Zoom. As a result of that process, the Cathedral community began looking more closely at their historic and present relationship with the people of the surrounding West Philadelphia community.

Through Zoom meetings with historian and longtime UPenn faculty member Dr. Walter Palmer and local activist Sid Bolling, they learned that the Cathedral's neighborhood was once a thriving Black working-class community known as the Black Bottom. As a result of aggressive "urban renewal" programs developed in the 1950s and 1960s by the City of Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, and the Science Center, thousands of residents were displaced and the neighborhood was effectively plowed under.

These weekly (and still ongoing) Zoom meetings then led to further conversations about a current situation where 69 households are facing Jul. 1 eviction from the University City Town Homes, a HUD-designated affordable housing development whose 40-year contract when the current owner decided to sell the property rather than renew the federal agreement.

Meetings with UC Town Homes leader Ms. Connie Astillero, City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, and PA state representative Amen Brown further informed the Cathedral group about current negotiations and legislation recently passed by City Council in hopes of avoiding the displacement of the current families without adequate resources to find new affordable housing.

On Mar. 19, the Cathedral group joined a demonstration in the courtyard of the Town Homes attended by hundreds of residents, neighbors, and students.

According to Cathedral Dean Judith Sullivan, "we are not trying to swoop in as some kind of 'saviors' in the situation, but only to seek ways to become better connected with these families, hoping to support both them and other West Philadelphia communities of color seeking housing justice."

To connect with the Cathedral group, email Dr. Thomas Lloyd, Canon for Music and the Arts (tlloyd@philadelphiacathedral.org) or Dean Judith Sullivan (jsullivan@philadelphiacathedral.org).

To connect with the group Save the UC Town Homes, their website is https://savetheuctownhomes.com.

A Creed of Affirmation

Leader: We believe in God, Creator of the World and of all people;

and in Jesus Christ, incarnate among us, who died and rose again;

and in the Holy Spirit, present with us to guide, strengthen, and comfort.

People: We believe; God, help our unbelief.

Leader: We rejoice in every sign of God’s kingdom:

In the upholding of human dignity and community

In every expression of love, justice and reconciliation

In each act of self-giving on behalf of others

In the abundance of God’s gifts entrusted to us that all may have enough

In all responsible use of the earth’s resources.

People: Glory to God on high; and on earth, peace.

Leader: We confess our sin, individual and collective, by silence or action;

Through the violation of human dignity based on race, class, age, sex, nation, or faith

Through the misuse of power in personal, communal, national, and international life

Through the search for security through military and economic forces that threaten human existence

Through the abuse of technology, which endangers the earth and all Life upon it.

People: Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.

Leader: We commit ourselves individually and as a community to the way of Christ

To take up the cross

To seek abundant life for all humanity

To struggle for peace with justice and freedom

To risk ourselves in faith, hope, and love, praying that God’s kingdom may come

All: Thy kingdom come, on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Amen.

A Creed of Affirmation can be found on our blog THE ARC and in Seeing the Face of God in Each Other: The Antiracism Training Manual of the Episcopal Church

• The Racial Healing Handbook: Practical Activities to Help You Challenge Privilege, Confront Systemic Racism, and Engage in Collective Healing, Anneliese Singh
• Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism from the Inside Out, Ruth King
• Dear White Christians: For Those Still Longing for Racial Reconciliation, Jennifer Harvey

Compelling TED Talks about fraught relationships and racial coping

• Howard C. Stevenson: How to resolve racially stressful situations (18 mins)
• Kori Carew: Just belonging: finding the courage to interrupt bias (20 mins)
• Luvvie Ajayi Jones: Get comfortable with being uncomfortable (11 mins)

Quick reads to sustain a willing spirit

• "Revolution Is Illegal: Revisiting the Panther 21 at 50" by Orisanmi Burton
• "Community Based Responses to Violence" by the Council on Criminal Justice
• "Teens Teach Adults About Dismantling Racism" by Miriam Willard McKenney

The Anti-Racism Commission was created by diocesan convention resolution in 2005 with the mandate “to affect the systemic and institutional transformation in the diocese away from the sin of racism and toward the fulfillment of the Gospel and the baptismal mandate to strive for justice and respect the dignity of all persons.”

Consisting of 12 members, a mix of clergy and lay and persons of various ethnic and cultural backgrounds, the commission aims to increase awareness of the history and legacy of racism in our country and to engage members of the diocese in dismantling its effects.

To learn more about how ARC can help your parish engage in the work of racial justice and repair, contact The Rev. Barbara Ballenger (barbballenger@gmail.com) or The Rev. Ernie Galaz (frernie@christchurchmedia.org), ARC co-chairs.