class 1: awareness of oppression/privilege & building ally skills
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Class 1: Awareness of Oppression/Privilege & Building Ally Skills. August 13, 2012. Objectives. To deepen our understanding of dynamics of oppression and privilege Understand insidiousness of such dynamics (through experiential exercise) - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
AUGUST 13 , 2012
Class 1: Awareness of Oppression/Privilege
& Building Ally Skills
Objectives
To deepen our understanding of dynamics of oppression and privilege
Understand insidiousness of such dynamics (through experiential exercise)
Practice interrupting oppression and privilege when we encounter it
Make the links of this content to own site of practiceBuild core competencies for AOP-informed self-
awareness and engagement
Core Competencies
1. Awareness of context in the following areas: Self-awareness as embodied and socially located The issues challenging this community today and in history The larger discourse issues that influence how we understand
people and their difficulties
2. Practice of deep self-reflection 3. Building lifelong commitments to unlearning racism &
dominance4. Ally skills5. Methods to interrupt oppression 6. Noting impact of this work on your family, social and work
circles
Overview of today
Pre-session review Learning the local context
At minimum, review data from Burns Institute on your state’s DMC data, looking at history of disproportionality in different areas. http://www.burnsinstitute.org/state_map.php.
Ideally, review poverty data for region for groups of different race & ethnicities and compare with 5 years ago Reading materials
Morley – Teaching critical practice: Resisting structural domination through critical reflection Tatum – The complexity of identity: “Who am I?” Kirk & Okazawa-Rey – Identities and social locations: Who am I? Who are my people? Ayvazian – Interrupting the cycle of oppression: The role of allies as agents of change
Review of key elements of AOP webinar Introduction to the AOP model as applied to Reclaiming Futures Introduction to the triangle tool – an analysis tool Presentation on dominant discourse Presentation on ally skills & interrupting privilege Activity on interrupting privilege Assign homework
Complete sensitivity tools where you hold a privileged identity
Review of Webinar
Conflict perspective – power imbalances at root of distress
Accounts for distress much better (and in non-blaming ways) than psychosocial models
Multi-level manifestations and multi-level interventionsBetter explain disparitiesCounter-cultural lens… this is a hard sell, particularly in
the justice field
AOP as applied to the RF context
Service fragmentation… who wins & who loses? The more money is wasted and the more people are
hurt More money expended
Services that are not designed for the people who are service users Our services are classed and raced (white,
middle/upper class) Avenue of social control rather than social
change Compliance and silence instead of liberation and
increased entitlement to voice and
Key Elements of Self-Awareness• Influences our ability to empathize & understand• We will focus today on privilege (as opposed to oppression)
• We are all socialized to be (dare I say it?) racist, classist, sexist, homophobic, ageist– Need to perpetually “unlearn” the isms and know it is a
lifelong task • We hold positional power (as workers in services) that
reinscribes dominance over clients and communities– So need to be aware and have practices to moderate our power
• While the behaviors may not be as durable or far-reaching as systems change work… • How we treat people matters!• There is one view (from Foucault) that says we reproduce
or resist domination in every encounter – so every interaction is an avenue for resistance
Triangle tool
(Focus of today)
(Focus of today)
(Focus of other classes)
Introduction to Dominant Discourse
Equated with the “powerful ideas” on Triangle ToolSynonyms = ideology, socialization, mythsDefinition = set of meanings, images and/or statements that
work together to construct who people are, without saying much
Not usually intentional but so “commonsense” that it is not challenged
Function Limits who we are and who we can be Prescribes being “normal” via defining insiders and outsiders Serves to reproduce dominance
Examples Femininity constructed via “pink” Masculinity constructed by “manly”
Reflections on Dominant Discourse
What is reproduced in the image? How is the colonizer portrayed? How are the colonized portrayed? How is Christianity portrayed? What is portrayed of the relationship between the two?
Is this image a dominant one?What is the impact of images & texts like this?That one was easy… let’s take on something
harder…
What dominant discourses are in photo?
What do you notice about the picture?How is motherhood constructed?How is female constructed?How is it gendered, raced, classed, aged and
sexually oriented?What norms (or “normativity”) is reproduced here?What is your experience if you are outside these
norms?What is the consequence of hanging this photo (or
equivalent image) in a battered women’s shelter?What happens to the culture of the organization?
What if this impact is not intended? (“it’s just a nice picture!”)
In the AOP framework, the impact is what mattersImportant because we don’t have to prove
motivation in order to take the issue seriouslySignificance of disproportionality in our systems is
what matters – we don’t have to slide into proving what someone intended, just that the impact exists
One benefit is that in interrupting such dominance, we can presume intention did not exist. We can simply suggest that the impact exists, and bypass the issue of intention. People prefer to have the best presumed about them, rather
than the worst.
What about discursive language?
“The smell of urine was in the hall.”“The client was late for 3 sessions in a row.”“Amanda denies using cocaine.”“This is an at-risk client.”“Carlos comes from an intact family.”
Other examples?
Most insidious impact?
It plays a significant role in the reproduction of the status quo and the power held by the privileged
This is a vehicle for the privileged to justify their power Because we have dehumanized and rendered the oppressed in
a one-down space as one of inferiority Lets the privileged bypass the immorality of their
superiority, letting them ignore cognitive dissonance of injustice of superior/inferior systems
Even lets the privileged take on the savior role as one of civilizing, helping and placating the oppressed
What is the impact on social services here?
Discussion: How does dominant discourse show up in RF sites?
Added features?
How is the service itself constructed? Innocent “Helping” in untroubled manner Beyond reproach
If clients complain – being “ungrateful” or “oppositional” If staff complain – being “duped” or “bleeding heart”
Anti-Oppressive Ally Skills
Work through resistance (yours and others) that shows up in many forms “That all happened a long time ago – don’t blame me.” “I’m not racist (or sexist or classist).” “I’m a good person – I’ve never done anything nasty to
someone who is struggling. So don’t blame me.” “I have friends who are oppressed.” “I don’t see people as black or white; I see them all as
part of the human race.”
Ally practices
Assume racism (and other forms of oppression) is everywhere, everyday. Be a worker in your own liberation struggle. Work to end oppression when
you experience it. Help members of your own group understand oppression. Listen and reflect. Listen some more. And then listen deeper. And again. Recognize that being a member of an oppressor group does not make you
bad. Remember that being privileged means you can’t know what it is like to be
oppressed. Assume that you don’t understand or don’t understand enough.
Count your privileges and help others see their privilege too. Break the invisibility of privilege. Applies across identities including as person of color who holds privilege of class or status
Speak up when you see or hear oppression in action.
More ally skills
When working in solidarity with the oppressed: Work in service of their leadership and their empowerment Don’t assume that you know what is best for them. Never take public credit or attention for their process. Don’t expect the group to easily agree – no group does. Don’t expect them to reward you for your efforts. They need energy for their
struggle. Learn everything you can about the oppression. Don’t drain their resources on
your education. Work with your own privileged group to learn about oppression and support
each other. It takes hard work to be in sincere relationships with the oppressed. Don’t give
up. Be yourself. You will carry the burden of your identity. Look for good role models. Deal with your emotions. This is difficult work. Be really honest with yourself.
Find someone to work through the hard times.
What people of color say they want from whites
Respect usFind out about usDon’t take overProvide informationResourcesTake risksDon’t take it personallyUnderstandingTeach your children about racismSpeak upDon’t be scared by my angerListen to us
Don’t make assumptionsStand by my sideDon’t assume you know what
is best for meMoneyMake mistakesHonestyTalk to other white peopleDon’t ask me to speak for my
peopleSupportYour body on the line
How to interrupt oppression
Confront the behavior Not doing so serves to sanction & perpetuate the actions Silence is complicity
Methods Express your disapproval of the behavior… assert yourself Interrupt and educate, explaining what is oppressive about the
behavior Support the proactive responses of others (that promote
understanding of differences & take action to promote understanding) Initiate a proactive response that allows you to work for change more
widely & directly Extending your intervention...
On Graceful Interventions
Please aspire to the following To notice and interrupt To educate as opposed to shame To believe in the possibility of learning and transformation (or else why are we
doing this?) To accept apologies To enter such engagement with grace To be willing to hold ourselves complicit as well To bracket self-righteousness To occupy a stance of humility for all the work we still have to do To love and to exhibit love, compassion & forgiveness
And to be gentle & forgiving with yourself, for these are aspirations that we are rarely likely to attain!
Practicing Interventions
You listen to a customer give a cashier a hard time – she says, “I can’t understand you. Why don’t you learn English?”
As you walk past an intake room, you hear the worker utter an “uugh” as she hears the customer confirm he is in a homosexual relationship.
Your brother says: “She’s getting pregnant just so she can get welfare.”
“Can’t you take a joke? Ever since you took that training program, you’re no fun to be around.”
Homework and follow-up: Sensitivity Tools
Race Video of “A girl like me” can be viewed on your own at the following
site: http://www.mediathatmattersfest.org/watch/6/a_girl_like_me. Unpacking a lifetime of white privilege (in pre-reading for the course)
Class Money & raising children
Age Adultism tool
Gender Sexism & male dominance
Positional privilege On being the boss