Antiracism Literacy Partners
Wednesday, February 3 • 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Register: http://bit.ly/Feb3ALP
What does it take to be racially literate and engaged in antiracism in a day-to-day way? Where do we find resources and support in our ongoing learning about systemic racism and the work of dismantling it? This program is an easy entry into finding antiracism books, podcasts, and videos, as well as discussion partners for talking about them. Come to choose a resource, sign up for a buddy or small group, and receive discussion guidelines. 

Reflection & Readiness: Minnesota Unitarian Universalist Social Justice Alliance Racial Justice Summit
Tuesdays and Thursdays, February 16, 18, 23, 25 • 6:30-8:00 p.m. CT
Saturday, February 20 • 10:00-noon CT 
​Register Here
Reflection & Readiness is an opportunity to reflect, convene, and connect across UU congregations in Minnesota and North & South Dakota, to share how we've been learning and taking action towards thriving multicultural democracy, and discern next steps for collective liberation. 

Toward a Culture of Accountability and Care
Wednesday, February 17 • 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Register: http://bit.ly/accountabilitycare
At this program, developed from the work of Unity’s Racial and Restorative Justice Team, you will meet representatives of Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence and Root and Restore Saint Paul, two local groups working on divestment from policing, investment in alternatives, and justice and healing for victims of police violence. You will learn why these groups do what they do, have an opportunity to ask questions, and discover how you can join the work.

Black Film Canon Series
Friday Evenings • February 19–May 21 • 7:00 p.m.
Register: http://bit.ly/ucublackfilmcanon
A new online film series invites you to view and discuss films written, produced, and created by Black people. Black Film Canon 101 (BFC 101) will meet on Zoom, beginning Friday, February 19, and continuing bi-weekly (mostly) through May (February 19 and 26; March 5 and 19; April 2, 16, 30; May 7 and 21).

Congregation Book Read Discussion of Imani Perry’s Breathe 
Wednesday, February 24 • 7:00-8:30 p.m. 
Register: http://bit.ly/bookreadbreathe
Join us for an online discussion of this year’s Congregation Book Read, Imani Perry’s Breathe: A Letter to My Sons (Beacon Press, 2019). The discussion will be facilitated by Rev. Karen Hering and members of the Racial and Restorative Justice Team. ​Discussion will include a BIPOC group, led by congregant Russel Balenger, for readers and parents who are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color.
Reading guide: bit.ly/breathereadguide

Breathe is full of stories, lessons, prayers, hopes, dreams, poetry, warnings, guidance, the terrible truth of racism in America, and above all, love. Beacon Press describes the book as “an unflinching challenge to society to see Black children as deserving of humanity.” Written as a letter to her two sons, the book is organized into three sections:

1. Fear. The recognition that she cannot guarantee the safety of her sons; that along with the everyday business of life, there is “the daily work of beating back the ugliness. And reconciliation with the irreconcilable.”
2. Fly. In a “world bent on you not being and becoming,” there are ways to use your wings. She is not advocating for “making it,” but “what I hope for you is nothing as small as prestige. I hope for a living passion, profound human intimacy, and connection, beauty and excellence.” And freedom to fly. 
3. Fortune. The basic elements of a good life, of building yourself, is “a stripping down to fundamental lessons for one’s life. And it is a meditation between the lives and love that have gone and the ones right here with us…and give meaning to our lives today.” 

You will find that Breathe has received many accolades, prize nominations, and good reviews, and deservedly so. Stacey Abrams describes it as “a lyrical meditation that connects a painful, proud history of African American struggle with a clarion call for present-day action.”

There is much to talk about here. Please join the online book discussion on February 24, at 7:00 p.m.. Registration is available here: http://bit.ly/bookreadbreathe. ​Discussion will include a BIPOC group, led by congregant Russel Balenger, for readers and parents who are Black, Indigenous, or People of Color.

The book is available in the Unity Online Bookstall at unitybookstall.square.site and at your favorite local bookstore. Or contact the Library & Bookstall Team for mail order library service — a limited number of copies are available. 

Black Film Canon series explores Black perspective behind and in front of the camera.
Friday Evenings • February 19–May 21 • 7:00 p.m.
Register: http://bit.ly/ucublackfilmcanon

A new online film series invites you to view and discuss films written, produced, and created by Black people. Black Film Canon 101 (BFC 101) will meet on Zoom, beginning Friday, February 19, and continuing bi-weekly (mostly) through May (February 19 and 26; March 5 and 19; April 2, 16, 30; May 7 and 21).

The eight films will cover almost a full century, beginning with Oscar Michaeux’s silent film Within Our Gates, including Spike Lee’s 1979 film Do the Right Thing, and Gina Prince-Blythewood’s Love and Basketball, and ending with Ryan Couglar’s Fruitvale Station. It does not include recently released films from the last five years.

Participants are asked to commit to the full series to build a deepening understanding and rapport with one another. The series begins with an introductory session and each session thereafter discusses one of eight films selected from the a list of 50 that Slate magazine has dubbed the “Black Film Canon.” The movies to be discussed bring to life not only Black suffering, slavery, and trauma, but also joy, love, and humor. 

Rev. Jack Gaede, from White Bear Unitarian Universalist Church and developer of BFC 101, notes: “...this isn't just a film study group, but also a chance to dig deeper into [ourselves] in the context of antiracism work. We are watching these movies … to explore and examine the concepts of race, of whiteness, of racism. We are asking people to look at the films through certain lenses, to notice whiteness and blackness and the way that those concepts are portrayed on screen. And we are especially curious about the way those portrayals have changed through time, which is why we are utilizing a chronological approach to the films that we are watching.”

Becky Gonzalez-Campoy, member of Unity Church and student of social transformation at United Theological Seminary, will lead the series at Unity. 
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Participants will view each movie on their own prior to the Zoom meeting. Class materials will include information about where to find these films (online) for viewing before each session as well as discussion questions and related resources. Films chosen in the series are available online for free or a minimal cost. If financial assistance is needed, please email karen@unityunitarian.org.

BFC 101 is a great learning opportunity for anyone just starting their antiracism journey as well as for those who are already seasoned in this work. For those who have completed the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI), this series can be a useful tool to help meet your personal growth goals. 

For more information please contact Becky Gonzalez-Campoy at beckygc83@gmail.com. 

Lia Rivamonte, Artist-in-Residence Team

Tonight
in the dark kitchen
only the stainless steel 
holds the moon

On the sidewalk in front of my house I am invited to see the moon on the stainless steel surfaces in the dark of my kitchen. I do not have a stainless steel sink; the moon does not enter my kitchen through the window above it. No matter, I am grateful to have this invitation impressed into the concrete that evokes such delight. I hope that all who pass my house will look down and notice, read the words, and experience the wonder of the conjured image. 

There is much to admire in these four simple lines by the writer, @grumbles_mccoy, and credit must be given to Marcus Young, Unity’s current artist-in-residence, who initiated the project, “Everyday Poems for City Sidewalks.” It is Marcus who envisioned the sidewalks of St. Paul as pages in a book of wildly diverse poems and who worked with the city’s sidewalk maintenance program to make it happen.

What crosses your mind as you glimpse a pleasant looking man dressed in flowing robes walking calmly in silence through the galleries of the large museum you are visiting? Or, perhaps you’re in a hurry, making your way to the bus stop. In the corner of your eye you catch a person dancing in an open space on the other side of the street. You stop to watch. Neither person asks you for anything yet you are drawn in. Each appears to be fully absorbed, moving through the space with intention. Each encounter throws you off, disrupts your routine in a subtle, but insistent way.
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