Latinx showing up for Juneteenth
Querida Amiga,
I am constantly forgetting to keep you up to date with the workshops I lead for universities and organizations. There is one I led last month that feels relevant to circle back and share today.
The United Farm Workers (UFW) invited me to join them again and create a session for their leadership team focused on Liberatory Solidarity. The focus was on the increased possibilities for liberation when we join with other movements who share our mission and values.
This workshop feels relevant to circle back to in order to keep the conversations around Juneteenth alive. This holiday is seeing a surge of interested people who want to learn more about where it originated, how it is celebrated, and want to show their support of the holiday.
As with all things in life, change comes from sustained conversation, growth, and action. That means we need to keep the core of the holiday at the forefront every day...the liberation of Black people.
Liberation is removing all limits on thoughts, dreams, and abundant living. We will not be liberated as separate groups of people. We need to seek liberation collectively. I believe all Latinas will not be liberated until all Black people are liberated.
When I opened up the UFW workshop, we together recited the Prayer for the Farm Workers’ Struggle/Oracion del Campesino en la Lucha and read the mission. We grounded ourselves in the purpose of the organization and the spirit behind its creation.
We then spent time reviewing the history of solidarity and coalition building that the UFW has been a part of. There were numerous examples of Black, Latinx, Asian/Pacific Islander, LGBTQ+, labor, religion, and other groups working together through the decades to amplify shared values and mission. The elders in the space were able to add to this timeline with detailed stories and quotes from those times.
The purpose of the timeline and walk down memory lane was to remind us of shared oppressions and possibilities that have brought us together. The solidarity between civil rights activists such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Cesar Chavez were to amplify the possibilities for change when aligned purpose came together.
The power of one movement is raised exponentially by the power of other movements.
As the workshop continued, we moved to identifying other movements with shared values and mission that would be important partners for the UFW. The framing of action plans helped each person in the group to consider how they could contribute to solidarity and coalition building in service of collective liberation.
This progression of thinking and reflecting feels appropriate this week, in order to keep conversations of Black liberation alive and moving to action.
Some steps to consider:
Learn about the historical legacy of Juneteenth
Research various ways that the communities you identify with have joined Black liberation movements in the past and are doing so currently
Identify at least one organization focused on Black liberation who you want to follow and support in the ways they communicate that they need. Some to consider:
Reflect on your vision for liberation. Get curious and creative about how you want to connect with others who have a similar vision for liberation. How can your collective vision and action lead to faster and grander possibilities?
This research, reflection, and action is much more than one day. This is a dedicated lifelong focus and effort. If each of us takes at least one step a day with our eyes on the prize, years from now we will be in a world closer to complete freedom of thoughts and living for all.
Quiero saber de ti. What is your vision for collective liberation? Who do you want to partner with to bring this vision into existence? What step(s) will you take this week?
Un Abrazo,
Michelle
