Racial Awakening for White-Bodied Folks

Racial Awakening for White-Bodied Folks

Wednesdays, June 2-July 14 (no class June 23)

7-8:15pm ET on Zoom

with Liz Reynolds

“The history of white people has led them to a fearful, baffling place where they have begun to lose touch with reality - to lose touch, that is, with themselves…” -James Baldwin

“Healing is learning to love the wound because love draws us into relationship with it instead of avoiding feeling the discomfort.” -Lama Rod Owens

As our nation approaches the first anniversary of the murder of George Floyd and months of subsequent protests, white-bodied folks can continue to ask ourselves, What is mine to do? How can I deepen understanding of my own racial conditioning and contribute to the healing of racial separation?

For a growing number of American contemplative practitioners, racial justice work both internally and in the outer world has become a pillar of spiritual practice. How can the Buddha’s teachings on the Four Noble Truths, metta and external/internal mindfulness help to unmask and heal white folks’ societal and personal conditioning around racial separation in this country? Participants in this six-week series will investigate and reflect on the ways that white-body supremacy is reinforced and maintained in our own lives, paying mindful attention to the wisdom our bodies have to share in the journey towards racial equity.

Our class time together will include sharing within the larger group, reflection in pairs, and guided mindfulness meditation. Homework will include practical reflections for journaling or discussion, as well as optional readings and podcasts. Registering for this class with a friend, partner or family member is encouraged - support and accountability in this work is invaluable!

This class is suitable for experienced as well as beginning meditators, and for white folks at all stages of racial awareness and awakening. Re-framing and building white community centered on justice work is a brave and necessary step forward for ourselves and for our country.

**50% of all proceeds from this class will be donated to the Jefferson School African-American Heritage Center in Charlottesville, VA. Please visit their website to learn more about their work and contribute to their mission.

Instructor Bio

Liz Reynolds has been studying the intersection of contemplative practice and racial justice for the past five years and facilitating class series on whiteness since 2018. Aiding her in this journey are her decade-long meditation practice and a 3-year training program in the Alexander Technique. Participation in a long-standing white racial affinity group, under the leadership of Ruth King, has cemented the pursuit of social justice as a pillar of Liz’s spiritual practice. Liz is a teacher with the Insight Meditation Community of Charlottesville and is grateful to the practices of so many contemplative artists there and around the country for nurturing these teachings.