Faith and Racial Equity:

Exploring Power and Privilege

JustFaith_Mark

Do you want to talk about racial privilege in your faith community, but you don’t know where to begin?

This eight-session program awakens participants to the economic systems, public policies, cultural norms, and hidden biases that empower some and oppress others.

Program Overview

Faith and Racial Equity introduces a framework for understanding and recognizing racial disparities and takes a deeper dive into specific issues related to power and privilege.

Program Goals

There are three primary goals for Faith and Racial Equity.

Facilitation

Two volunteer facilitators are needed for Faith and Racial Equity. JustFaith Ministries provides strong facilitation support.

Sessions

Faith & Racial Equity: Exploring Power and Privilege consists of eight 2-hour sessions, an opening retreat, and an immersion experience into the local community.

Books/Resources

There are three books used in the Faith and Racial Equity program – all available through our JustFaith Ministries Bookstore.

Program Promotion

A comprehensive set of program promotion materials are provided.

Cost

When you register, you have three options:

  • Participants register and pay individually based on a sliding fee scale of $35, $55, or $75/person with additional scholarships available. (You will need a minimum of 9 people in your group).
  • Participants register and pay individually, but a faith community, organization, or individual subsidizes their registration costs.
  • A faith community or other organization pays $275, which covers everyone in the group (up to 12 participants).
JUST FAITH TESTIMONIALS

What They’re Saying

Laura Lyall
Cleveland, OH
“Our Faith and Racial Equity virtual program (via Zoom) with 12 of us (including co-facilitators) exceeded by expectations! In addition to co-facilitators, 1 group member handled the "tech" transitions - what a blessing! This was a serious commitment for 9 weeks! My co-facilitators ordered materials, emailed group members and set up our weekly planning sessions. My role in sharing presentation duties was infinitely easier because of the detailed script and videos provided. The emphasis on Scripture and the guidance of the Holy Spirit increased our abilities to speak our truth and maintain hope dealing with the monumental task of acknowledging white privilege and the pain of racism.”
John Laliberte
Greenville, SC
“Transformative is the single word that comes to mind. This program challenges us to deal with (and not just examine) the reality of racial injustice on individuals, families, and communities as well as entire segments of our country. We are blessed by having multi-generational African Americans in our group that put flesh to the words of our texts that detail the impact of historical prejudices. In other words, this is not an academic exercise, this is the reality of life lived under and through the historical abuse of laws, processes, power, and privilege. You must deal with this reality. ”
Vicki Vernon Lott, Ph.D.
Program Consultant
“I applaud the JustFaith Ministries leadership for having the insight and courage to sponsor these modules on race and white privilege, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to be involved in their development. These modules have an advantage over similar secular workshops because they take place in a faith-based environment with an emphasis on spiritual growth. We not only delve into the truth about the history of racism in the U.S., but we also go into depth, without blaming or shaming any individuals, about how we, as well-intentioned people of goodwill, have all inadvertently been socialized to be adversely affected by institutional racism. Race is an uncomfortable subject for most of us to talk about, but these modules encourage respect and kindness so that awareness and growth along this spiritual journey will take place in a safe environment with fellow believers who seek the truth.”

Program Registration

Program Includes:

  • Comprehensive materials and session guides
  • Facilitation guidance
  • Retreat and Immersion guidance
  • Adaptations for virtual groups
  • Direct access to program staff for support
  • 12-month access to program materials
  • $75 discount if buying all three programs in this series at once (use coupon code racialjustice at checkout)

When you register, you have 3 options:

  • Participants register and pay individually based on a sliding fee scale of $35, $55, or $75/person with additional scholarships available. (You will need a minimum of 9 people in your group).
  • Participants register and pay individually, but a faith community, organization, or individual subsidizes their registration costs.
  • A faith community or other organization pays $275, which covers everyone in the group (up to 12 participants).
  • Coming soon!
    In order to make our programs accessible to everyone, our new website will only feature the individual registration model with a sliding scale (first and second option above).

Books & Resources
for Group Participants

Participant books/resources are sold separately through our JustFaith Ministries Bookstore. The cost for the books used in Faith and Racial Equity is approximately $44/person. Note that there may be a small additional fee for an occasional video purchase.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to take the racial justice programs in a particular order?

We recommend doing Faith and Racial Equity or Faith and Racial Healing before you do Faith and Racial Justice.

How do we talk about racism without causing a split in our church?

As Christians, we are called to speak truth and to stand in solidarity with the marginalized, even when there’s real risk involved. However, one of the primary reasons JustFaith Ministries developed this program is because we are well-aware of the tension around this issue, particularly in churches, and that a botched attempt at conversation or training can cause more harm than good. Faith and Racial Equity will teach your community the skills they need to engage in important conversations with deep listening and mutual respect. Also, this program comes with a facilitator training webinar, as well as live facilitation support. After having completed Faith and Racial Equity, you can not only expect your group have grown closer, but also to be better equipped to have hard conversations around any issue, no matter the subject matter.

What if our group is all white?

People of color often have the burden of teaching white people about racism. That’s a lot of pressure! For this reason, we designed these materials for small groups of any demographic. Experts of color have guided the JustFaith Ministries staff in choosing books, videos, and articles that highlight voices of color and speak truth about the reality of racism in our country.

Should one or both of the facilitators be a person of color?

Groups that are all white do not necessarily need a person of color as a co-facilitator. However, if your group is diverse, we recommend one of the facilitators be a person of color.

Have Other Questions?

Email us here