Do you want to talk about racial privilege in your faith community, but you don’t know where to begin?
This small group program awakens participants to the economic systems, public policies, cultural norms, and hidden biases that empower some and oppress others.
Program Overview
Faith & Racial Equity: Exploring Power & Privilege awakens groups to the economic systems, public policies, cultural norms, and hidden biases that empower some and oppress others.
The first half of the program introduces a framework for understanding and recognizing racial disparities in power and privilege. Sessions 5-8 take a deeper dive into specific issues related to power and privilege, including affirmative action, the school-to-prison pipeline, the criminal justice system, and powerful biases in media representation. As with all JustFaith programs, participants will explore how their faith should inform their response to their learning, as well as discern action steps for working toward racial equity in their own communities.
Faith and Racial Equity is not for the faint of heart! This program is designed for participants who are willing to wrestle with hard questions and take an honest look at their own attitudes, assumptions, and choices. However, through spiritual grounding and community-building, participants find support and belonging throughout their journey to personal transformation and social action.
Goals for Faith and Racial Equity: Exploring Power and Privilege include:
Develop awareness of the ways that racial privilege impacts our communities and ourselves
Through a deep dive into the Gospel of Luke, learn how Jesus’s teachings guide us in seeking racial justice in today’s world.
Learn practical tools for seeking racial justice in our communities.
Faith and Racial Equity: Exploring Power and Privilege consists of eight two-hour sessions, as well as an opening retreat (three hours for groups meeting virtually; six hours for in-person groups) and an immersion experience.
Recommended group size is 8-14.Framework & Session Topics
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Opening Retreat: Community-Building & Self-Reflection
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Session 1: Introduction to the theme and white fragility
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Session 2: Origins of race and racial identity
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Session 3: Socialization – how cultural messages Influence racial awareness
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Session 4: Affect of whiteness on institutions/communities
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Session 5: Guest speaker, privilege, and the education system
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Session 6: Racialized messages in media
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Immersion Experience (to be determined by the group)
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Session 7: Implicit bias, policing, drug policy
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Session 8: Discerning action steps
Sessions include:
Prayer and reflection
Discussion of reading
Videos & group activities
Spiritual practices
Integration of faith
Want to know more?
An overview, sample session, and program booklet are available for free download.
What you’ll need for this program
There are three books used in Faith and Racial Equity: Exploring Power and Privilege, all available through the JustFaith Ministries bookstore.
Need help inviting people to your small group?
This program promotion kit contains sample social media posts, bulletin announcements, email invitations, and more.
We believe strongly in making our programs inclusive and available to everyone
There are two registration options:
Option 1: Participants in the group pay their own registration fees: Participants pay individually based on a sliding fee scale of $35, $55, or $75/person. (There is no charge for up to two facilitators.) A minimum of 8 participants is strongly recommended. Scholarships are available for individuals.
Option 2: A church/organization pays the registration fee for all participants: When the group is set up, a church or organization will automatically be billed a flat rate of $280, covering up to 8 participants. For groups with more than 8 participants, the organization will be invoiced an additional $35 for each extra participant when the group begins.
The registration fee includes:
- Comprehensive materials for each session
- Facilitation scripts, guidance, and training resources
- Retreat and immersion guidance
- Adaptations for virtual groups
- Direct access to program staff for support
Books are an additional cost and available for purchase in the bookstore.
To ensure our programs are not cost-prohibitive for anyone, all programs are offered on a sliding fee scale ranging from $35-$75.
We ask you to choose the registration fee tier that best aligns with your current financial situation. Paying on the higher end allows us to keep the program affordable for all.
If the $35 tier is difficult for you, please consider the program anyway. We ask that you decide what amount you can contribute as a commitment to the program, and send us an email at info@justfaith.org to learn about partial scholarship opportunities for the remainder amount.
What our program participants are saying
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.
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.
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.
Faith and Racial Equity Overview, Sample Session, and Program Booklet
To get access to this program's overview, sample session and program booklet, complete the form below and you will receive an email with the downloadable materials.
Faith and Racial Equity Promotion Kit
To get access to this program's promotional materials, complete the form below and you will receive an email with the downloads.