Dear Friends:
We write on behalf of Pacific Yearly Meeting’s M&O Subcommittee on Racial Justice to share our excitement about a unique opportunity—vibrant, challenging and nurturing—for Western Friends to immerse themselves in the vital work of racial healing and racial justice. We on the subcommittee have found this work to be immensely rewarding, yet our efforts have been modest. We are delighted to discover a vast venue for this work, close at hand:
Imagine thousands of people of all hues and religious persuasions (or none) coming together once each year to share heartbreak and joy, insight and inspiration, resources and tools—all for the sake of promoting greater trust and understanding between people, and building stronger, more inclusive communities. Imagine being challenged, uplifted and energized as you shed painful, limiting assumptions about those who look different from you—and feel the gladness of connection where you used to be afraid. Imagine opening to life-changing transformation that enlarges your world—and receiving ways to bring this transformation to your Meeting, workplace, school, family. You will find all of this and more at the Fourteenth Annual White Privilege Conference, held this year in Seattle, Washington, on Wednesday, April 10, 2013 through Saturday, April 13, 2013.
In March 2012, some sixty Quakers attended the Thirteenth Annual White Privilege Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Friends gathered daily for worship, sharing of experiences and mutual support. Most had taken advantage of a generous group rate arranged by Friends General Conference. FGC will again offer a huge discount to Friends who register by February 28th. To receive this discount, Friends MUST register through FGC and follow the process presented. Educators are particularly welcome; many of the conference offerings are geared for teachers from elementary through college. Go to the FGC website to learn more: http://www.fgcquaker.org/events/2013-white-privilege-conference-wpc14, but do it today. The deadline for this special rate is Feb. 28, 2013.
In Friendship,
Laura Magnani, Co-Clerk of the Pacific Yearly Meeting Subcommittee on Racial Justice
Steve Smith, Presiding Clerk of Pacific Yearly Meeting