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Race and Quakerism

• Authored by:
• Kat Northrup

The first time I was confronted with my identity as a “Brown Woman” was my first trip to North Pacific Yearly Meeting (NPYM). I had never experienced such a direct external approach to my skin color before. My family celebrated my adoption day as a family holiday. We went back to India to see my heritage history, and I was raised with some Indian cultural education, but my racial background wasn’t ever the first characteristic that came to mind when examining my personal identity. The welcome I received because of my brown skin from the Quakers was both amazingly compassionate and entirely unsettling. At that time, I had only just begun to explore this part of my identity. As an extension of this experience, I began to pay more attention to race relations within the Quaker community, and the struggles of different races around the U.S.

On Expansion (May 2018)

Race and Faith (news item)

Truth and Truth and Truth

• Authored by:
• Trudy Myrrh Reagan

I straddle two worlds. My scientific family and studies have given me a close-up view of the scientific endeavor. Its work, driven by curiosity and belief in logical methods, and conducted with an obedience to truthfulness, have inspired me to incorporate science ideas and images into my art since 1967. My other world is that of a practicing Quaker. Through my engagement with Quaker service work and through a stunning experience of the Inner Light that I had half a lifetime ago, I am moving toward an amplified view of how to be in the world.

On Knowing (March 2015)

Laugh and Laugh and Laugh

• Authored by:
• Hannah Mackinney

I kneel down in front of Anna and stroke her hand. Then I say to her, “Mi amor. ¿Puedo recibir una sonrisa? ¿Por favor?”

On Pride (July 2014)

Race and Faith (abridged)

• Authored by:
• José Santos Woss

[The following text was drawn from a complete manuscript of José Santos Woss’s keynote talk, which is published at: https://westernfriend.org/media/race-and-faith-unabridged]

On Cliques (September 2021)

Matters of Race and Witness (2)

• Authored by:
• Collin Boyd

Dear Friends:

On Neighbors (September 2019)

Aloha Quakerism 101 (news item)

Abortion and Community

• Authored by:
• Richard Grossman

“Community” is central to Friends’ faith and practice, and of course, it is central to all of humanity. Life starts with a community of two – the mother and her infant. A baby’s community grows as she grows. Eventually it may include her father, other siblings, and many others.

On Healers (August 2023)

Illusions and Miracles

• Authored by:
• john heid

Military forces in the 18th and 19th centuries employed a deceptive tactic called “the Quaker gun trick.” This involved using wooden cannon replicas, sometimes painted black, to trick an adversary into withdrawal or surrender – without a shot being fired. We are not talking Peace Testimony here, but perhaps Friendly Trickery – deception for the greater good of de-escalation.

On Tricks (May 2021)

Community Conversation on Race and Faith (news item)