Weekly Newsletter - August 12, 2019

Tuesday, August 13 • 7:00 – 9:00 pm
SURJ Marin: Conversations from the Heart
Have you found yourself involved in challenging conversations with family, friends, neighbors and co-workers about race? Join SURJ Marin to practice these conversations in a safe and supportive space. Whether you’d like to share your current interest in racial justice, talk with your loved ones and neighbors about changing the name of the Dixie School District, discuss what it means to ‘take a knee’ when the national anthem is played, or engage in conversation about our country’s treatment of migrants and asylum seekers, you’ll come away with more confidence in your ability to stay in conversation around important issues related to racial justice. Come learn how to engage and respond effectively. Do your part to break white silence! Event is free. Register today.
Location: First Presbyterian San Anselmo, 72 Kensington Road, San Anselmo

Thursday, August 15 • 5:00 – 7:00 pm
Dean Spade with SURJ: Solidarity, Not Charity
Widespread, effective social movements usually include mutual aid strategies as part of their work. Famous examples of mutual aid projects include the Black Panther Party's Free Breakfast Program, the Young Lords Party's hijacking of NYC's tuberculosis testing mobile unit to bring TB testing to high-risk, medically neglected neighborhoods, and feminist organizing to provide underground abortions in the 1970s. In this webinar, we will look at why mutual aid is an important part of building participatory movements, and what is difficult about mutual aid in the current political climate. We will also look at what principles and methods characterize politicized survival work and how it intentionally departs from charity frameworks.
Location: Online. Register here.

Friday, August 23 • 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Never Again for Anyone: Action at ICE
Join the Month of Momentum, 30 Days of Action to Close the Camps, JVP, SURJ, and IJAN for an action that explores the connection between the forced displacement of asylum seekers and refugees coming into the US and their confinement in US concentration camps with the ongoing forced displacement of the Palestinian people, as a result of the founding and on-going colonization of Palestine by the state of Israel, and the confining of Palestinian people into walled ghettos, refugee camps and the large concentration camp of Gaza. More info.
Location: ICE, 630 Sansome St, San Francisco

Wednesday, September 11 • 6:45 – 9:00 pm
Intro to SURJ Meeting
Want to get involved with SURJ Bay Area? Come learn about our current work and activities. SURJ moves white people to act for justice, with passion and accountability, as part of a multi-racial majority. You will hear about SURJ's pathways for entering the work, including committee work, upcoming workshops, and events. We'll answer your questions and share how you can get involved in the movement for racial justice. Register today!
Location: Movement Strategy Center, 436 14th St, Suite 500, Oakland

Sunday, September 15 • 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Antidotes to White Fragility
What skills, tools and approaches are useful in encouraging white people to sustain balanced engagement with anti-racism/racial justice education and work? How can we cultivate resilience (as opposed to white fragility) in ourselves, our communities, and our movements? This SURJ workshop will explore these questions and explore the role of the body, community, spirituality, intellectual knowledge and other themes that you bring from your experience. Sliding Scale: $15-$85. No one turned away for lack of funds. This popular workshop tends to fill quickly so pre-registration is required.  Learn more and get tickets.
Location: Sierra Club, 2101 Webster St. Suite 1300, Oakland

September 16 - October 31 • Weekly Meetings • Choice of Days
SURJ Study & Action 6-Week Series
Are you looking for a learning community to challenge racism? Do you want to learn more so that you can become a resource for your community? Would you like to find out how to take action locally and be accountable? Join us as we examine white supremacy and resistance movements to build skills to challenge racism and take action in our communities. Through weekly reading and facilitated groups, we study the histories and systems of that which we resist, we deepen our understanding of injustice, and learn to take strategic, effective action to dismantle white supremacy and support Black and people of color-led organizations fighting for for racial justice. Study & Action is free, but you must RSVP for your choice of 1 of 4 days. Space is limited.
Location: Provided upon registration

Contribute to making SURJ Bay Area more Accessible
One of SURJ Bay Area's member agreements is that we commit to being proactive in making our spaces and actions as accessible as possible, which is why we have started a fundraiser to help meet our commitments to accessibility. This means renting accessible spaces and paying service providers, like ASL interpreters and language translators, the living wage they deserve while following the leadership of disabled people of color in our work. As with all of our fundraising, SURJ Bay Area passes at least half of the money we raise to the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color-led organizations we partner with, which helps ensure that we keep our common goal of racial justice in focus. Learn more and donate here.

Check Out these Updated SURJ Bay Area Legislative Priorities for 2019
SURJ Bay Area's Policy Working Group is working in service to, and in collaboration with our people of color-led partner organizations that work on legislative advocacy. In this update, we look at some of the bills that have successfully crossed-over to their second house (California Assembly or Senate), hopefully on their way to the governor’s desk. Learn more about the organizations we partner with and the bills we're actively supporting. You can be part of this effort by adding your name to our Legislative Action List.

Help Mauna Kea Protesters: Donate to the Aloha ‘Āina Support Fund
In Hawai‘i on July 10th, Governor Ige announced that the transport of earth moving machines for the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea would begin on Monday, July 15. Your support is needed now; KAHEA is announcing a new fund, the Aloha ‘Āina Support Fund, which prioritizes frontline logistical support for non-violent direct actions taken to protect Mauna Kea from further industrial development.

An Interview With Sarah Stockholm About the De-Escalate Washington Campaign
How do we recruit more white people to work for and support racial justice and immigrant justice? By doing sustained organizing in white communities we’ve not been in before! This is the work SURJ is doing across the country. Watch the short trailer interview or the full-length video interview with Sarah Stockholm, who is the SURJ National Coach for the state of Washington as well as a member of Olympia SURJ, as she discusses the importance of organizing more white communities to support racial justice campaigns like the I-940 ballot initiative, a landmark victory for racial justice this past November. The new law increases police accountability in all Washington communities and specifically addresses the impact of police violence on Black, Native and People of Color communities as well as people with disabilities, mental health issues or who are LGBTQ.

SURJ Bay Area Chapter - Join us! Through community organizing, mobilizing, and education, SURJ moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability. Learn more at www.surjbayarea.org. SURJ Bay Area is one of 150 chapters and affiliates nationwide. Learn about SURJ National and our mission, vision, and values HERE.
Want to support our work? You can make a donation for SURJ's organizing and educational efforts with over half of what we raise going to Black and people of color-led partner organizations. Make a one-time donation or become a monthly sustainer HERE. Contributions are tax-deductible.

Follow SURJ Bay Area on Social Media: Facebook • Twitter • Instagram

Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Bay Area c/o PO Box 22748, Oakland CA 94609