A Learning Journey In Detroit. A Brave New World Recreating Itself As Beloved Community

Transcription

1 A Learning Journey In Detroit A Brave New World Recreating Itself As Beloved Community OCTOBER 25-28, 2012 led by Margaret Wheatley in partnership with The Boggs Centerof Detroit and timed with the publication of Margaret's new book SO FAR FROM HOME: LOST AND FOUND IN OUR BRAVE NEW WORLD October 2012, Berrett-Koehler Detroit is a place of stark and compelling contrasts and contradictions. Once the fourth largest city in America that glowed with the promise of industrialization, it is now an embodied prophecy of the post- industrial world, a world where: citizens have been abandoned by their government and corporations factories that employed tens of thousands of workers now lie in ruins 1

2 1/3 of the land once filled with homes and neighborhoods is now grassy fields public schools are shuttered and closed drugs, high crime, and criminalization by the authorities plague youth and destroy their future BUT A NEW STORY IS TAKING SHAPE IN DETROIT Like abandoned citizens everywhere, when people realize that no one is coming to help, the possibility of community arises. As people stop looking outside themselves and turn to one another, they discover the richness of resources to be found within themselves, their cultures and their land. No where in the Western world is this discovery of community- as- resource more vibrant than in Detroit. Intentional experiments are underway to explore: Food self- sufficiency vacant lots have become gardens and small farms. Reimagining work. Distinguishing work, which is purposeful and contributes to community, from jobs that employ individuals in existing capitalist systems. Reimagining education. Creating place- based public schools rooted in community and culture. Public safety. Creating Peace Zones to put "neighbor back in the hood." Arts for social change. Training youth to give voice to their experiences through music, theater and visual arts. Conscious conversations. Determining future direction and actions based on decades of experience with social movements and a profound understanding of society, economics, and the role of grassroots change. 2

3 "The future, at least the sustainable one, the one in which we will survive, isn't going to be invented by people who are happily surrendering selective bits and pieces of environmentally unsound privilege. It's going to be made by those who had all that taken away from them or never had it in the first place. Detroit is where change is most urgent and therefore most viable. The rest of us will get there later, when necessity drives us too, and by that time Detroit may be the shining example we can look to, the post- industrial green city that was once the steel- gray capital of Ford car manufacturing." Rebecca Solnit "Letter from Michigan" Harper's Magazine, July

4 A LEARNING JOURNEY IN DETROIT EXPLORING A BRAVE NEW WORLD RECREATING ITSELF AS BELOVED COMMUNITY October 25-28, 2012 DETAILS OF THIS JOURNEY Purpose: A learning journey is an opportunity to immerse yourself in a different setting in order to challenge your assumptions and concepts and see the world with fresh eyes. A successful journey is one that provokes, inspires, challenges and disturbs you, and breaks your heart wide open. It also is one that causes you to ask essential questions about yourself and your work: What do I value? How can I best contribute to this world? What might I need to walk out of? What might I walk on to? Detroit offers us the opportunity to meet with those experimenting with radically new approaches to work, education, public safety and sustainable community. Co- hosts for this journey are Margaret Wheatley, author and teacher, and Richard Feldman of The Boggs Center. The James and Grace Lee Boggs Center to Nurture Community Leadership was created to continue the work of James and Grace Lee Boggs. James died in 1993, Grace is still going strong at age 97. Together they led the way in Detroit for many decades, reimagining what's possible, reviving the human spirit as the means to create a healthy and sustainable city. Grace has been active in every major movement since the early 1950s. She and her colleagues work from a deep understanding of social change, political philosophy, economics, healthy community, and what's possible when we rely on the human spirit. On this journey, we'll have the opportunity to be with those who, in Martin Luther King's phrase, "make a way out of no way." We'll visit several initiatives and have time for good conversations. We'll be able to sit and share experiences, laugh, cry, and find the joy always available even in the most challenging circumstance as we connect with one another. Throughout the journey, we will be accompanied by a 4

5 core group of community activists from Detroit. Daily Schedule, October 25th- 28th Thursday, October 25th. Our journey begins at 7 p.m. with an evening gathering where we'll meet one another, be welcomed to Detroit and get oriented to the days ahead. Friday, October 26th From Industrial glory to post- industrial abandonment. An exploration of Detroit's past economy and what's being born from the wreckage. Our focus will include issues of viable local economies, distinguishing work from jobs, and the many efforts set in motion in Detroit to reimagine work. From schools to education. We'll learn of the devastation of public schools by the State government and Federal policies, and the consequences for kids and community. We'll meet those creating place- based schools that develop kids, community and positive futures. Evening: Arts for Social Change: Performances and Conversation Saturday, October 27th Sustainable Local Agriculture. We'll visit "Feedom Freedom" and other local garden initiatives that not only grow food, but focus on developing kids and adults to be responsible citizens and leaders. Creating safe community. We'll explore "Peace Zones," efforts to put neighbor back in the hood, encouraging relationships of mutual respect and affection, restoring harmony and possibilities. (See "A Declaration of Hope and Love" attached). We'll also learn of efforts in restorative justice and re- integrating those imprisoned back into community as returning citizens. Saturday Evening Arts for Social Change Part II: Performances and Conversation Sunday October 28th. How does societal change happen? We'll bring this journey to a close by reflecting on our experiences in Detroit. If possible, we'll have a conversation with Grace Lee Boggs, at age 97 America's last great movement leader who still speaks clearly and passionately about grassroots change, political and economic philosophy and 5

6 movement building. (We encourage you to watch Bill Moyers interview with Grace in 2007) Walking Out, Walking On. Our final session intends to support both personal and collective inquiry about who we choose to be for this time. What beliefs, situations and perspectives are limiting our contributions and effectiveness? What might we need to walk out of? And looking forward, what situations, ideas and relationships might we walk on to, those that support us to be more curious, more dedicated and more effective? The Journey ends Sunday at 4 p.m. Central Daylight Savings time so that you can return home that evening. Detroit has a beautiful new major international airport, a Delta airlines hub with frequent flights everywhere For further information about the co- hosts, we encourage you to visit: 6