We join our fellow community members in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in solidarity and sorrow after the police killing of Patrick Lyoya, who was a father and son. In media coverage, we saw the gut-wrenching grief of his family reflected on his mother’s face. Mrs. Lyoya’s expression is a stark visual reminder of the way systemic racial violence disrupts the lives of children, families and communities every day.
All our communities confront crises born of racism, which is embedded in all of our systems. Many people continue to seek deeper understanding of their role in addressing racism and making lasting change. When a fresh wound is added or a crisis reaches a moment of inflection, there can be a heightened sense that both racial healing and action are needed.
Sometimes we think of healing and action as separate modes and competing strategies, or we get stuck on which one must come first. In reality, they are continual processes that go hand-in-hand, fueling, influencing and informing each other and laying the groundwork for the type of solidarity that allows us to create change together.
Racial healing restores us all to wholeness. It is:
- repairing the harm of racism;
- the intentional and challenging relationship work that leads to the transformation of systems;
- the telling of hard truths about past wrongs and present consequences;
- authentic relationship-building across difference.
During the 6th annual National Day of Racial Healing, New York Times bestselling author, Heather McGhee spoke about the solidarity dividend. While traveling to research her book The Sum of Us, she noticed that wherever people had crossed racial barriers to forge relationships, solidarity and collective action, there were clear dividends in systemic change. She inspired us to see diversity as our superpower and our natural resource.
Ready to start your own racial healing practice and forge solidarity with those around you? Our conversation guide can help.
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