A Liberation Arts Cultures Workshop
Preparing to Talk
The Four Agreements of Courageous Conversations – Video
The Two Worlds
How conscious are we of the two worlds in North America?
- Proof that we live in two Americas – Video of Comedian Roy Woods 3:17
- What is a cultural experience for a white American citizen like; and for a person of color, for difference in skin color?
- How about the mixed race experience, what about self-identification?
So let’s examine the different beliefs and assumptions present in different cultures.
- Compare the beliefs and assumptions of a main stream North American citizen and that of the disenfranchised North American person of color.
- What are the different assumptions about how accountability works? Think of self-accountability and furthermore accountability to the collective.
- Without community, there is no liberation…but community must not mean a shedding of our differences, nor the pathetic pretense that these differences do not exist. Audre Lorde
Stories and Exercises
- Story to test your reflex – The doctor and the accident
- Game to practice awareness – Change Game: Partners stand face to face taking a moment to observe each other. Take turns not looking/seeing (close eyes or turn around) partner B change something, return to A looking, A then tries to guess what was changed.
- Story about the Japanese Gymnast – Laughter as an expression of embarrassment.
- Dance – Taking 2 steps dance
- Story of the physical couple in the NVC community
Living in Intentional Community
Things to discuss after considering beliefs and assumptions:
- Intention and Impact: Somethings effect people in different ways
- Is multiculturalism in the vision?
- Do we tend to default and reflex to one culture over the other? What is the 80 /20 split? Which culture wins?
Stories and Exercises
- The story about being introduced with just one name or with your many names (nicknames)
- Stick Dance – Beat 1 for the community 2,3,4 for yourself
- Considering how to honor both cultures in the same time/space
Visit our workshop page for more offerings on personal growth while living in intentional community
Unity
- Practice to overcome the illusion of separation
- Greatest Overall Decision
Beginning with Self
The power in the Warrior disposition of Radical Responsibility
The home of our heroes is the Warrior Ecovillage
Mediation:
Circle Outside ⭕️
Bring outside in
and inside out.
Circle ⭕️ Inside
Focus on the zero
into the dot at the center of us all
Leave the walls behind
- Live in two worlds at the same time – social emotional multi-task
- Be a Yes for community and celebrate
Greatest Overall Decision
What are our shared values and prior agreements?
Norms that matter for a multi-cultural community
- Honoring and sourcing from Eldership
- Integration of childhood into the community culture
Stories and Exercises
- Play games to think in different contexts, use binaries such as kick and dodge
- The four agreements – 1) Be impeccable with your word. 2) Don’t take anything personally. 3) Don’t make assumptions. 4) Always do your best
- The four agreement of courages conversation – Video
Takeaways
- Don’t assume, come curious instead
- Celebrate differences (tolerate)
- Know history learn
- Four agreements of difficult conversations
- Forgive
Bonus Exercises – Creative Arts Workshop Integrations
- Call and Response Sim Sim Sim Nao Nao Nao
- Sing Liza Jane
- Sing Life Every Voice and Sing
2 steps dance – right right left left
Definitions
Assumptions can come from unvoiced values about a variety of things. Besides such things as how we work there are things like what and how we eat. There are different assumptions about about social mobility and legal accountability. Others are about what is clean and even the belief that clean equals good. There are assumptions in what is appropriate clothing, what is an appropriate expression and volume of expression? What is a family and how do they relate?
Imperial – Imperial carries the implication of royalty, usually pertaining to an empire. The emperor or empress is referred to as “your imperial highness.” The word imperial has a lofty feel, and though it’s often used of royalty, it is sometimes used to refer to anything extremely large or impressive.