#allyskills

After the election of Donald Trump, many of us have been reconsidering our practice as allies, and how to best use our societal advantages for good in the world. Come learn practical responses at the Post-Election Ally Skills Workshop at Double Union on Saturday, December 10th, from 1:30 to 4 PM.

This workshop focuses on teaching basic ally skills responses to sexism, racism, Islamophobia and transphobia, with a few post-election twists, including examining how to decide when to intervene in a hostile situation, and how to talk to defensive people. The format of the workshop will include small-group discussion time to come up with multiple responses that make sense for each person. We’re calling out that “it’s complicated” because we’re interested in exploring the spaces where it’s hard to know whether to intervene or not, with an eye towards developing criteria to help allies step in. One caveat: this is not an appropriate venue to discuss whether sexism, racism, Islamophobia or transphobia exist. That is outside the scope of this workshop.

The workshop will last 2.5 hours, including a break. Snacks will be provided. This event is open to Double Union members, guests, and the general public. People of all genders are welcome. DU's Base Assumptions (http://doubleunion.org/base_assumptions) and Code of Conduct (http://doubleunion.org/policies) apply.

Please fill out this application form (https://goo.gl/forms/9k23kpExajAzFR7n1) to be considered. We will email you back either way to let you know if you have a spot in the workshop. At that time, we'll send a link with info about payment and formal registration. A ticket to attend is $25, but if affording that is a hardship for you, we have a scholarship option. If you are in a position to help sponsor another’s spot in the workshop, please consider donating more with your ticket price.

This summer, I’ve begun running Ally Skills Workshops for groups of people interested in learning how to combat sexism and transphobia. My workshops are based off the Ada Initiative's model and incorporate some of its CC licensed materials, as well as additional materials that I have developed. My slides are available here (ppt) or here (pdf).

For folks who are unfamiliar, an ally is someone who stands up in support of members of another social identity group; typically a member of a dominant group standing beside member(s) of a group being discriminated against or treated unjustly. The workshops I run are 2.5 hour interactive sessions for people to work on developing ally skills in a safe and comfortable learning environment.