David J. Smith, President of the Forage Center introduced the event, including its format, logistics, and the various programs offered by the Forage Center.

Forage Center Program Specialist and nursing professor Dr. Lena Choudhary moderated the conversation, beginning with an interview of guest speaker Dr. Sarah M. Doerrer, who is not only a Forage Center board member, but also a facilitator of antiracism-focused community groups and workshops.

Dr. Choudhary and Dr. Doerrer spent about 30 minutes dialoguing about the meaning of both racism and antiracism in today’s world, as well as what it could mean to practice antiracism regularly with concrete actions focused on one’s particular sphere of influence -- whether as an educator or otherwise.

Dr. Doerrer defined antiracism in particular as actively opposing racism in all its forms by continually advocating for changes in political, economic, and social life. She also highlighted the need to recognize that issues of race and identity are not solely the responsibility of people of color, but a problem that affects humanity as a whole. In that vein, Dr. Doerrer underscored the importance of rigorous self-awareness and reflection in antiracism practice, suggesting that individuals should consider how they may be contributing to the perpetuation of racist systems, even if unintentionally.

Additionally, Dr. Doerrer provided practical suggestions for antiracism actions, such as being sure to participate in local elections, supporting BIPOC-owned businesses, and curating one’s sources of information and entertainment to include diverse voices.

Dr. Choudhary and Dr. Doerrer also discussed how educators in particular can discuss these difficult themes in their classroom settings, along with countering challenges they may face when attempting to prioritize antiracism.

Dr. Doerrer emphasized the importance of creating a safe and inclusive environment using culturally responsive pedagogy and listening carefully to students' perspectives based on lived experience. She also suggested that conversations about race should be approached with gentleness and curiosity, and that individuals should be mindful of their own positionality and privilege, especially when they as the instructor are in a relative position of power.

Dr. Doerrer addressed the challenges educators might face in doing this work as including their own implicit biases, and recommended all participants interrogate their own internalized biases by exploring the freely available Harvard Implicit Association Test, and perhaps invite their students to do the same. Dr. Choudhary and Dr. Doerrer addressed another challenge to antiracism in the classroom by discussing the importance of creating a "brave space" for discussions on race and inclusion, rather than a "safe space" where everyone feels comfortable but may not be challenged. They emphasized the need to move beyond just opposing negative actions and to instead focus on what one wants to positively achieve, such as a world where everyone is treated fairly and has equal opportunities.

Ultimately, Dr. Doerrer concluded that while racism is a large and complex system, there are many opportunities for individuals to make a difference in their specific niches. During the second half of the one-hour conversation, participants were invited to engage in a Q&A session.

One individual inquired about the best use of time and energy in the current political climate, to which Dr. Doerrer advised a combined approach of not only keeping one’s eyes open for opportunities to have conversations that could change hearts and minds, but also actively supporting existing movements through donations, protests, or contacting representatives. Throughout the conversation, she and Dr. Choudhary returned to the importance of willingness to be uncomfortable at such times in order to learn and grow.

As the discussion with participants progressed, Dr. Choudhary and David shared about their roles as mentors and the importance of stepping back as white individuals to allow colleagues or students of color to take the lead.

Relatedly, one of the participants who identified as a Black Muslim woman expressed her appreciation for the conversation and shared her experiences of being the only person of color in various settings. She pointed out the need for these kinds of conversations to continue, emphasizing the importance of vulnerability in such discussions, but also the urgent need for ongoing action to directly address inequities.

Finally, the group discussed the challenges of systemic issues being reduced to individual prescriptions and the importance of organizations maintaining commitments to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) despite potential opposition from political entities. David took the opportunity to emphasize Forage’s ongoing commitment as an organization to prioritization of DEIB initiatives in all of our ongoing work.

For future engagement with antiracism practice, we invite readers to take the following actions:

1. Join Dr. Doerrer’s Facebook community Starting with Ourselves: Reflecting on Whiteness and Race in America.

2. Explore this Google Doc of resources for extending one’s understanding of antiracism and taking ongoing action.

3. Watch the full one-hour recording of our Forage Center Conversation with Dr. Doerrer on our YouTube channel, and complete the feedback survey afterwards to improve Forage’s future offerings. You can also check out our previous Forage Center Conversations on our YouTube playlist!

4. Sign up for the Forage Center newsletter for ongoing opportunities to learn about and participate in peacebuilding and humanitarian work, such as participating in our summer humanitarian simulation or volunteering as a role player.

We look forward to seeing you at our next Forage Center Conversation later this spring!