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THIS PAGE IN PROCESS OF BEING UPDATED TO INCLUDE ALL GROUPS
What
is the UNtraining?
The UNtraining is a forum for exploring what it means to
be white and how this affects ourselves and our relationships with people
of color. By focusing on the training, we inherit from our white-dominated
culture, we are able to better understand the world around us and we are
empowered to create change in ourselves and our communities.
We do not
come together to judge, instill guilt or exonerate ourselves for the effects
of racism. We seek to understand ourselves and our world in order to be
more effective and compassionate individuals. In doing so, we may become
strong allies to everyone working to raise awareness about racism and
create social change.
White
Privilege and the Cost of Whiteness
The premise of the UNtraining is that we are all affected by racism. No
matter how aware our parents may have been, how liberal, loving or spiritual
we may be, as white people we have been trained to be "white"
by media, educational systems and continual subtle feedback from those
around us.
Although
it may not be obvious at first, we benefit from racism in our daily lives
through the privileges associated with light-colored skin. Even less apparent,
however, is the cost to us as white people living within this hierarchical
system. Many of us live with guilt, fear, and defensiveness. Our curiosity
is stifled and our passions blunted. This keeps us from speaking out and
taking action against racism. Or if we do, we may come across as righteous
and judgmental, which is rarely helpful or effective.
How can white
people reconcile heartfelt antiracist beliefs with the invisible power
of this white training?
The
UNtraining Program
As children, we did
not choose to take on our white conditioning, but as adults we can choose
to undo it. The UNtraining provides a challenging and compassionate environment
for white people to look at personal and collective issues around race.
The UNtraining is
held in small groups that meet once a month for six months in a workshop
format that combines presentation of concepts and tools, experiential
exercises, self-reflection and group process. Each group consists of a
maximum of ten men and women who are "white identified." The
meetings are generally held on weekends.
There are three phases
of the UNtraining. Each phase is complete in itself, although they build
on each other. Phase One introduces the basic concepts and tools of the
UNtraining. Phase Two deepens the experience of using the tools in the
group process. Phase Three is tailored to the needs that arise in the
particular group.
The cost is a sliding
scale from $400 to $1200 for a six month series.
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content ©2006 the UNtraining
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