Through education and dialogue in a safe, supportive environment, our programs are designed to heal the hurts caused by racism, empower individuals to become agents of change, and transform communities. Can’t come to us? Engage the Center to conduct these workshops (or a custom workshop) at your workplace, faith community, school, or community organization. For more information, click here.
Programs
OUR YOUTH WORKSHOPS
01Bullying is Bull
Reports of childhood bullying and violence are on the increase in the city of Houston and throughout the rest of the nation. Much of these negative interactions stem from ignorance and misunderstanding the people who are different. The workshop will aid the participants in understanding the psychological and physical damage done to the person that is being bullied and the perpetrator. The Center for Healing Racism is on the forefront of prevention by providing children in elementary, middle, and high school as well as adults the necessary information to understand our common human experiences.
02Shattering of Stereotypes
Shattering of Stereotypes invites the participants to examine their own beliefs and how all of us are impacted and hurt by negative stereotypes. The workshop confronts stereotypes and is presented in a visual way. The joys and strengths, along with the pains and anxieties of cross-cultural relationships are discussed. The workshop is designed for youth and young adults.
03Opening the Bread Basket
“Bread comes in different sizes, shapes, colors… but it is all bread. Just like little children come in different sizes, shapes, colors… but we all belong to the same human race.” It’s such a simple lesson, right? But then again… bread is such a simple food, right? That is what many children in the Houston area thought before experiencing the innovative workshop, “Opening the Breadbasket,” created by Cherry Steinwender, Co-Executive Director of the Center for Healing Racism.
04The Bandage Exercise Workshop
“Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me!” It is such a common refrain among school children, but is it always true? Not when those words reflect the negative stereotypes that circulate about different groups of people with whom we may identify. Unlike a cut or a scrape, which can be observed on the surface of the body, the hurts that arise from harmful stereotypes are not nearly so visible. That is, unless you have experienced “The Bandage Exercise,” for adults, and middle to high school aged audiences.
05The Bitter with The Sweet Workshop
How many of our parents, when we have been ill, have given us bitter-tasting medicine to help us get well? It seems paradoxical at times that what may help us most with our difficulties often has a bitter taste. Yet, ultimately, the bitter leads to the sweet: the end of our suffering. This is no less true when confronting the social disease of racism in our communities and ourselves.
OUR ADULT WORKSHOPS
Dialogue: Racism
The hallmark of the Center for Healing Racism- Dialogue: Racism – was developed to promote the sharing of thoughts, feelings, experiences, and perspectives among a diverse group of people. Teams of facilitators from different heritages create a safe, respectful environment where participants can explore the issues of racism and its repercussions. Information is provided by the facilitators on such topics as defining prejudice and racism, where racism originates, how racism is perpetuated, the forms of racism, and positive means for overcoming racism and healing its wounds. Participants are then encouraged to dialogue within guidelines that promote real listening and understanding.
The Dialogue: Racism program is conducted in a 8-evening format of 2 hours each session or in an intensive weekend format of two 8-hour days. Workshops of shorter durations on more limited topics can be arranged to meet the needs of particular groups. We provide our education programs around racism, stereotypes, and xenophobia. The Center has conducted workshops in 40 states and 2 countries to spread our message.
Do You Really Want to Talk about Racism?
In this two-hour workshop, participants are challenged to learn that racism is much more than individual acts of meanness. Participants learn how to think critically about racism in the world around them by identifying various forms of racism using new articles. This workshop is customizable and adaptable to suit a variety of specialized situations.
Examples of forms of racism:
White privilege, implicit bias, unaware racism, stereotypes, internalized racism, cultural racism, institutional racism, structural racism, environmental racism.
Film Series: Race: The Power of an Illusion
This film series is a workshop that explores the the idea of race and the impact it has had on our society. The series is conducted over three days in two hour sessions. Session 1 examines the contemporary science of race. Session 2 uncovers the roots of the race concept and how it justifies the social inequalities. Session 3 uncovers how race resides in our politics, economics and our culture through resources, power, status and wealth.
A Look At Our Racial Conditioning
How did we get set up to play out “Us and Them”? How is racism perpetuated? In this two-hour interactive workshop we explore how racism is learned through childhood experiences, misinformation, and separation. If it is learned, it can be unlearned.
Racism in the Arts - A Conversation with Harrison Guy
How does racism show up in the arts: in staffing, curation, leadership, development, marketing, customer service, defining and cataloguing art, display, performances spaces, accessibility, representation, compensation, scheduling, programming? How are the arts addressing or failing to address equity? Houston performing artist, choreographer and activist Harrison Guy addresses these and other issues in this two-hour interactive workshop.
Bending Long Years of Habit and Custom
“It is difficult to fight for freedom, but I also know how difficult it can be to bend long years of habit and custom to grant it. There is no room for injustice anywhere in the American mansion. But there is always room for understanding those who see the old ways crumbling. And to them today I simply say this: It must come. It is right that it should come. And when it has, you will find that a burden has been lifted from your shoulders, too. It is not just a question of guilt, although there is that.” Lyndon Baines Johnson 1965
“Bending Long Years of Customs and Habits” is a three-hour workshop in which participants go beyond the surface line of raising awareness regarding diversity and inclusion to focus on our racial conditioning. Together we will examine long years of customs and habits which are sometimes sexist, racist, ageist and homophobic. These customs and habits often go unrecognized because most of us have good intentions.
Participants will learn that without exception all of us are conditioned by customs and habits, that it can be difficult to bend and rid them from our minds, and that many of our customs and habits are not only verbal but non-verbal.
Did They Really Just Say That?
A dialogue about how to respond when a co-worker, friend, or family member says or does something racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise harmful to a member of an oppressed group.
Topical Programs
Center facilitators have created topical workshops addressing relevant topics such as Microaggressions, White Privilege, Identity and Privilege, Belonging, Internalized Oppression, and others. We can create custom workshops as well.