In Northlake’s Statement on Anti-Racism, we pledged to “Provide on-going educational opportunities and discussions for our own congregation and community regarding race and the effects of racism in our congregation and beyond.”  We have since recognized that this education should not just be focused on race, but on all manner of oppressed groups.

To date, we have addressed a number of topics:

• Immigrants: we read “A Journey Called Hope – Today’s Immigrant Stories and the American Dream” by Rick Rouse.
• Persons dealing with the cycle of eviction: we read “Evicted - Poverty and Profit in the American City” by Matthew Desmond.
• Asian Americans: we read “My Life: Growing up Asian in America”, edited by the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE)
• Native Americans: we conducted a four week series of seminars with Robert Kennedy, an activist for indigenous peoples
• Love for all groups: we read “Strength to Love”, by Martin Luther King Jr.
• The creation of the US Constitution: we read “The Summer of 1787 – The Men Who Invented the Constitution”, by David O Stewart, with a series of seminars conducted by community leader Mary Alyce Burleigh
• Racism: We read “How to be an Anti-Racist”, by Ibram X Kendi

Our next project will begin in the summer of 2025. We expect to hold our discussions in the Hangar at Kenmore Town Square. The dates and times will be announced. These sessions are not religious in nature, and all members of the community who are interested in social justice are invited to join us.