This newsletter shares updates and opportunities on action happening in our community over the coming weeks. January 20, 2025, ushered in our government’s transition of power. Our dedication and action for racial justice remains of utmost (and heightened) importance. Where do you see yourself involved in the below actions? We are ready to continue in this journey and welcome your presence and action to work for a more just world.
In this issue:
SURJ National Day of Action to Protect and Resist: February 1
Sign and share the Pledge to Protect and Resist
SURJ TC General Meeting Recap
Update on Federal Consent Decree and a MN Court Enforceable Agreement for MPD
We are starting the year focused and steadfast in building a world that centers racial and economic justice and indigenous sovereignty. We are so excited to welcome so many new faces with shared values and can’t wait to see you at one of our upcoming events.
How are you holding up? I’ve been feeling sad since the election. Sometimes angry, too. I wanted to shut everything out and take care of myself. And, as I peek back out at what’s going on in the world, I feel worried. On the other hand, I have friends fueled into action, with renewed resolve to fight racism. I turned to the teachings of Anne Braden, an exemplary white ancestor who stood up, and spoke out, against racism in her lifetime. In the last published work of her lifetime (Jan – Feb 2006, Fellowship), Anne Braden said
If we are serious about the challenge of the unfinished business of racism, we must start by realizing that this is not a task we must complete. It is one we must begin.
It is certainly true that our society faces many life-and-death issues. But we can’t deal effectively with any of these problems until we mount an aggressive offense against racism. This is not only morally right; it’s a practical matter. As long as our society can dump its problems on people of color it will not seek or find real solutions. …
In every age, no matter how cruel the oppression carried on by those in power, there have been those who struggled for a different world. I believe this is the genius of humankind, the thing that makes us half divine: the fact that some human beings can envision a world that has never existed.
Below are ways to come together and plug in to this work no matter how you’re feeling. Coming together reminds us we are not alone in our feelings, rather we are surrounded by ‘half divine’ beings with a shared vision to dismantle white supremacy
Election Day is right around the corner. If you receive this newsletter, you probably don’t need to be reminded of that fact. You are also probably tired of hearing “This is the most important election of our time!”..but somehow it feels like it is.
One possible outcome will likely lead to increased global warming, increasing racism, mass deportations, greater economic inequality and potential criminal charges for political activity. The other outcome won’t solve most of our nation’s problems, but it will likely preserve our constitution and rule of law (such as it is).
SURJ Twin Cities is committed to abolition of oppressive structures, reparations/economic justice for descendents of enslaved people and recognition of indigenous rights.
In the short time left before election day, think of what you can do to create the outcome that favors our three goals. Even if it’s only reminding like-minded folks to vote, every little bit can count.
The numerous opportunities to show up listed below bring to mind the wisdom of Mariame Kaba that “hope is a discipline.” In an interview by Kim Wilson and Brain Sonenstein featured in We Do This ‘Til We Free Us, Kaba said:
“…hope doesn’t preclude feeling sadness or frustration or anger or any other emotion that makes total sense…The idea of hope being a discipline is something I heard from a nun many years ago who was talking about it in conjunction with making sure we were of the world and in the world…The hope that she was talking about was this grounded hope that was practiced every day, that people actually practiced all the time.”
I’m inspired to mark my calendar with several of the events below to stay disciplined in my fight against white supremacy, and be in and of this world. I would love to see you there!
~Heather Hoecker
In this issue:
Embodying Care: Practices of Support this Election Season
Imagine that all of these state fair goers are progressive voters that we can mobilize! Now that Labor Day is upon us, there is lots of work to be done. The dynamics of the election have changed a lot since our last newsletter, and there’s a new sense of opportunity, replacing the tepid resignation many people felt.
The fall weather that (we hope) is on the way promises crisp clear days and nights. Let us try to make our vision of the next four years clear and our encouragement of voters crisp and effective. Check out options below for volunteer activities and chances to focus on the embodied nature of oppression and liberation.
In this issue:
Join SURJ National Electoral work in Wisconsin
Learn about Disability Justice
How is Whiteness Embodied in Us?
Voter Outreach with SURJ National in Wisconsin
SURJ National will be working in six swing states for the presidential election. We’re putting the most focus in Wisconsin, where we’ll have folks on the ground to knock on doors. We’ll be going hard in the River Falls area in Congressional District 3—a very important district in the state. Please join us!
If you can’t make the whole time from 1-7pm, that’s ok, still sign up!
Community Connections book club at the Minneapolis Public Library Washburn branch is reading Care Work: Dreaming Disability Justice by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha for September.
From the cover: “Award-winning writer and longtime activist and performance artist Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha explores the politics and realities of disability justice, a movement that centers the lives and leadership of sick and disabled queer, trans, Black, and brown people, with knowledge and gifts for all. Care Work is a mapping of access as radical love, a celebration of the work that sick and disabled queer/people of color are doing to find each other and to build power and community, and a tool kit for everyone who wants to build radically resilient, sustainable communities of liberation where no one is left behind. Power and passionate, Care Work is a crucial and necessary call to arms.”
Starts Oct. 3rd. After that, meets Monday evenings!
Politicized Somatics for White-bodied People: Practices and Community for Embodying our Racial Justice Values is a cohort-based learning experience co-facilitated by Rachel Svanoe Moynihan and Rosey Lowe. White folks in our community can use this opportunity to learn how systems of domination manifest in and between our bodies—specifically the patterned ways in which white bodies have been conditioned to move and relate around race.
Together we will grow our capacity to really be with the grief and shame of our people’s history and present. Through this, we will develop relationships and practices that can help us move through our stuck patterns and shift towards greater alignment with our deeply held values. As we become more resilient in the face of discomfort, feedback and uncertainty, we become more able to take risks, use our power towards repair, and cause less harm – making our community safer for everyone.
There is a charge for these workshops. See registration links below.
SURJ-TC works as a local chapter for SURJ National. Our work is local and so are our volunteers. Within this volunteer-driven culture, we strive always to make our work as transparent and non-hierarchical as we know how while holding ourselves accountable to organize white people to build the political will to end white supremacy and implement our theory of change (i.e., self-education, action, and calling in more white people).
We welcome volunteers in our working groups and teams and can offer a variety of tasks and areas of interest. Currently we have the following opportunities available:
SURJ-TC Communications Working Group is looking for volunteers to help with monthly email set-up and social media posting support.
Donate Today: Support SURJ-TC and Community Action
SURJ-TC is now able to accept online donations via PayPal! Visit our donate page and click the “donate” button to set up your one-time or recurring donation!
How will your donation be used? We are an all-volunteer group, and your donations will be put to good use, to help our chapter cover things like:
Compensating BIPOC partners for their time reviewing SURJ-TC curriculums
Supplies and shipping costs for movement projects
Occasional chapter program costs
Basic monthly operating costs such as Zoom, our database, e-newsletters and action reminders, and our website.
JOIN US!
SURJ-Twin Cities Chapter: Learn more – SURJ-TC is a Minnesota chapter of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ). SURJ is a national network of groups and individuals organizing white people for racial justice. White people have been told for years by Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) activists that we need to educate and organize our own people. So that’s what we try to do. Learn more at www.surjtc.org. SURJ-TC is one of 150 chapters and affiliates nationwide. Learn about SURJ National at surj.org. Looking forward to seeing you soon!
In a typical election season, minutes can feel like hours and days more like months. In this current election season, which continues to unfold in ways that feel anything but typical, it’s a lot to keep up with. A news cycle that’s breaking even while we sleep. Tirelessly pivoting and holding onto hope with every tumultuous turn. We wouldn’t blame you for feeling a little, well, tired.In times like this, it’s good to reground in what really matters. Like turning down the noise and amplifying the causes we know will shape the 2024 elections and our communities for years to come. Creating the blueprint for the progressive future we’re committed to building, at home and abroad. Then finding new ways to refocus our collective energy and resources where they count most. Read on for more ways to organize, act and make an impact.Together, we can!
In this issue:
Mass meeting to defend Ilhan Omar’s seat a big success
Attend a West Bank share-back & build solidarity fromafar
Stand against censorship of Palestinians & supporters inhealthcare
Explore abolition as a personal & collective practice
Attend a National Reparations Conference
Don’t Agonize, Organize! Mass Meeting to Re-Elect Ilhan Omar Goes Well
Over 50 people came together at New City Church in Minneapolis on Saturday July 27th to build energy and momentum for the election campaign season. Ilhan Omar, 5th District Congressional representative and member of The Squad in Congress, stopped by to thank us for helping with her primary campaign and to describe the joy she gets from serving in Congress.
SURJ National staffers Z! Haukeness and Celina Culver described SURJ’s commitment to blocking Donald Trump’s return to office and building a strong multi-class, multi-racial coalition to counter fascism. The general mood in the room was far more optimistic about the fall elections because Kamala Harris is the Democratic Party’s nominee! SURJ-TC will have many opportunities to work towards her victory in Wisconsin, a swing state, as the fall progresses. SURJ National will be calling on us to make some visits to our sister-state across the St. Croix!
In the meantime, though, we have two weeks to turn out the vote for Ilhan Omar in her primary election August 13th. Sign up with Take Action MN for door-to-door canvassing and phone banking – every little bit helps!
Share-back from the West Bank: The Violence of Occupation in Masafer Yatta
Join other SURJ-TC members at Moon Palace Books on Wednesday, August 7th at 6:00pm to hear Josina Manu Maltzman’s eyewitness account of human rights violations in Masafer Yatta and what we can do about it from Minneapolis. Limited free copies of The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi will be distributed to participants. Registration required. Masks required. ASL interpretation available on request.
Stand Against Censorship of Palestinians and Their Supporters in Healthcare!
In June, an employee-planned event at Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) centered on Palestine was first approved, then called off, by hospital leaders. Employees say they organized the event to discuss Palestinian culture and history, including an update from a local queer Palestinian doctor on how current events in Palestine affect healthcare workers locally and abroad.
Learn more about the postponed event and actions being taken by HCMC employees in the wake of the postponement, including their petition to stand against censorship and stand with Palestinian supporters in healthcare.
Abolition Accountability Circle: Exploring Abolition as Personal and Collective Practice
Join fellow members of SURJ-TC for bi-weekly virtual meetings centered on learning about abolition as a daily, personal act and as a series of actions we can take together in our fight for racial and economic justice.
Meetings are virtual and open to all. This series is facilitated by SURJ-TC’s action and mobilization team.
Join Black Lives Matter Minnesota for a powerful event dedicated to discussing and advocating for reparations for the Black community. This in-person conference on Friday August 10th and Saturday August 11th will be held at the Hilton Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport Hotel, 3900 American Blvd. The keynote speaker is Friday Jones, the vice-chair of the Los Angeles Reparations Advisory Committee. Come together with like-minded individuals to learn, share, and strategize for a better future. Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a meaningful conversation and make a difference! Register here! This event is free and open to everyone.
Volunteer with SURJ-TC
SURJ-TC works as a local chapter for SURJ National. Our work is local and so are our volunteers. Within this volunteer-driven culture, we strive always to make our work as transparent and non-hierarchical as we know how while holding ourselves accountable to organize white people to build the political will to end white supremacy and implement our theory of change (i.e., self-education, action, and calling in more white people).
We welcome volunteers in our working groups and teams and can offer a variety of tasks and areas of interest. Currently we have the following opportunities available:
SURJ-TC Communications Working Group is looking for volunteers to help with monthly email set-up and social media posting support.
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