Let the Walls Fall Down Fall Webinar Series
The Power of Storytelling for Racial Healing
September 23, 2021
9:00 PM Eastern/6:00 PM Pacific
The church has the potential for a significant impact on racial reconciliation and healing through using storytelling. By focusing on the racial divide, providing intentional space for learning one another’s stories, and doing the hard work of addressing conflict head-on, the church can continue to fulfill the call of Jesus to love our neighbors.
Presentation Summary
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Storytelling is a powerful tool for understanding one another and for personal transformation.
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It is important for us to retain the importance of sharing our stories in our community to prevent the perpetuation of false narratives about our neighbors.
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There are many historical narratives that are told within a mainstream discourse that continue to silence other narratives that are actively unrepresented.
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It is also imperative for BIPOC to continue to share and create spaces for their stories and voices to be amplified.
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Storytelling has a power that can facilitate growth and create empathy. It can transform and create a sense of personal empowerment and healing.
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Storytelling provides opportunities for critical self-reflection and enhanced knowledge of who we are, who our neighbors are, and who God is.
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Storytelling is a critical tool to combat racist narratives, systemic racism, and discrimination.
Resources
Dangers of a Single Story
Beloved Community - Culture Matters
Guest Presenter: Rev. Dr. Kadia Edwards
Rev. Dr. Kadia Edwards, a native of St. Catherine, Jamaica, answered her call to ministry in 2002 while serving as a Chapel Assistant at Andrew Rankin Memorial Chapel at Howard University in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of Duke University, where she received her Master of Divinity. Prior to her enrollment at Duke, in May of 2005, Kadia graduated from Howard University with a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Journalism. Kadia recently graduated with a Doctor of Ministry degree from Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. Her DMin concentration in Theology, Ethics, and Narratives informs her multivalent methodological approach to racial healing.
Dr. Edwards is licensed and ordained to public ministry in the American Baptist Churches denomination. She is a storytelling practitioner, which allows her to travel the country, facilitating trainings and workshops relating to storytelling, peacebuilding, and racial healing.
Currently, Dr. Edwards serves as the National Coordinator of Volunteer Mobilization and Disaster Response Ministry at American Baptist Home Mission Societies.
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