The Tender Work: Acknowledging Responsibility in a Racialized World

We know that different human 'races' don't actually exist; yet racism absolutely does. Similarly, there is no 'white race', yet the impact of culture organized around the construct of whiteness is incontrovertible. And we all know those impacts land differently on different bodies.

So what responsibility do those of us who our world sees as white have?

This is tender work; it tugs at our hearts, our sense of ourselves, our regard for others. It requires us to look deeply at ourselves, to see things alive in us we did not ask to be there, then to be gentle about the process of growth. It requires us to understand the motivations of our culture, its mechanisms and tactics, to make more visible the air we breathe.

Package your uneasiness, rage, confusion, or motivation into questions, and bring them to these monthly conversations. We'll talk, we'll listen to each other, we'll ponder and let ourselves be moved. Be ready to leave feeling mobilized to shift things: in you, in your relationships, your community, your world.

The conversation happens in a humane, relational environment in which to experience the feelings of uncertainty that frequently accompany conversations about oppression and the desire for equity. The tone is welcoming and honest, lighthearted and exploratory, revealing and nonjudgmental.

The Tender Work has been meeting monthly online for two years. This is our first in-person gathering. May it grow into a regular happening.

What You Can Expect

We will...

• Base our conversations on your questions, experiences, concerns, ideas and successes.
• Use a non-hierarchical, inclusive format that incorporates and models liberatory and anti-oppression practices
• Focus on our individual growth and awareness as well as the actions we can take to effect change in our environments
• Use racial equity as our entry into learning about oppressions and marginalizations of all kinds

We might...

• Stick to an agenda, or abandon it to attend to what shows up in the room
• Make connections with people that may inspire keeping the conversation after the workshop
• Experience some strong emotions

We won't...

• Be relying on Black, Indigenous & People of Color to educate or motivate us
• Present a ready-made checklist of anti-racist or anti-oppression actions you can choose from
• Focus on perspectives that uphold the supremacy of anyone over anyone else
• Reach closure, success, or completion around this topic

Martha Hurwitz is an equity and oppression awareness coach, consultant, and facilitator. A longtime educator, Martha applies a distinctly non-pedantic approach to the tender work of understanding how systems of oppression function societally, and live within each of us individually. Martha has pursued an interest in power, liberation, and society for decades, both formally and experientially, including an M.Ed. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in democracy and education. Over a wide-ranging career, she has co-founded a profoundly democratic non-ageist school, coached self-employed folks, directed qigong programming, and instructed mountaineering courses. She is the granddaughter of immigrants from Eastern Europe fleeing anti-Semitism who arrived in the U.S. just as Jews became seen as white. Reconciling her family’s transition away from Judaism into white-identity is a recent focus of Martha’s self-reflection and study.

Cancellations and Refunds

The minimum number of participants for these conversations is 3. If 24 hours prior to the workshop there are fewer participants, I will reach out to offer you a refund or a slot at an upcoming date.

Up to 24 hours before to a workshop, you can request a refund. Eventbrite fees are nonrefundable. You also can transfer to a different date or workshop.

Within 24 hours of the workshop start time, no refunds are given.