The Greater Spokane Progress’ Racial Equity Initiative, led by the GSP Racial Equity Committee, is building the understanding and capacity of organizations in using an intersectional racial equity lens to advance racial equity, and is working with GSP’s Board and staff to operationalize racial equity in all of our work, which includes training and support for member organizations.

Members of GSP’ Racial Equity Trainers’ Cohort leads the Why Race Matters Workshop to develop understanding and common language around institutional and structural racism, and why addressing race matters; and our follow up workshop Taking Action to Advance Racial Equity to support organizations developing a racial equity plan and taking intentional steps to advance racial equity in their organizations.

GSP is also supporting the liberation development, and continuing education of our multi-racial team of racial equity trainers and leaders committed to anti-oppression.

Why Race Matters Workshop: History, Systems & Strategies

Greater Spokane Progress’ (GSP) Why Race Matters Workshop, offered as a virtual and in person workshop, addresses how racial inequities have been built into institutions and structures throughout our country, why it is important to use a racial equity lens, and what we can do to advance racial equity in our organizations and in our community.

This interactive workshop, using the acclaimed documentary “Race: The Power of an Illusion,” provides a foundation for further racial equity work:

  • Examine beliefs about race, advantage, and justice, and how these issues impact our communities, organizations, and institutions.
  • Define and discuss implicit bias and explicit bias and examples of how they operate on individual and institutional levels.
  • Gain awareness of historical cases of institutional racism.
  • Define terms and develop an understanding of the difference between: structural, institutional, and individual racism; and equity and equality.
  • Identify structural and institutional racism, how it continues to impact us today, and begin to look at the complexities of the intersections with other oppressed identities.
  • Discuss local examples of institutional racism and begin to think about next steps for ourselves and our organizations.

Taking Action to Advance Racial Equity Workshop

GSP’s Taking Action to Advance Racial Equity Workshop was designed as a follow up to the Why Race Matters Workshop to equip participants with tools to assert leadership to move their organization to take intentional steps to advance racial equity. We will do this by:

  • Building familiarity with the three drivers to advancing racial equity: Normalizing, Organizing, Operationalizing.
  • Identifying barriers and challenges to normalizing conversations about race.
  • Sharing tools to support organizations in developing a racial equity plan.
  • Beginning to assess our own organizations and confront challenges to taking the first step to normalizing and leading with race.
  • Articulating why talking about race is important and identifying actionable takeaways.

If your organization is interested in hosting a workshop, please contact Robert Huitt at robert@spokaneprogress.org.