Antiracism Practice Group

Wednesdays, 7:30pm via Zoom - First meeting June 24th
(Possible in-person meetings w/ social distancing later in the summer)

Facilitate by Summer Hills-Bonczyk

Participation is free of charge - In lieu of payment, please donate to
one of the following organizations:
(***COMING SOON***)

We are at the threshold of great change. Voices around the world, including yoga organizations, meditation centers and studios are speaking out against systemic racism. We join our voices with those committed to deep listening and skillful action. The most recent surge of this movement was ignited right here in our own city. The fear, confusion, grief and frustration are palpable. The events of the past two weeks - since the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer - have shined a light on centuries of injustice and violence against Black lives that are deeply embedded in our country and in our culture. We can do better! What is your role? And what does this have to do with Yoga?

Maybe you are uncomfortable talking about race. Maybe you are overwhelmed by information and resources and are looking for a focused way to get involved. Maybe you are ready to look inward and examine your own biases? Maybe you already consider yourself an activist but are interested in raising awareness. Please join us for a weekly practice.

This group will consider the following questions:

How can tools from the Yoga tradition be used to encourage engagement and recognition of racial bias?
How can we leverage our privilege and be allies to our neighbors of color?
How has the Yoga community been complicit in the perpetuation of racism and exclusion?
How has the commodification of Yoga in the West and history of cultural appropriation harmed people of color and how can we do better?

If you are open to learning, listening more deeply, are willing to sit with discomfort in an effort to take on the practice of unlearning racism, please join this group!

The Antiracism Practice group is open to all. But it is specifically designed to white people who are willing to examine their own privilege and work toward anti-racist action.

Racial Justice and The Gita:

In the Bhagavad Gita – an important text in the Yoga tradition - the warrior prince Arjuna, in his noble chariot, rides to the center of a great battlefield just before two enormous and powerful armies charge toward each other. On the cusp of this terrifying battle against his own family members, he surveys the scene and is filled with doubt and despair. The prince throws down his weapons, overwhelmed by pity and worry. The mighty lord Krishna reveals himself and councils the prince on this cusp of this great moment of transformation.

We too are at the threshold of great change. The awakening of a new era for racial justice and police reform is taking place before our very eyes, in our neighborhoods, and in our hearts. Many of us are actively participating in this movement. What have you learned about yourself in the past two weeks? How has your yoga served you?

In the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna does not leave the battlefield. He picks up his weapons and he fights. But this story is an allegory. And it carries a powerful message about remaining present and courageous during times of transformation. External struggle is always mirrored by internal tumult and so as yogis, our practice is to remain open and present – bearing witness to the suffering of others but also to the resistance within ourselves.

Doing the work of unlearning racism is not comfortable. We are reminded, however, that the practice of yoga is not always about comfort and ease. Yoga is a path of Transformation. Embedded within the tradition are powerful tools for awakening truth and courage, for baring witness to the true self and the obstacles that stand between ourselves and feeling completely free.

- Summer Hills-Bonczyk