Public Speaking Sample

Building and Maintaining Inclusive BIPOC Spaces: Talk Excerpt

I want you to imagine walking into a room and feeling your whole body unclench; not because it’s quiet, not because you’re alone, but because you know this space was built with you in mind. Now imagine what it would mean for every BIPOC client, student, or community member to feel that exhale. Today, we’re talking about how to build that kind of space and what it takes to keep it safe.

The task of building a BIPOC space is a delicate process. On the one hand, we must remain aware of the multiple -isms that shape the lives of the community we aim to serve, and on the other, we must be able to recognize aspects of ourselves that have internalized and normalized those -isms. Can you think of some -isms that might be affecting potential or current clients?

(3-5 minutes of interaction with audience)

Now that we have those -isms in mind, how can organizers guarantee that we are not complicit in them when clients come to us for help? Short answer, nobody’s perfect. We can’t. A system of communal accountability is an important aspect of leading BIPOC spaces. We can commit to creating this system by highlighting our histories, making space for the expression of our identities, and by considering how our strategies of survival shape our culture. Now, let’s have a quick brainstorm on techniques of introspection. How can you check in with yourself to make sure the spaces you create are more therapeutic than triggering?

(5 to 10 minutes of interaction with audience)

Now that we’ve made this connection to how we respond to a person's trauma, how does one go about creating an inclusive space? As a BIPOC organizer my goal is to create an environment that invites members to feel safe enough to exhale and open up to their community. To make a person feel safe, we must first get to know them, and knowing a community includes having an understanding of the history of the people and their relationships to each other. This includes taking the time to unpack the political and cultural climate you are organizing in. In other words, you have to do your research. What might that research look like?

(2 to 3 mn of interaction with audience)

Thank you for your thoughtful suggestions!

I’ve learned that BIPOC spaces thrive when we involve our members in our decision-making processes. This can also look like implementing a constant feedback loop that allows us to remain in conversation with members of our communities.

As organizers, what we are essentially doing is designing an environment where healing and advocacy can coexist within a framework of acceptance and community care. When we gather with intention, we’re not only imagining liberation, we are living it. For the remainder of this workshop, I would like to invite you all to dream with me and to imagine together what freedom of expression in the context of therapeutic spaces can look like.