Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Movies or short videos about cohousing (Malin Hansen)

[Ann Zabaldo (zabaldo]

When I wrote that sentence I was speaking more metaphorically and 
illustratively about the premise that we welcome people of color to come to 
"our home" but we so infrequently visit their home

If you want to get into the Top 10 Ways to Reach People of Color… We can do 
that.   And It can start right here:

What do you think that would look like? How would your marketing and outreach 
be inclusive? Reach people of color?

In the town where you live what would this look like for you?  

This is actually the easy stuff. It's the EHO symbol, it's the advertising in 
media that targets people of color etc.  that's easy stuff. 

The harder part is to be a stand when it's tough.   Even when it costs money. 
And even harder:  when you don't know that you don't know you don't know. 
That's the place of "but everybody's welcome here." 

Let me give you an example that I've commented  on this list multiple times in 
the past.

Many groups will have in their literature: living with like-minded people. 

Now to most of us with that means: living with people who share my values.

"Like-minded" is code for "doesn't include me."  I don't use it – ever. 

I had the most extraordinary conversation with two women of color when I was 
enthusiastically explaining to them how awesome it is that in  cohousing we 
could write our own bylaws and our own rules. I thought they'd be thrilled! 
Their response was: oh you mean the deck will be stacked against us?   When 
white people write the rules we get left out. 

The issues surrounding race, ethics, values, diversity, etc. are SUBTLE.   They 
are built up over many decades of inequality. We've come a long way from White 
Only drinking fountains but we are still struggling from the subtle beliefs 
that keep us hooked in this spiral. 

I know for myself this is true. I'm a nice person. I do everything I can to be 
as fair and as open-minded as possible. And I still find myself tripping over 
old beliefs and fears.

Ann zabaldo
Takoma village cohousing
Washington DC

Sent from my iPhone

> On Apr 12, 2015, at 12:19 PM, R Philip Dowds <rpdowds [at] comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> 
> I already claimed to be a thoughtful but not dogmatic supporter of 
> affirmative action.  Specifically, if we were going out to them, what would 
> that look like?
> 
> RPD
> 
>> On Apr 12, 2015, at 10:40 AM, Ann Zabaldo <zabaldo [at] earthlink.net> wrote:
>> 
>> And that doesn't just mean that we're happy to have people of color come to 
>> us. How about we go out to them?
> 
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