(Cissy's note: I read the article below this morning and think it's excellent. It made me wonder who else is thinking more about equity issues as central to becoming/being trauma-informed? It seems for some organizations and communities this is required, recognized and prioritized from the start and for others, this is something not done at all or at least not done much until many years into the work of initiatives. For me, my ACEs awareness was not combined, from the get-go. I blame my own white privilege. I was aware of class and poverty but not aware of racial or socio-cultural trauma. I feel like I'm in catch-up mode now trying to learn more, which seems urgent given how ACEs disproportionately impact communities of color. )
I moved to New York for my first job out of grad school almost 20 years ago. After just one week in my new apartment, I got a $65 ticket for putting tin cans and milk cartons in my trash can. Having spent most of my life in the American South where no laws required it, I had never recycled before.
After the ticket, I started rethinking the contents of my trash can. I have learned that landfills are harmful to the planet and how recycling saves energy and helps to slow global warming. I now keep multiple bins in my kitchen because I want the planet to be a good place for my son to grow up in. To be clear, though: the catalyst for my commitment to recycling was an annoying citation from the City of New York.
I lead Frontline Solutions, a black-owned consulting firm that helps organizations working on the front lines of change. Clients engage our enterprise for variety of consulting services from evaluation to capacity building. Our practice and values are to apply an equity lens to each engagement. We believe in working towards intersectional equity, because building just communities demands dismantling the barriers created by both racism and patriarchy.
[For more on this story by Marcus Littles, go to https://medium.com/@mlittles/e...lessons-a282ca33b5ef]
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