Food, fun and solidarity. Black Lives Matter, which prepares and distributes food and care packs at the Meetinghouse monthly is making the August distribution into a street festival. Fun, games, sprinklers, food and fellowship for our neighborhood and beyond. Cooperation with neighborhood congregations and groups should make this a great event. Volunteers from other meetings are very welcome. Email trentonquakers@gmail.com
(Rain date August 28)
Author and activist Kimberly Jones went viral with a YouTube interview in which she asks, “How can we win?” Moorestown Friends Meeting’s Anti-Racism Committee recommends the interview highly; we’ll host a discussion of Jones’s perspective on race, protest, violence and economics for this Let’s Talk session on Thursday 22 July. Watch Jones’s seven-minute interview on YouTube – and maybe her 12-minute appearance on The Daily Show – then join us to discuss Jones’s ideas and our own perspectives; click here or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 815 8781 6369.
Join Moorestown Friends Meeting’s Anti-Racism Committee for a discussion of Clint Smith’s new exploration of the roots and present-day impact of the U.S.A.’s slave economy of the 17th-19th centuries. An ‘instant #1 New York Times bestseller,’ the book is widely available. If you’re not able to read or listen to it before the meeting, Little, Brown’s website has some excerpts; and The Atlantic has a short, valuable adaption. Please join us to help support the important work our meeting is doing in witness to our testament of equality; click here or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 873 3565 8140.
Take a listen to a few of these great songs: Billie Holiday’s ‘Strange Fruit,’ Janis Ian’s ‘Society’s Child,’ Gil Scott-Heron’s ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,’ Bruce Springsteen’s ‘American Skin,’ Solomon Burke’s ‘None of Us Are Free,’ Adia Victoria’s ‘South Gotta Change,’ Tyler Childers’s ‘Long Violent History,’ and Amethyst Kiah’s ‘Black Myself’ – or all of them. (These are free YouTube videos; all the songs should be available on streaming services as well.) Then bring your thoughts, and your recommendations, and join our Anti-Racism Committee to help support the important work our meeting is doing in witness to our testament of equality; click here or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 815 8781 6369.
On Thursday, June 24 at 7:30pm, Moorestown Friends Meeting’s Anti-Racism Committee members will offer a range of ideas for books, articles, movies, videos, podcasts – and maybe more – that brought them new insights into racism and racial justice. We’ll share a few quick takes as well as longer works, and welcome your ideas as well. Please join us to help support the important work F/friends are doing in support of our testament of equality; click here or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 873 3565 8140.
Burlington County college students and activists Ashlynn Conley and Jasmine Cartwright-Atkins join Moorestown F/friends to discuss Juneteenth, a celebration of emancipation in the U.S. Jasmine and Ashlynn will tell us something about the beginnings of this holiday, when many enslaved people in Texas first learned, on June 19, 1865, of the Emancipation Proclamation, almost three years after it officially ended legal enslavement. They will also discuss their plans for a second annual Juneteenth celebration at the Perkins Center in Moorestown on Saturday, June 19. All are welcome to join the conversation at 7:30pm on Thursday 10 June; click here or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 815 8781 6369.
Moorestown Friends Meeting’s Anti-Racism Committee member Michelle Maikis, a teacher with experience in both Quaker and public schools, and Nikki Tatum, Michelle’s vice principal at Franklin Park School in Somerset, New Jersey, will join F/friends to discuss their public school district’s commitment to providing diversity training and anti-racism awareness to staff. Together, we’ll explore one district’s approach to making lasting change in the face of some negative history. All are welcome to join the conversation; click here or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 873 3565 8140.
Following on our April 22 ‘Let’s Talk About Deep Delta Justice’ session, Moorestown Friends Meeting’s Anti-Racism Committee welcomes our member Matthew van Meter to continue the conversation of his compelling book, the historic Supreme Court case Duncan v. Louisiana, and its implications for anti-racism efforts today. The book is available through Pendle Hill and numerous other outlets. Click here to join the discussion, or phone 646-558-8656 and use meeting ID 815 8781 6369.
Remember the Yearly Meeting library? It is at Friends Center, was on the first floor, now on the balcony of the Cherry Street Room!
We are open weekly, and can be open for events if you contact us in advance.
Come & Visit *Your Library in person* – change in Thursday hours.
WATCH for additional time to be announced, 1 Saturday monthly, 10-2
*closed holidays & times that Friends Center is closed.
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July, 31st 2016
To Friends everywhere,
Twenty-three Young Friends gathered for Philadelphia Yearly Meeting’s 2016 Annual Sessions at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. This year we welcomed many new Young Friends attending their first Young Friend gathering. We welcomed them first by introducing ourselves and learning their names, monthly meetings, pronouns, and favorite ice-cream flavors. We also did partner circles where we answered questions such as something deep about yourself that others will not know. The Nurturing Committee prepared queries for us to answer during worship sharing with our small groups. Then we went to bed to prepare for the next day.
The second day we went to intergenerational worship sharing. Then we came together as Young Friends to incorporate the theme of Annual Sessions of transforming in a workshop about conformity which we held outside. Then we checked in with the entire Yearly Meeting. After a delicious lunch, we created and identified Affinity Groups. Then the Young Friends separated to go to Affinity Groups, Committees, and Adult Workshops. During dinner, the Young Friends group “Mantis Shrimp” met and discussed what it’s like to be in the LGBTQIA community. Later in the day, we came together for “All Together Time”, a multigenerational activity to connect the Young Friends community with the larger community. Then we learned about Business Meetings from Traci Hjelt Sullivan. We practiced what we learned with a long, intense Business Meeting. We focused on Sweat Lodges and their potential cultural appropriation. We also spent time on the difficult bathroom situation, which was that only the female-identified bathroom had showers and we wanted everyone of every gender-identification to feel comfortable.
Friday, our planned hike was cancelled, due to weather, resulting in a generally open day. We played many games, including a frustrating game called Four On a Couch and Running Charades. We also completed our business meeting from the previous day, and we managed to come to unity on the bathroom matter. In the evening, we joined the adults to hear a proposal from the Undoing Racism Group and witnessed a heated discussion regarding that proposal. We debriefed the issue in small groups. Finally, Young Friends finished the day with worship sharing.
On Saturday, we began our day with the usual pattern of a healthy breakfast and a spiritual worship sharing, regarding the end of Racism and White Supremacy. Later that day, we participated in a brief workshop regarding the indigenous peoples of our land. Unfortunately, that event was cut short due to a change in the scheduling. We promptly attended a continuation of the previous day’s adults’ conversation. We reviewed what it takes to become anti-racist society and assessed that we have a long way to go. Then, led by wonderful women, a stand-in was put in place to persuade the Yearly Meeting to address the Undoing Racism Group’s proposal.
Young Friends, once again, participated in “All Together Time”. Afterwards, the Young Friends listened to a beautiful, motivational, emotional and overall amazing speech from the lovely Tonya Thames-Taylor. Many Young Friends were extremely inspired by this event and they personally thanked her later. Further into the night, Young Friends got to attend Vespers and worship sharing. Even further into the night, Young Friends got to stay up until 1:00 AM as they played games, strained hair, and gave makeovers and had a lot of fun during late night.
On Sunday, we finished up our final session of business meeting discussing the approval of this Epistle. Then we went to do more work with the Undoing Racism Group’s proposal. Later, we shared our Epistle with the wider Yearly Meeting community. We separated ways to go home and waited to meet up again.
In conclusion, we would like to thank our program Coordinator, Hannah Mayer, and all the other Friendly Presences who made this gathering possible. We would also like to thank the Yearly Meeting for supporting our program. The Young Friends have learned a lot from working with the Yearly Meeting on fighting Racism and White Supremacy. We are eagerly awaiting when we can come together again, to make an impact on Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, and fight racism throughout the world. We have had a wonderful time, and it’s going to be incredibly hard to wait for next year’s Annual Sessions.
Young Friends of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting
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