It was a very special night last night. CASA of Travis County (http://www.casatravis.org) and The Center for the Healing of Racism (http://www.centerhealingracism.org) sponsored a book signing and short training by Cherry Steinwender, Co-Executive Director of The Center for the healing of Racism. Participants included some children, parents, and other interested people. An essential piece of solving conflicts is giving permission to ourselves to practice continuing education.
Several of the Center's members were in attendance: Sonia Kotecha, CASA , directs Community Relations, Kim Polk, who wrote the guidelines that the Center still uses in its Dialogue:Racism Christopher Bear-Beam was trained by the Center to co-facilitate workshops and other events, and is now the Executive Director of The Sunbear Community Alliance, an Austin-based 501(c)3 Nonprofit (http://www.sunbearca.wordpress.com). SBCA collaborates with other groups to do multicultral training, coaching, and presentations.
Cherry Steinwender wrote a book entitled Bread is a Simple Food: Teaching Children about Culture (to order the book go to http://www.AuthorHouse.com). The idea of using bread to teach children and adults about culture merged in her brain and spirit about fourteen years ago. Cherry began doing a presentation that was at first called Opening the Breadbasket.
After her introduction about how the book was birthed, the audience viewed a DVD of an actual presentation on Bread is a Simple Food.
She explained to the listeners that she uses different styles of presentation, depending whether the group is an elementary school one, or a middle school one.
The common thread of people from different cultures and many breads indigenous to other cultures is this: Just like bread, children come in different sizes, shapes, and colors, and they are all beautiful human beings. Maybe if we think of ourselves this way conflicts to resolve. The focal point is education.
What saddens Cherry the most is when children say hurtful words to other children. They are conditioned by family members, peers, and the larger world outside. When children say hurtful things to other children, such as “Your hair is too nappy, not straight like ours—we don't want to play with you.”
Or, “Your too dark, you're African dark, stay away, your Koodies will make us sick!” And, finally, “Don't touch us Fatso, we don't want any of your blubber. Go play somewhere else.”
When children say these harmful words to other children, it's only because of ignorance or some may say human nature. Usually, these kinds of slur words are passed on by older people, or older peers, who should know better. Her goal is to teach this material to children so that they may tell other peers, or adults why it isn't cool to talk that way.
INTERNALIZE ONENESS! (One of the slogans used by the CFHR). We are diverse in our make-ups, but one in membership of the human race.
Contacts: You can email Sonia Kotecha, CASA Community Relations at casa@casatravis.org or call CASA's main number: 512-459-2272; Cherry Steinwender may be reached at E-mail: cfhr1@juno.com, or calling 713-520-8226.
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