Listening, Learning, and Answering the Call to Change (with links to empowering organizations)

I am sickened by the recent deaths of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and now Rayshard Brooks—and all similar unnecessary deaths.  I am angry on behalf of my friends, family members, and patients who have been subjected to judgement, put at a disadvantage, or even put in danger because of their race.  I am afraid for patients of color (especially African American) with communication disorders, who are at higher risk of incarceration and being misinterpreted as hostile.

For the last few weeks, I have been extra intentional about listening and learning.  So far, these are the calls to change that I am hearing:  examine our own biases, follow the leadership of communities we wish to help, and support organizations that empower minorities, even when it’s not “trending”. 

Today, I'm posting a list of some empowering organizations led by (or working hard to empower) people of color--most especially African Americans and immigrants/refugees.  This list focuses on education and religious organizations.  

Remember, it’s no single person's job to support every organization; we are not “saviors”!  We are just humans accompanying other humans on a difficult journey.  With that in mind, please consider supporting some of these organizations with me.

Education

I recommend contacting local universities with departments of Communication Disorders, Psychology/Child Development, and Education, as they are sure to have connections to programs that empower communities through education and work to stop the cycle of poverty.  They can often use donations and/or volunteers.  Here are some other places to get started:

Jumpstart  

Head Start programs

The Center for Children and Families at UT Dallas researches and implements solutions for children and families of all backgrounds.

AVANCE North Texas:  educates children AND parents, empowering entire families.

Bilinguistics:  This Austin-based clinic specializes in bilingual speech therapy and providing education for professionals to support bilingual language development.

The UT Dallas Bilingual Lab:  Dr. Rojas is dedicated to empowering bilingual children by researching their language development and providing education to speech therapists and educators about how to support bilingual language development, as well as empowering parents and children in bilingual communities.

HABLA Lab:  Drs. Peña and Bedore also research bilingual language development and work to empower bilingual communities.

Places of Worship

Do you know of a church, monastery, temple, mosque, or synagogue in your neighborhood whose members are mostly people of color and/or immigrants?  They could use some extra support right now.  And I don’t just mean money, although donations are helpful.  Consider attending services, social events, and fundraisers when it's safe to gather in large groups again.  The world is a better place when we support the richness of each other’s faith traditions.

Here are links to some places of worship and ministries to consider:

Our Mother of Mercy is a traditionally African-American Catholic Parish dear to my heart. 

The Zion Dance Project:  Vincent and Abigail Hardy co-founded this amazing dance ministry.  The Hardys are a true inspiration through their interracial marriage, their interracial dance community, and their amazing faith and graciousness.

Why Islam:  This is an official organization recommended to me by a friend; the Muslim American community is working hard to fight for racial justice, especially for African Americans at this time.  (She also reports that her mosque and most other mosques are being pretty active about the current racial calls to action and recommends for people to check their local mosques for more information.)

IANT Masjid:  Another friend sent me a link to her mosque's website, and front and center they have some calls to action for working toward justice for African Americans.

The Potter's House:  T. D. Jakes and his wife founded these churches and promote harmony.

OLPH Dallas (Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro) is a Mexican/Hispanic majority (and I mean majority) parish that welcomed me, their little guerita, when I was in graduate school.  Their school is served by the beautiful and kind Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, religious sisters from India (and founded in Malta) who work worldwide to empower others.

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Parish was founded by immigrants from Lebanon and the Middle East.  Some of their attending members are refugees, and they also have Hispanic members and members of various backgrounds.

Speaking of refugees, the Chaldean Catholics also hail from the Middle East and many of them are refugees.  They have several Dioceses in the US.  Some of them are still working on their websites, but you could reach out by phone or mail (or, when it is safe to do so, attend in person).  Here is information about the Chaldean Diocese of San Diego (this includes Texas) and the Chaldean Diocese of St. Thomas the Apostle.

Yaqeen Institute  This Islamic research organization covers many topics, including racial and gender equality topics.

EPIC Masjid, Islamic Association of Allen, Islamic Association of Collin County are all mosques recommended by a friend who reports that many of these mosques are taking action to address racial justice.  

St. John Chrysostom Byzantine Catholic Church in Houston: This multicultural community celebrated Pascha (Easter) with a service including English, Spanish, Slavonic, and a smattering of Greek.  If a Byzantine parish includes more Spanish than Slavonic in their service, they must be doing some good outreach to support their community!

Here in Texas, a lot of Catholic parishes have ministries run by and for Spanish-speaking parishioners.  Does your place of worship have ministries run by and for immigrants?  

Healthcare

I recommend reaching out to healthcare providers who serve in areas with lots of people of color and immigrants, and ask what sorts of donations would be helpful right now.  Honestly, I’m a little at a loss myself, even working in a hospital.  If you have masks or gloves, definitely donate those.  If anyone has any more ideas, please write them in the comments.

Because of my educational background and experience, I have more knowledge of organizations that empower immigrant communities than specifically African-American communities--I am definitely still learning.  And because of my faith background I’m much more familiar with Christian organizations than other religious organizations (which is why I reached out to the Islamic community to teach me about their organizations).  If you know of other religious and educational organizations run for/by minorities that could use support, please comment so I can learn more!

Let’s all make a commitment to become actively involved in the empowerment of our brothers and sisters of all races—especially the African American community, who are really suffering right now.