Get Real About Discrimination
Get Real About Discrimination (GRAD) weekly Empowerment Group:
> Every Friday during the school year in the IMU Persimmon Room
> Many Fridays during the Summer — email for future meeting info
> Doors open at 5:30 pm — we begin promptly at 6:00 pm
> Newcomer briefing begins at 5:40 pm
> Observers and Participants welcome!
Need a voice?
This is your chance to speak up and speak out! GRAD empowerment group meetings consist of small intimate groups (7 or less participants) that are open to everyone and are designed to be safe places to share. The meetings are especially meant for anyone who has ever felt silenced and/or excluded.
Click here for a GRAD brochure (IU 2010 pdf)
Are you looking for a place to practice self-actualization?
Get Real About Discrimination (GRAD) was founded by Kay Johnson in 2008. At IU, GRAD’s primary activity is sponsoring a free weekly empowerment group every Friday during the IU school year (and many Fridays during the Summer) in the Indiana Memorial Union (IMU) Persimmon Room—located in the tree suites section on the mezzanine level of the IMU. The GRAD empowerment group is a place for participants to voice their feelings about and experience of discrimination. It is also a place for listeners to become educated about what discrimination looks and feels like. By encouraging those who have experienced discrimination to express themselves publicly without judgment or criticism we promote healing and we practice becoming a conscious and loving community.
GRAD is all about supporting people’s right to be authentic. This group may also be of particular interest to educators and students who are learning about diversity, discrimination, support groups, public speaking and/or group dynamics. Besides individuals, small classes and groups (less than 20) are welcome to observe.
The doors open at 5:30 pm—we begin promptly at 6:00 pm. Whether you want to participate or just observe, everyone is welcome. We welcome and personally brief all newcomers about twenty minutes before each meeting. If you have any questions or would like to learn more, feel free to stop by the IMU Persimmon Room before the meeting to pick up a brochure and/or sign-up for our email list, or you may contact Kay at kayjohnson-at-noglstp-dot-net.
We are Ending Ignorance through Conscious Listening and Healing the effects of Discrimination through Authentic Public Self Expression.
Everyone is welcome.
What is discrimination?
Discrimination is a choice. Everyone discriminates. To discriminate is to be human. We all have likes and dislikes. Some people like ketchup, others prefer mustard. It is through the act of choosing that we define who we are. For example, who do we discriminate against at our meetings? We meet in a non-smoking facility, so we discriminate against smokers. We discriminate against people who are not of average size—all the chairs are the same. We discriminate against people who live far away. And we discriminate against latecomers. To not discriminate is to have no boundaries.
Having said that, there is fair and unfair discrimination. Let’s say I go to Indianapolis and apply to play basketball for the Indiana Pacers. It is likely they would not hire me. If so, they have discriminated against me. They have chosen others instead of me. If they choose to not hire me because they believe others are better at basketball than me, they are perfectly justified. Nonetheless, it would be normal for me to feel excluded and rejected and disappointed. Not being chosen hurts regardless of the reason. We are not talking here about discrimination under the law. However, if the Pacers refused to hire me because of the color of my skin or the clothes I wear, that would be unfair discrimination. But either way, fair or unfair, discrimination hurts, the feelings are real, and they need to be voiced.
That is what the Get Real About Discrimination empowerment group is all about.
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Copyright © 2008—2010 Kay Johnson, Get Real About Discrimination—all rights reserved.