Pebbles of Peace Outweighing

Boulders of Violence:

2005-2006 program

At our autumn youth forum, held on November 15, over 150 young people from Milwaukee joined together as “Pebbles of Peace” to outweigh a heavy boulder of violence: racism. 

We spent the morning learning about the complexities of racism.  Through movie clips, skits performed by young people, and group discussions, we began to understand how racism affects us individually, nationally, and globally. 

We learned:

• That White privilege makes systematic racism possible;
• That stereotypes can be negative or positive, but they are always generalizations that group people together and unfairly emphasize their similarities instead of their individual uniqueness;
• That racial prejudice is personal and individual, and can happen between any two people who are basing their fears and opinions on skin color and nationality;
• That racism is institutional. It is bigger than any one person. It is a web of relationships, opinions, and unwritten policies that can be culturally invisible to those who not victimized by its unjust consequences.

We discussed our personal experiences with members of racial groups different from our own, and made friends with people from different neighborhoods, schools and churches.

“Racism goes beyond the color of skin,” one participant noted.  This youth was verbalizing what we all began to understand as the forum went on: racism is  complicated. For example, African-Americans experience racial prejudice according to the shade of their skin, with darker skinned people finding themselves in situations of discrimination more often than those with lighter skin. “Hispanics” can be White or Black, or many shades in between, and Middle Eastern peoples may find prejudice due to their religion and dress, even though they are White.

Racism, with all of its ugly variations, is an overwhelming boulder standing in the way of a more peaceful world.

In the afternoon of our youth forum, dignitaries from Milwaukee came to listen to and learn from the young people.  These dignitaries included:

• Chief of Police Nannette Hegerty;
• District Attorney E. Michael McCann;
• Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Maxine White;
• Tom McGinnity, Executive Director of the Milwaukee Teacher Education Center;
• Bama Brown-Grice, from the Milwaukee Partnership Academy
• Sr. Shawnee Daniels-Sykes, SSND, House of Peace Ministry Council Member
• Dan Di Domizio, Professor of Religious Studies at Cardinal Stritch University;
• State Senator Spencer Coggs;
• State Senator Lena Taylor; and
• State Representative Jason Fields.
• Khalif Rainey, from US Congresswoman Gwen Moore's office
• Marquette Baylor, from US Senator Herb Kohl's office
• Richard Badger, Aide to Milwaukee Mayor, Tom Barrett
• Billy Young, representing Bishop Sedgwick Daniels, Church of God in Christ

The youth called upon these community leaders to help them take action against racism.  "We need to let people know racism exists," said one young person.  The dignitaries committed themselves to working with the youth and commended them for their leadership and courage in addressing this important issue.

The day ended with a call for youth action. Each church or school group in attendance developed a project to take back to their own neighborhoods and communities to address racism.  The groups presented their project ideas and left the forum with a sense of purpose.  One participant left saying, “It is up to our generation to encourage people and take small steps."

The list of projects from the young people include the following:

• St. Anthony Church (Pewaukee) will be using the “Butter Battle Book” by Dr. Seuss in their summer vacation Bible School to introduce racism to younger students.
• “Streets of Peace” (an organization sponsored by Bethel Temple church and Holy Redeemer School) is holding a “Youth Empowering Youth” retreat.
• St. Joan Antida High School (Milwaukee) is creating a mural and teacher’s guide to highlight the accomplishments of famous people who have fought racism throughout modern history.
• Thomas More High School (Milwaukee) will use a simulation game in their theology classes that divides students randomly so that each group experiences oppression and privilege in a different situation.
• Holy Redeemer Academy (Milwaukee) is hosting a musical celebration to raise the issues of cultural acceptance and uniqueness, and fight the effects of racism.
• Cross Lutheran Church (Milwaukee) is beginning a relationship with Ascension Lutheran in Waukesha to create an urban/suburban dialog on racism and other cultural issues.
• Messmer High School (Milwaukee) is initiating five projects:
• A trip to the Black Holocaust Museum
• A celebration of different cultures, foods, and music
• A speaker who will address racism directly
• A discussion about racism with the staff from Casa Maria
• A service project that involves partnering with a local agency to serve food to the homeless.
• The House of Peace (Milwaukee) Teen Leaders are creating a page on their web site that includes their comments about racism. The Teen Leaders are also managing the allocation and distribution of funds for all these racism projects, since they applied for and received a grant from the Greater Milwaukee Youth in Service Fund.

Articles about “Pebbles of Peace Outweighing Boulders of Violence” have appeared in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, The Catholic Herald (the local newspaper of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee), and Celebration, an ecumenical and international “comprehensive worship resource” published monthly by the National catholic Reporter Publishing Company, Inc in Kansas City, MO.

For more information about Pebbles of Peace, contact Dr. Lisa Calderone, the director of youth leadership at the House of Peace. 

Tomorrow’s Present programs, such as “Pebbles of Peace outweighing Boulders of Violence” are made possible by the generosity of individual donors and by grants from these foundations and organizations.