2020 started off as a year of perfect vision, full of promise and potential. During the first quarter, we’ve experienced many challenges and turmoil that caused us to focus more clearly. But as we focused, we saw both good and bad. We quickly recognized how we were able to get back to the basics of cooking, spending time with family, and focusing on self-care and self-improvement. Our vision became clear as to how and where we spent our time and energy mattered. Over the next few months, we were also challenged to get a bird’s eye for some and first-hand experience for others, which caused us to focus on our country’s most ugly history. We saw clearly how people of color were affected by health disparities and racism.

The COVID 19 pandemic highlighted the health disparities that African Americans face in America. As of date there, over 2.2 million confirmed COVID cases in the United States (John Hopkins University, 2020). African Americans have died from COVID19 at almost three times the rate of white people (Guardian, 2020). African Americans have died at a rate of 50.3 per 100,000 people, compared with 20.7 for whites, 22.9 for Latinos, and 22.7 for Asian Americans (Guardian, 2020). More than 20,000 African Americans – about one in 2,000 of the entire black population in the US – have died from the disease (Guardian, 2020). 

While we challenged ourselves to protect our physical health, many of us also had to protect our emotional and mental health as well, as our community was challenged to focus on centuries-old societal ills such as racism. We’ve adapted to a new normal that includes wearing face masks, washing hands more frequently, but have also struggled with addressing these hard subjects with our family, particularly our children. The recent racially motivated deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd caused us to focus yet again on how we spend our time and energy on things that matter... PEOPLE! In order to have a more vibrant, beautiful, healthy, equitable and safe community for everyone we must focus to address societal ills. Once again, this calls for us to be uncomfortable. 

During this quarter, Kentucky State University Area Agent III, Carla Jordan along with the University of KY Family & Consumer Sciences Agent Tamera Thomas and Assistant Dean for Diversity, Dr. Antomia Farrell conducted the Coming Together for Racial Understanding Train the Trainer Series. This 6-week curriculum will be taught in 6 hour and a half lessons. On September 3, 53 faculty and staff members from the University of Kentucky and Kentucky State University attended the first session in which they learned how to facilitate conversations on civil discourse. During the first session participants learned foundational material like establishing touchstones/guidelines, understanding common languages and terms, moving from debate to dialogue, understanding the effects of racial trauma on brain development, and explaining empathy as a perspective. Many participants commented that the “training was very engaging”, “extremely relevant” and “extremely helpful.” In fact, several participants sent emails exclaiming how pleased they were with the training. Here are a few testimonials:

• “Carla--I just wanted to tell you that your enthusiasm and bright spirit is contagious. I really enjoyed listening to and learning from you this morning...all of you”

• “Dear All -- Thank you for the training this morning! You did an amazing job engaging the group (even in a virtual format). I appreciate the opportunity to have the FCS state staff participate. I am looking forward to the upcoming sessions!”

The next session is scheduled for October 21, 2020. Participants will continue the dialogue and gain additional skills in facilitating conversations about race and racism. Each participant has committed to increasing their skill set and using it to create equitable, inclusive systems beginning in their homes, workplaces and communities. 

References:

Guardian News & Media Limited. 2020. Black Americans dying of Covid19 at Three Times the Rate of White People. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/20/black-americans-death-rate-covid-19-coronavirus

John Hopkins University. 2020 COVID-19 Dashboard by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU). Retrieved from https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

Southern Rural Development Center. 2020 Coming Together for Racial Understanding: From Debate to Dialogue. University of Missouri. 2020. Guides to Facilitating Dialogue. Retrieved from https://diversity.missouri.edu/tips-and-handouts/