Moments of Insight • Vol. 1 Issue 7 • June 12, 2020

A Note from Anna, our Founder & Director Send us a Letter We know we cannot be there in person Hi all, I hope this newsletter finds you safe and healthy. We wanted to take with you, but wanted to encourage you some time to acknowledge all that’s been unfolding in our country over to check-in with us like we do when we the past few weeks and dedicate this edition of the Newsletter to our are together. You know how Anna unwavering support of marginalized communities and people of color usually asks us to state how the week everywhere. Emotions have been very high and very low and everywhere in has been and share something we've between. I have felt angry, sad and sometimes hopeless. But I know it doesn't learned? We'd love for you to write it help me or anyone else if I hang out there too long. I can see the deeper down and send us a note. feelings of love and optimism everywhere I look, and so I dive into hope and I reside there instead. I prefer the view. Send us a poem or artwork There’s something about these protests that feels different this time. It’s like We would also love for you to share any everyone - people of all colors, ages, backgrounds, and gender identities - poems, artwork or insights you've had are out in the streets saying enough is enough! We demand change. And that we can include in one of our next some change is happening (see page 6). Of course we have a long way to go volumes of 'Moments of Insight'. Feel to change policy, re-direct funding, and even begin to right all the wrongs of free to share ideas of what you'd like us decades of systemic racism, but I’m looking around and witnessing people to include in this newsletter as well. challenge their entrenched ways of thinking as people, as a community, and as a society. Me too. It’s uncomfortable, clumsy, and painful but has me All letters, art and ideas can be sent to: sitting upright in my chair, listening more deeply. And, ready to roll up my The Insight Alliance sleeves and work harder to help change the system from the inside on out. PO Box 820214

Portland, OR 97282 As Michelle Alexander, author of ‘The New Jim Crow’ writes in an Op-ed piece in the New York Times last week asks - “Can’t we design alternative approaches to poverty, drug abuse, mental illness, trauma and violence that would do less harm than police, prisons, jails and lifelong criminal records? Fortunately, the extraordinary protests sweeping the nation and the globe are beginning to have an impact…. On Wednesday, the mayor of Los Angeles announced that city officials may cut up to $150 million from the city’s police budget “so we can invest in jobs, in health, in education and in healing.” By Friday, the Minneapolis City Council president announced that the council was preparing to “dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a transformative new model of public safety.” These developments reflect a long-overdue paradigm shift in our approach to race and criminal justice….”

THE INSIGHT ALLIANCE PAGE 01 CONTINUED FROM PG 1. Lockdown Diaries (Inspired by the Willamette Week) I know I feel hopeful when I read that and when I look around at the change that is happening. And I feel hopeful and continually inspired by the resilience and humanity of all the people we work with.

As an organization we are committed to continuing our work supporting people affected by the criminal justice system and those who have been traditionally marginalized to live fulfilling prison-free lives, out of the cycle of repeated incarceration. As Former President Barack Obama said: “Change will not come if we Lindsay wait for some other person, or if we wait for some other time. We are the ones we’ve Staff Member been waiting for. We are the change that we seek”. 1. Occupation: Operations Director

2. Age: 36 Systems are made up of individuals, individuals that have the power to change. In 3. How many people do you live with? Two helping people affected by the criminal justice system wake up to their true worth and 4. What have you been eating? Lots of veggies, their potential, we start to change the system. One by one, people with a new and chicken and fish....we're doing the Keto diet. healthy mindset gain power and agency that contributes to systems-wide change. 5. What have you been watching, listening to or playing during Lockdown? Watching: Project While we are committed to continuing this work, we also acknowledge we must step up Runway, Top Chef, Better Call Saul, Harry Potter; to the plate to do even more around racial justice. It is not just about what I say here, Listening to: the Frozen 2 soundtrack on it’s about what we do: How is The Insight Alliance “being the change we want to see in repeat....not by choice, lol! the world?” 6. Have you picked up a new hobby or resumed an old one? I've been doing a lot of projects In solidarity, Anna around the house (painting the bathroom, re- finishing our kitchen table, reorganizing the garage, working on my garden). 7. What's the weirdest thing you've done so far? Vacuumed the garage! Yep, that definitely happened when I was organizing things the other day. Who have I become? 8. When was the last time you were closer than 6 feet to someone outside your household? This past weekend. 9. What's your secret to staying sane? Zoom calls with my family, puppy snuggles, doing my work for The Insight Alliance, and volunteering with The Black Resilience Fund and Beyond Black. 10. What's the first thing you're doing when this is over? Traveling to the east coast to visit grandparents and other family members. 11. What has quarantine taught you about yourself? I need to do a better job resting and giving myself space to create/be artistic. Having that space over the last few months has been SO healing and essential given everything going on in the world.

THE INSIGHT ALLIANCE PAGE 02 A RITUAL TO READ TO EACH A Reflection from one of our Board Members OTHER BY WILLIAM STAFFORD BY AMELIA PAPE, INSIGHT ALLIANCE BOARD MEMBER ”If you don't know the kind of person I am Times are heavy, to say the least. I feel very grateful to be a part of this and I don't know the kind of person you are organization and so proud of the work that all the teachers and a pattern that others made may prevail in the participants are doing. I've been revisiting Dr. King's Letter from a world and following the wrong god home we Birmingham Jail multiple times over the past few months, and this may miss our star.

passage keeps sticking with me: For there is many a small betrayal in the mind,

a shrug that lets the fragile sequence break "You may well ask: "Why direct action? Why sit ins, marches and so sending with shouts the horrible errors of forth? Isn't negotiation a better path?" You are quite right in calling for childhood storming out to play through the negotiation. Indeed, this is the very purpose of direct action. Nonviolent broken dike. direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to And as elephants parade holding each confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no elephant's tail, but if one wanders the circus longer be ignored. My citing the creation of tension as part of the work won't find the park, I call it cruel and maybe of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking. But I must confess the root of all cruelty to know what occurs but not recognize the fact. that I am not afraid of the word "tension." I have earnestly opposed

violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension And so I appeal to a voice, to something which is necessary for growth. Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary shadowy, a remote important region in all to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the who talk: though we could fool each other, we bondage of myths and half truths to the unfettered realm of creative should consider— lest the parade of our analysis and objective appraisal, so must we see the need for nonviolent mutual life get lost in the dark. gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of For it is important that awake people be understanding and brotherhood. The purpose of our direct action awake, or a breaking line may discourage them back to sleep; the signals we give — yes program is to create a situation so crisis packed that it will inevitably or no, or maybe — should be clear: the open the door to negotiation. I therefore concur with you in your call darkness around us is deep." for negotiation. Too long has our beloved Southland been bogged down in a tragic effort to live in monologue rather than dialogue."

His citing of the value of tension is what stays with me. Peter Senge said in The Fifth Discipline that creative tension is the space between reality and our vision for the future. We tend to want to get out of it because it's uncomfortable, but the way we get out of that space is often by lowering or abandoning our vision. If we stick with it, we start to see new possibilities. In this way, tension is the birthplace of innovation and change. I feel that we're in it now, in the tension, and I feel that the work of the Insight Alliance is teaching us to gracefully stay in it. That's a real gift.

This is just a bit of what I've been feeling lately. Thanks for listening.

THE INSIGHT ALLIANCE PAGE 03 Why I Protest T-SHIRT ART CONTEST!!! BY BY ROWAIDA ABDELAZIZ, PUBLISHED IN THE HUFFPOST We would love some creative ideas for an Insight Alliance t-shirt! We're launching a Protesters across the country and the world are not going home until new contest and are looking to YOU for their message is heard. The death of , the issue of police design ideas. The only thing we ask is that brutality and the fight against racism have inspired people from all the design include our name - The Insight backgrounds, faiths and ages to take to the streets to demand justice. Alliance. Once we get entries. we’ll put

them out to the public for a vote. The HuffPost collected more than 100 responses from participants across winner of our design contest will get a the country — from Boston to Kansas to Oregon to Ohio to North sweet prize (TBD)! Plus, we'll be printing the Carolina and everywhere in between. We also received responses from winning design on t-shirts for our team to protesters in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, France and the wear at events and for any community Netherlands. members who want to purchase them. Oh, HuffPost asked each of the respondents about their experiences at and we're hoping to print art posters as protests. Some were first-time protesters, others took their children, well. and all said they wanted to see change. We asked protesters to tell us why they protested. Here are some of the stories. ONE OF OUR SUBMISSIONS FROM DEANA AT CCCF Juliana Jung, 28, Nanny, Pennsylvania

Juliana Jung drove more than an hour to the nearest protest last week. She was worried about contracting the coronavirus in a large gathering, but she also knew it was incredibly important to attend.

As an Asian American woman, Jung said that it was personal for her as a person of color to attend in order to send a message that racism affects all marginalized communities and that for Black individuals, it can kill.

She brought her mask and a sign and didn’t look back. She hopes more people will join her.

“We all need to be kind and come from a place of wanting to understand and start a dialogue, not get angry and defensive,” Jung said. “I protest because I just can’t not.”

Joseph Williams, 52, Retired Police Detective, New Jersey

A former police detective, Army combat veteran and social science keep them teacher, Williams has seen firsthand what it means to witness and fight injustice ― and when justice is denied. coming!

THE INSIGHT ALLIANCE PAGE 04 CONTINUED FROM PG 4.

After the Camden, New Jersey, police department was dismantled and taken over by the county, Williams became increasingly concerned with the new department’s policing tactics, which he called problematic and aggressive. So he retired earlier than planned and went into teaching.

Last week, Williams attended a protest at Philadelphia’s City Hall with his 20-year-old daughter. He chanted, marched and kneeled.

After the protest, Williams said he “felt a sense of relief. I had to scream. I had to yell. I had to get the words out. I was proud of what I did and my daughter did. I was proud to see so many different people come together,” he said.

“I protest because I care. I care about my future. I care about the future of this country. I protest because I am an African American man who has seen too many violent things done.”

Ross Helart, 28, Nonprofit Director, New York

Ross Helart grew up in a conservative Republican family and has multiple family members who work for the police. For the longest time, he largely avoided politics and controversial topics with them.

But all of that changed when he saw the footage of George Floyd’s death. Last weekend, Helart attended his first protest. He knew some of his family members would disagree with his participation.

But as a queer person, Helart knew that he could no longer be silent.

“If you cannot have compassion and think about how mad and angry you would be if there was an injustice happening to your family — and you can’t understand why people are as outraged as they are today — then you need to take a good look in the mirror and figure out what’s going on,” Helart said. be the change

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I read an article from the Veterans ART BY BRUSHFIREHEART.ART Real Change is Happening!

5/26 - 4 officers fired for murdering George Floyd 5/28 - Univ of Minn cancels contract with police 5/29 - Officer Chauvin who killed Floyd arrested 5/29 - Louisville Mayor suspends “no-knock” warrants 5/31 - 2 abusive officers fired for pulling a couple out of car and tasing them 6/1 - Minn public schools end contract with police 6/1 - Confederate Monument removed - Birmingham, AL 6/1 - CA prosecutors launch campaign to stop DA’s from accepting police union money 6/1 - Mayor Bynum in Tulsa agrees to not renew Live PD contract 6/1 - Louisville police chef fired after shooting of David Mcatee 6/1 - Dems and reps begin push to shut down a Pentagon program that transfers military weaponry to local law enforcement departments 6/2 - 6 abusive officers in Atlanta, GA charged for violence against residents and protestors 6/2 - Confederate soldier statue removed - Alexandria, VA 6/2 - Civil Rights investigation of Minn Police Dept launched 6/2 - Resolution to prevent law enforcement from hiring officers with history of misconduct announced by San Fran DA 6/2 - NJ AG announces policing reforms 6/2 - Minn City Council members publicly call for disbanding the police and replace safety and outreach capacity 6/3 - 1 officer fired for tweets promoting violence against protestors - Denver 6/3 Officer Chauvin charged and taken into custody; charges upgraded to 2nd ART BY DENNIS WENTZ Murder & remaining 3 officers also charged and taken into custody 6/3 - VA Gov announces removal of Robert E Lee statue 6/3 - Richmond, VA Mayor Stoney announces RPD reform measures: establish "Marcus" alert for folks experiencing mental health crisis, establish independent Citizen Review Board, an ordinance to remove Confederate monuments, and implement racial equity study 6/3 - County commissioners deny proposal for $23 million expansion of Fulton County Jail 6/3 - US Army tells soldiers to disobey any orders to attack peaceful protestors 6/3 - LA Announces $100-150 million cut from LAPD budget, Reinvested into communities, moratorium on gang database, sharper discipline against abusive cops, in effect immediately 6/4 - Breonna Taylor case reopened 6/4 - Portland schools superintendent 'discontinues' presence of armed police officers in schools 6/4 - King County Labor Federation issue ultimatum to police unions, to admit to and address racism in Seattle PD, or be removed 6/9 - Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler cuts two specialty Portland Police Bureau units focused on gun violence and transit enforcement, and redirects millions towards communities of color

THE INSIGHT ALLIANCE PAGE 06 A QUOTE BY RALPH ELLISON ”The blues is an art of ambiguity, an assertion of the irrepressibly human over all A Contribution from Liberation Literacy circumstance whether created by others or BY JARELL LAMBERT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR by one's own human failings. They are the only consistent art in the United Someone tell me what moves you? Someone tell me what it takes for you States which constantly remind us of our to get to the next level? Tell me that you are willing to reach beyond limitations while encouraging us to what you see, what you think, and how you feel, and I will humbly say to you, "let’s go!" see how far we can actually go. When understood in their more profound Fear is a reaction, courage is a decision, and, for those of us coming out implication, they are a corrective, an attempt of captivity, we have to have the courage to do better than we did to draw a line upon man's own before. We have to have the courage to have a practical response to limitless assertion." those things that do not make us feel good. Most importantly, we have to have the courage to love ourselves without arrogance.

All things always work together for the good. This pandemic is actually a motivator, this is a time to strive, a time to be creative, a time for discipline. This is a time for change so how will you do it? This is a time for new vision so how will you see it? This is a time that the world is going threw a universal empowerment so Someone please tell me how I’ll you assist in it.

Tell me how you stay !!!

Note: If you would like to send a letter to the Liberation Literacy team, send it to the Insight Alliance PO Box and they'll forward it on to us.

Liberation Literacy c/o The Insight Alliance PO Box 820214 Portland, OR 97282

A QUOTE BY ARUNDHATI ROY ”We are facing a gateway between one world and the next. We can choose to walk through it, dragging our prejudice and hatred.... our dead ideas.... or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world."

THE INSIGHT ALLIANCE PAGE 07 A Contribution from Oregon Justice Resource Center Wow, the weeks have passed fast! My name is Althea Seloover and I write to you from the Oregon Justice Resource Center. I’m the Director of Investigation and Prisoner Support at OJRC’s Youth Justice Project.

Since the last issue of the newsletter, I’ve worked hard on re-setting boundaries and a strong ethic of care with myself. The hard work continues but asking for support and setting boundaries has allowed me to direct some of my time to my regular caseload, a clemency petition, and other curriculum development I’m excited about. I don’t know about you, but it’s always a challenging but powerful moment to affirm for myself the hard self-work I’ve done in my life when I hit a moment of complex pain and exhaustion but come out of it lovingly. There’s gentleness and self-compassion in that. I encourage you all to celebrate those moments for yourself; it’s about growth but it’s also about meaningful and honest connecting with yourself.

And then, here we are in national and global unrest in response to George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, MN. I hope you have been able to see some of the protest coverage. It’s truly inspiring and is undoubtedly a time that will be recorded in the history books with a bold title. I believe that we are at the beginning of a fundamental transformation in public safety methods, institutional power, and systems of harm.

Since protests started, OJRC has filed two lawsuits against the City of Portland for their use of teargas. Earlier this week a judge ruled in our favor, limiting the use of teargas against protesters. It doesn’t address the use of rubber bullets, physical assaults, sonic weapons that damage hearing, and cellphone tracing by police. It’s a big fight.We’ve also publicly announced our support of the “” campaign, a series of measures that would de-carcerate our communities by de-funding the police, removing cops from schools, releasing people from prisons and jails, and re-investing in alternatives like social workers, alternative justice programs, and equitable medical and mental health care.

But what can and should we be doing as individuals, especially with limited movement and freedom to be a civically engaged citizen? There’s no one “right” way. Do you remember my stories from past issues about my 6 year old neighbor? Well, the saga has continued. My neighbor has, over time, gotten so comfortable with the world around her (my property) that she’s started walking right into my house. Usually she’s looking for my cat but she also does a lot of looking around. She’s got big eyes and is quite the critic. I’m an art collector and she has noticed. One day last week she locked into an incredible drawing by an incarcerated person.

She took a long look with her big eyes and said, “wow. What is going on here?!” She always waives her arms around when she’s got a big question or a big thought. She waived her arms here. The piece does have a lot going on. It’s a black and white self-portrait of the artist that also includes a full color portrait of his grandson. There are images of clocks and galaxies. She had questions about the images, and questions about the color in some places and the lack of color in other places. She asked me why the “old man” is black and white. I told her it was the artists decision but my interpretation is that his life has been gray while his grandson still has so much life in him. She asked why his life has been gray. I said, “well, he has been in prison since he was young.” She looked at me with her critical face, scrunched it up, and asked “what makes someone go to prison?”

I tell you this story because we are all constantly informing and narrating the world to one another. Whether we remember it or not, it’s been happening since the day we were born. What we see, what we over-hear, what we’re told, what and who is put in front of us. Reflect on that. Whatever age your childhood self is when they pop into your head, sit with that kid. Where was that kid? What were they being told? What were they being taught about the world, good vs bad, what is meaningful and what’s not?

If a 6 year old asked you “what makes someone go to prison?” What would your answer be? If, in 10 years, a 6 year old asked you “what happens when someone hurts another person?” What would you want be able to tell them about what “justice” looks like?

What I told my neighbor is “sometimes, when someone hurts another person or damages stuff, they might go to prison. But there are other reasons too.” She looked at me with a scrunched up brow and said, “okay.” My proximity to this kid means this conversation will continue.

Regardless of your race, identity or politics, I encourage you to think about the things you’ve been taught in your life – how, in retrospect, could your needs have been better met? What did you need from your community that you didn’t get? Today, what do you hold precious in your community? What do you strive to protect? What is precious to you or protects you but doesn’t serve others? These are the questions I’m asking myself.

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