Reviving Hope: Inspiration, Education, and Action for Racial Equity 

The Reviving Hope conference aims to inspire people from many spiritual traditions and those who do not identify with any tradition using song, story, art, and study to engage in transformational conversations about race and racial justice.

The revival will provide people with an opportunity for deeper learning about racial equity while also helping to make new connections for justic work.

We encourage teams from congregations to participate in the revival so that they can build their capacity for talking about issues of racial justice in their community.

All are welcome. Plymouth Church is ADA accessible, Open & Affirming.

Let's explore being the Hope we want to see.

Conference Information

 
Basic Outline of the Day
  9:00 -   9:30    Registration
  9:30 - 10:30    Opening Worship
10:45 - 12:00    Morning Workshops
12:00 -   1:00    Lunch
  1:00 -   2:15    Afternoon Workshops
  2:20 -   2:30    Closing Worship

Cost (includes lunch). 
General Registration - $10
Youth/Student -  Free
Volunteers/Presentors

Worship

For many, our faith calls us to this work: to be a Good Samaritan, to feed the poor, to be the change we want to see. Worship service will be in the UCC Protestant tradition, with interfaith contribution of prayer, music and visual art. All Plymouth services are Open and Affirming and ADA Accessible to all. This will be a chance for different people with similar goals to reflect, pray, and get fired-up, together.

Conference attendees of all faiths or none are welcome to participate as much or as little in the worship service as they are comfortable.  

Workshops

We'll offer the same workshops in the morning and afternoon so that participants can choose two. We're also providing youth and young adult specific workshops.

Song - Giving Voice to Justice with Dr. Abe Cáceres - pianist, organist, ethnomusicologist, and composer. Be prepared to learn some African and Latin American percussion to compliment justice related music from African, African American, and Latin American traditions. Also, come ready to sing, move, and sharpen your song leadership skills. Some of the songs will be used in the closing worship.

Story - Giving Testimonies about Your Experience of Race with Ex Fabula - a Milwaukee nonprofit that strengthens community bonds through the art of storytelling. Participants will learn and practice techniques to tell effective stories about their experiences of race. (Before the workshop think about a time when you noticed/experienced preferential treatment of a white person; noticed unequal treatment of a Person of Color, noticed your own bias or assumption based on race, and the message you received about race when you were growing up.)

Art - Public Art and the Struggle for Racial Equity with Rhonda Hill - Founder of Race and Faith - using artwork by Tia Richardson and Sculpture Milwaukee. Participants will learn about the problems and possibilites for art to advance racial equity in our community.

Study - Overcoming White Supremacy with Rev. Dr. Velda Love - Minister for Racial Justice at the United Church of Christ. Participants will gain skills and insights necessary to talk about issues of race and racism in their local settings.

Youth & Young Adult Workshops including: Hip Hop and Social Change; Know Your Rights: School Suspensions and Police Interactions; Race, Me, and Implicit Bias; and DACA: Making the Dream Real.