My UAC Survey Response
Again I would like to thank all of the volunteers and organizations who made this event happen, that set the conditions up for me to learn so much astrology and connect with people in person. I benefited professionally from this experience and I appreciate that very much.
I was extremely impressed at how the organizers added anti-racism training content at the last minute, in response to last minute events. In the future I would like to see a growing and substantial portion of educational offerings having to do with anti-racism training, critical race theory, and how to deliver astrology in a way that is trauma-informed. Also more educational content on identifying and unlearning biases.
More critically speaking, while I’m relieved to hear that UAC did cut funding with the man who made racist impressions, I still want to discuss something else that bothered me. This concern stems from one or two people, whoever was so out of touch that they actually got on stage calling for unity. To our faces. After recent racist events. Twice. I don’t know if it was the same person or two different people, but this message is for them personally so they can understand why people are upset about that.
A quote from Vandana Shiva in “Everything I Need to Know I Learned in the Forest”:
“It is this unity in diversity that is the basis of both ecological sustainability and democracy. Diversity without unity becomes the source of conflict and contest. Unity without diversity becomes the ground for external control. This is true of both nature and culture.”
The person who asked for our Unity chose to focus on the first half of this pair, and chose to ignore the second half.
In my own words, expecting unity while dismissing diversity and differences, or expecting unity while not honoring differences sets up conditions for control and harms.
and to quote tahnee simone:
"...one thing the Forrest Saga brings to my mind is our insistence that sharing affinity automatically means sharing values and I deeply regret to inform you how untrue that is…”
In my own perspective, expecting or demanding unity without shared values and care leads to fake harmony and avoidable harms. If you’re going to invite people of diverse and marginalized identities to an event, you have to be ready to create a space that is actually supportive and accommodating for them, otherwise it sets up a bait and switch situation. I appreciate the progress that has been made, and also we can't stop where we are.
Instead of asking us to be united, that presenter could have thanked those who still showed up to UAC, and could have talked openly about the progress made and still yet to be made. This could have been a vulnerable acknowledgement and healing moment, but it turned into a passive aggressive one. Even after the award dinner events, after the racist display, still showing up to the closing ceremony and hearing the same thing repeated was maddening. They had time to sleep on it and it was said a second time.
Unity that benefits the most people depends on diversity and honoring differences, shared values, and care, all in order to not just become a censored group performing fake harmony.
Links to quoted materials:
https://www.transcend.org/tms/2019/05/everything-i-need-to-know-i-learned-in-the-forest-2/