AWSJ Conference To Focus On Racial Justice and Healing

Shakti Butler PhD, a dynamic filmmaker and visionary educator in the field of social and racial equity, will provide the keynote address for the 17th annual Ambrose Women for Social Justice Conference on Feb. 23.

Butler's keynote, "Framing a Racial Justice Foundation," will focus on uncovering and interrogating the system of racial inequality that impacts our country, lives, and internal processes of thinking and acting in the world. It will begin at 3:30 p.m. on Feb. 23, via WebEx. Following the one hour presentation, Butler will take questions from the audience. This event is free and open to the public.

Butler is president and founder of World Trust Educational Services Inc., an organization dedicated to racial justice and healing through film, curricula and programs that spark institutional, structural, and cultural change. She has produced five documentaries and her latest project, Healing Justice: Cultivating a World of Belonging, is igniting a national conversation about justice through the lens of restorative practices, accountability, and healing.

On Feb. 24, Butler will facilitate "Healing and Radical Imagination," an interactive learning lab designed to encourage open conversation and exploration of first steps to begin working towards healing wounds caused by racial injustice.

The workshop runs from 4-6 p.m. It is free and open to the public; however, it builds on the keynote address and as such assumes participation in the prior event.

Brittany Tullis, PhD, Associate Professor and Chair of the Modern Languages and Cultures Department and Director of the Women and Gender Studies program, said widespread racial injustice and continued violence and murder stemming from deeply ingrained, systemic racism is perhaps the greatest crisis of our time. "It is also one that we can – and must – all work towards changing," she said.

"This requires first understanding and acknowledging the multiple forms of racial injustice that have characterized our nation from its very beginnings. Only after this first step has been thoroughly undertaken can the work of healing and restorative justice begin. These are the guiding principles of Dr. Butler's work and the kind of justice-based activism that led us to invite her to give this talk and facilitate this interactive learning lab at St. Ambrose," she said.

Both AWSJ events are part of the St. Ambrose University College of Arts and Sciences 2020-21 Academic Theme, The Changing Climates: From Rising Seas to Societal Needs. The conference is sponsored by Ambrose Women for Social Justice, the Baecke Endowment for the Humanities, and the Rev. Joseph E. Kokjohn Endowment for Catholic Peace and Justice.