Racial justice trainings crucial to defending our communities

In his campaign, President Donald Trump used Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as a racist dog whistle to appeal to his base. On the day of his inauguration he called for the elimination of all DEI programs within the federal government. Many corporations have decided to follow suit.

In moments of backlash, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by setbacks and threats to the principles of DEI, a centerpiece of the Shriver Center’s training programs. Aysa Gray, the Shriver Center’s racial and economic justice trainer, says it’s times like these that require advocates to understand the roots of structural racism and learn the tools to combat it. In a recent conversation, Aysa explains how the Shriver Center’s trainings meet the moment.

Tell us why you got into this work.

Racial justice is in my family’s DNA. My great-grandfather was a Georgia sharecropper during Reconstruction. Sharecropping was an incredibly exploitive system that’s often referred to as slavery under another name because it upheld the same racial and power dynamics.

One day, my great-grandpa’s white landlord stopped paying him. He was fed up. Even though my great grandfather didn’t have the civil and housing rights protections we have today, he fought the landlord for his right to be paid appropriately. Eventually, he had to flee his lifelong home simply for defending himself. That story was passed on to me as a kid. I grew up knowing I had a hero in my own family, and I knew I needed to continue that fight.

What do the Shriver Center’s trainings offer that advocates can’t get anywhere else?

We provide a foundation in racial equity that they can bring to their work right out of the gate. We have a track record of doing this effectively because our curriculum was created by attorneys, scholars, organizers, and facilitators who understand what our participants need to work effectively as legal advocates. Another unique asset we offer is access to our networks. I’m thinking specifically of the Racial Justice Institute Network, which is for graduates of the Racial Justice Institute, the most comprehensive training program offered by the Shriver Center. When you graduate from RJI, we connect you to a growing group of alumni from across the country who share the same values. It’s a great resource for collaboration and building coalitions around shared campaigns. Also, my team is in regular contact with attorneys who practice civil rights, housing, and labor law. That allows us to provide trainees with the latest information and tactics.

What do you want graduates to walk away with?

It’s essential they walk away with an understanding of how to interpret disinformation and dispel mythologies. The rightwing idea that we don’t all need each other is just wrong. We need advocates to fight this harmful messaging with better messaging. Taking our classes, you should be able to point out dog whistle politics. A recent example was the Trump campaign’s false assertion that Haitians in an Ohio town were eating cats and dogs. They knew it was categorically false, but it was a way to stoke fear in immigrants and people of color. It’s an easy way to scapegoat people considered “other” to distract from people’s real economic problems.

Another thing our courses teach — which is so important — is the ability to apply these tools in the real world, both in their organizations and the communities they serve. To turn theory into practice, we have courses like Supervising for Quality & Impact, which teaches how to build inclusive leadership internally, and Community Lawyering, which gives advocates the tools to support frontline groups and drive successful action.

You’re relatively new to the Shriver Center. The first course you facilitated was Foundations for Racial Justice in January. What was that like?

It was really rewarding. Foundations for Racial Justice is our introduction to concepts like racialization. To be an effective advocate, you need to understand how racialized systems produce racialized outcomes.

This resonated with some of our housing folks, for example, who work on eviction and homelessness issues. We were able to examine why 40 percent of unhoused people are Black, when Black people comprise only 13 percent of Americans. Our tools gave them the context to build campaigns with a racial equity frame, which is necessary to address a problem so deeply rooted in the racialized system of housing.

What role can the Shriver Center’s trainings play in fighting the backlash we’re seeing at the federal level?

First of all, I don’t want to understate the severity of the threats we face. The assault on immigrants is sowing fear and uprooting thousands of lives. The potential cuts to the social safety net could devastate millions.

Personally, I think back to history to find my strength. I remember my great-grandfather, who fought white supremacy and capital exploitation head on. I think back to the feminist movement, the civil rights movement, the Chicano rights movement. Those were times when people had fewer protections than they do now.

To answer your question, through trainings we can learn about this history and ground our work in their example. We can share best practices and work together to determine what role lawyers have in this movement to resist the worst effects of the Trump administration. I think the answer also lies in using shared spaces like our trainings to do coalition building. It may sound simple but talking and drawing inspiration from one another is the first step toward creating the world we all deserve.

It’s a struggle to keep up with the news these days. How do the Shriver Center’s classes help advocates navigate these uncertain times?

Many civil rights advocates are at a loss about how to combat the widespread cuts and onslaught of executive orders. I’ve spoken with advocates who’ve said they struggled to map out a longer-term vision for this moment amidst the chaos. If we are swimming, where are we swimming towards? The Shriver Center’s training team has honed tools to help people understand the last five years since COVID. We teach advocates how to analyze problems like the proposed ban on DEI in schools and use their analysis to create smart, strategic campaigns for collaborative action. Our Racial Justice Institute workshop series offers tools for how to fight goliath if you are the legal David and create winnable campaigns. It allows teams to explore the issues they are facing, receive coaching from seasoned professionals, and gain feedback from peers in the field.

The current administration is following the blueprint of Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s former president accused of plotting a coup to return to power. The rightwing leader ushered in significant rollbacks for marginalized groups. He increased violence and environmental destruction. The key to stopping Bolsonaro was organized, strategic, collaborative work. Our trainings provide just that.

Visit our trainings page to learn more about our courses and 2025 schedule.