About us

Guilford Anti-Racism Alliance (GARA) is an alliance of individuals in the Triad region who do anti-racist work on some level in their personal or professional lives. Most GARA members have participated in one or more undoing racism/anti-racist training workshops, and GARA was originally established by people who wanted to continue discussions of anti-racism beyond the workshop experience. GARA offers collaborative spaces to share information, process experiences, and organize community efforts towards anti-racism.

HOW WE DEFINE RACISM/ANTI-RACISM
GARA members share a structural, systemic perspective on racism. Meaning that, when we look at racial inequalities in areas of life such as employment, housing, education, politics, and the criminal justice system, generally we see that historically and today white Americans have significantly higher outcomes than people of color and that privileges accrue to whites and disadvantages accrue to people of color. GARA is focused on working to counteract these societal patterns and to address how they play out in our own community. In other words, we do not define racism as merely an issue of racial animosities, or “hard feelings,” between people of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. That being said, we do explore our own feelings associated with our racial experiences, and we generally use the supportive space of either the people of color caucus or the white caucus to do so.

CAUCUSING
We are a multiracial group whose members often meet separately with either the white caucus or the people of color caucus. (We also meet altogether once per month.) Why do we use a caucus structure? We caucus because we believe that, due to the racial legacy of our society, there is merit to creating both separate and shared spaces for discussing racial issues. The caucuses enable people a safe space to challenge and think through individual, institutional, and cultural racism. The caucus structure also helps us develop sustaining networks so that we may continue doing the work of anti-racism. The GARA caucuses operate according to principles of mutual accountability and frequent communication so that the caucuses are never really separate – we strive to always support each other in our individual and shared work towards anti-racism.

WE WELCOME NEW MEMBERS
Some members of GARA have known each other and have worked together for many years, but we are by no means a closed group. We are now on meetup because we want to help prospective new members find us! Please read over these descriptions and check out our calendar to select a meetup to attend:

1. People of Color Caucus: a group of anti-racist organizers and community members whose purpose is to deepen our understanding of the impact of race in our personal and professional lives. The caucus provides a safe environment for people of color to share information, feelings, and experiences regarding race and racism. We meet the 2nd Wednesday of each month from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

2. White Caucus: a group of white people who identify as anti-racist activists and allies who also meet once a month to learn about racism and strategize about the impact of race in our personal and professional lives. We are committed to offering each other support and challenges as we explore strategies for enacting anti-racist practice. We meet for a potluck supper the Sunday after the 2nd Wednesday of the month at 6:00 p.m.

3. The Joint Caucus: GARA’s “umbrella” group – a multiracial, multiethnic group that encompasses all members of the two caucuses. We meet once a month to share news from each caucus, discuss pertinent issues in the community related to racial inequality and racism, and collaborate on projects to address racial and ethnic inequities in our institutions, organizations and communities. Meetings are on the 4th Wednesday of each month at 5:30 p.m.