A Blog from the Community Relations Committee
Second in the Series of CRC Workshops: Dealing with Conflict
Date: 09/25/2021 (Sat.) Time: 2:30pm – 5:30pm EDT
When someone in your family, circle of friends, or workplace says something you disagree with or takes a position contrary to yours, do you respond by saying, “I completely disagree with that!” and then the verbal fisticuffs start? Are you looking for a way to have a more civil and productive conversation? Well, look no more. The Community Relations Committee (CRC) is preparing our next workshop–on Resolving Conflicts–to implement the Community Relations Pact.
This session will be led by WES members Jo London and Mary Smith. Leaning heavily upon the National Coalition Building Institute (NCBI) Controversial Issues process, we will seek to learn some key coalition-building skills. Learn both to listen to concerns underneath controversial issues and to move such issues forward by reframing the conversation in a way that builds bridges.
It will involve choosing an issue about which the workshop participants disagree, feel strongly, and are excited to examine with the group. The group will begin by generating a list of possible issues. After the group narrows the list down to two or three, you will try to convince others to choose the issue you want to discuss. You will do this by presenting some arguments on each side so that the person you are trying to convince won’t know which side you’re on. Finally, once the group has chosen one issue to discuss, there will be instruction, a demonstration by a volunteer for each side of the issue, coaching, and group involvement all along the way.
It would help us if you would tell us of issues at WES that fit this description: issues that WES members disagree on and feel strongly about, and that you would like to examine. If you are aware of such issues, please send them to all of us at the CRC at CRC@ethicalsociety.org. To register, click here. If we are far enough in our reopening plan, we hope to have it in person. We look forward to hearing from you!!
The CRC: Jo London, Chair; Randy Myers; Laura Tyler; Emily Newman; Lyn Cox, Interim Senior Leader and Staff Adviser