Anti-racism

CASCADIA GROVE STATEMENT ON RACIAL EQUITY

Cascadia Grove, ADF, welcomes people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds. We affirm that we are an anti-racist organization. To this end, we acknowledge the following as fact: 

1. We recognize that because the vast majority of the current makeup of our Grove is white, we benefit from privilege afforded us by the society in which we live. We recognize also that the majority of the international ADF community is also white, and benefits from that same privilege.
2. We recognize that the neo-Pagan movement cannot be detached from the white supremacy of our larger culture and is therefore not immune to its influence. We recognize the wrongful appropriation of our symbols and the historical harboring of racists in our midst. We further recognize that some of those who honor European gods and spirits have been, and continue to be, perpetrators of racist violence; we reject them and their beliefs.
3. Even as we welcome the surge of awareness regarding the unjust and systemic persecution of our BIPOC neighbors and friends, including historic participation both locally and nationally in Black Lives Matter protests decrying police violence, we recognize that the fight against systemic racism is ongoing.
4. We recognize it is the responsibility of every Member and Friend of the Grove to do what we are able to combat both the conscious and unconscious bias that exists in us and around us. We also recognize that there have always been many ways to participate in anti-racist efforts, but we have not always taken those opportunities in the past. We resolve to correct this in our current and future efforts.

Our gods and spirits are inclusive and celebrate diversity, and they challenge us daily to do the good work of combating racism both in our community and in ourselves. We are therefore committed to educating ourselves about our biases, conscious and unconscious, and to work to overcome them. As a grove, we will continue to have ongoing discussions about where we could do better, and how we can contribute to our BIPOC community, regardless of whether they share our faith. We will continue to commit our time, talent, prayers, wealth, and service to support organizations that promote racial justice.

We do not welcome those who affiliate with racist organizations or who espouse racist views. If we learn that an attendee of a ritual or event is in violation of these policies, they will be removed from the ritual or event, and if they are a member they may have their membership revoked. Our commitment to being an anti-racist church begins with us, and should and will be reflected in the worship, lifestyle, and culture of our grove.