Lakeland Town Hall: “Restorative Action: What and How?”
College Park, MD, May 15, 2024 – The Braxton Institute for Sustainability, Resiliency and Joy, together with the Lakeland Restorative Justice Commission of the City of College Park, Maryland co-hosted a town hall event, “Restorative Action: What and How?” on Saturday, May 18th, from 4:00-6:00 pm at Embry AME Church in College Park, MD.
The Lakeland Town Hall featured speakers addressing the historic, international, and national contexts for reparative action, as well as models and case studies for achieving reparative justice at the local level. This event was the capstone of a two day convening that included invitational community strategy sessions and a workshop in restorative practices for collective healing from collective trauma for those impacted by harm. The town hall was attended not only by Lakelanders, but by College Park City Council members, at least one Prince George’s County Commissioner, and members of the Lakeland Restorative Justice Commission, including one former mayor.
Nkechi Taifa, Esq., movement leader and author of Reparations On Fire, How and Why it’s Spreading Across America, shared insights from her recent testimony before the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Rev. Dale Snyder of Bethel AME Church in Pittsburgh discussed how his church successfully reclaimed land seized by eminent domain. Corey Shaw of Empower DC spoke on his organizing efforts for reparations in the District of Columbia communities of Barry Farm and Chevy Chase. Daniel Biss, Mayor of Evanston, Illinois – a municipality that has achieved some measure of reparative justice – sent a recorded message of encouragement.
The Lakeland Town Hall was moderated by Rev. Dwight Cokely of Embry AME Church, with a response from Dr. Joanne M. Braxton, Professor Emeritus at William & Mary and President of the Board of the Braxton Institute for Sustainability, Resiliency and Joy. Braxton is also a legacy Lakelander and the great granddaughter of John C. Johnson, the superintendent of Lakeland’s first school.
Rev. Cokely commented: “The presenters spoke truth to power and the fact that African American communities have been decimated after building strong families, institutions, businesses and a culture that promotes African American heritage. I pray we go forward in this pursuit for restorative justice and reparations so that this community can honor their ancestors by restoring what was lost.”
Dr. Braxton offered a note of reflection and a call to action: “Lakeland was our Beloved Community, a Healthy Urban Habitat where our core values were served and enriched: Love for family, Care and Trust among Neighbors, Safety and Nurture for all our Children, Respect and Loving Support for our Elders, Self-Empowerment and Community Building through sharing our skills and resources for the common good, Spiritual and Moral foundations—taught and embodied. We had the five pillars of a healthy Urban Community: adequate housing, ample indoor and outdoor gathering spaces, culturally appropriate educational institutions, easy access to public transportation connecting us to the larger metro areas, close connections to nature epitomized by our lake and food-producing gardens and animals. This can and must be restored; all of the parties responsible for the harm and destruction caused by what we now see as ‘planned shrinkage’ and/or ‘dispossession by design’ must be called into account and invited into the process of repair. Above all, future harm to what is left of Lakeland must be prevented. Those responsible for past harm must step up to break the cycle of slow violence that is still in play.”
About the Braxton Institute for Sustainability, Resiliency and Joy!
The Braxton Institute fosters physical, emotional, and spiritual sanctuary for those building a more just, joyful and sustainable world. “In the midst of a world filled with tragedy and beauty,” we work with our partners to co-create collective strategies to repair and heal harms and traumas of historically oppressed communities and to lift up legacies of resistance and joy. On Tuesday, January 23, 2024, the Restorative Justice Commission of the City of College Park formally acknowledged its collaborations with the Braxton Institute in the support of Black lives and especially the historically Black community of Lakeland, Dr. Braxton’s hometown, which was
decimated by eminent domain and by policies of planned shrinkage that benefitted the City of College Park, the University of Maryland, the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission, and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. With support from our partner, the Decolonizing Wealth Project, the Braxton Institute has lifted the work of the commission and the voice of the community. Standing on the shoulders of those who went before us, we are building consensus and momentum by offering models of healing justice and repair and by moving more Lakelanders to the center of a process that is increasingly worthy of community respect and trust. We are honored to be a part of this necessary work. And we are grateful to the Decolonizing Wealth Project for making it possible. Read more here.
#case4reparations #decolonizingwealth #reparations4lakelandnow #braxtoninstitute
The full video of the City Council’s proclamation acknowledging past injustices can be viewed here.
Contact
Rev. Joanne M. Braxton, PhD, President of the Board
jbraxton@braxtoninstitute.org