Hope in the Cities

For over two decades Hope in the Cities has helped transform Richmond, VA, from a symbol of racial division to a model for reconciliation. Through acknowledgement of history, honest conversation and skills building workshops, the experiential learning offered by Hope in the Cities builds capacity for community leaders.

A sustained citizen-led effort has resulted in a network of leaders in non-profit and business sectors, local government, media and education. It engages people across the political spectrum and of all cultural and religious backgrounds.

Hope in the Cities has developed a proven process for change that incorporates three vital steps:

Honest conversation: creating models of sustained community dialogue involving all sectors and leading to new and unexpected partnerships
Personal responsibility: moving beyond blame and personal pain to constructive action
Acts of acknowledgement and reconciliation: breaking cycles of guilt or anger to reach understanding and healing

Hope in the Cities offers Richmond as a center for community trustbuilding where processes for trustbuilding, reconciliation, and community change are regularly learned and effectively practiced.

Celebrating Emancipation- walking through history

Hope in the Cities and the Richmond Slave Trail Commission invite you to join in marking the 20^thanniversary of the first Unity Walk that in 1993 took Richmonders to sites of previously unacknowledged history as part of the Healing the Heart of America conference.

When: Tuesday, June 18, 2013, - 6:30 pm

Where: Richmond's Historic Slave tral

Parking and gathering point for the walk is:
Lumpkin's Slave Jail
Main Street Station, E Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Map

Please gather at 6:00 pm. From there participants will be taken to Ancarrows Landing/ Manchester Slave Dock on the south side of the river by bus. The walk will return you to your car parked at Lumpkin's Slave Jail.

If you are going directly to Ancarrows Landing/ Manchester Slave Dock take 95 South over the James River. Take exit 73 for Maury Street toward Commerce Road. Turn right on Maury Street and continue onto Brander Street. Follow to the end. The Ancarrows landing entrance to the James River Park is on your left. Once in the park turn left to the trail head. Map

Note: If you are parked at Ancarrows Landing you will need to have your own method for returning to your car from Lumpkin's Slave Jail where the walk will end.

Read Rob Corcoran's op-ed "Richmond's Healing Spirit Spreads" in the Richmond Times-Dispatch to learn more.

Emancipation and Reconciliation

The Richmond Slave Trail Commission and Hope in the Cities invite you to hear

Lynne M. Jackson,
Great-great granddaughter of Dred and Harriet Scott of the Dred Scott Decision, 1857. President & Founder of The Dred Scott Heritage Foundation.

When: Wednesday, June 19, 7:00 pm

Where: Coburn Hall, Virginia Union University Map

These two events are free and open to the public. For more information call 804 358 1764 or email

Current projects

Unpacking the Census: the new realities of race, class, and jurisdiction. Addressing the issues of economic inclusion, this multimedia presentation on poverty in the Richmond, VA, region is moving a community from awareness to action. For more information and to schedule a presentation.
Metropolitan Richmond Day 2013: November 8, 12:00 – 2:00 pm, Omni hotel, Richmond, VA. This annual event convenes leaders from the public and private sectors to discuss key regional issues, and to encourage partnership. Keynote speaker: Dr. Gail Christopher, vice president for program strategies at the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. For more information and to register.
Training opportunities – take advantage of upcoming training opportunities or schedule a program for your community. For more information and to register.

News

Changing hearts and minds

More than 70 Americans from 12 states are expected to attend the Healing History: Overcoming Racism, Seeking Equity, Building Community conference in Caux, Switzerland. The US group will exchange experiences with many others from regions across the globe where unhealed racial history and discrimination are obstacles to building healthy communities.

Friday, June 14, 2013

The value of reconciliation

Tornadoes touching down in nearby neighborhoods did not deter participants in the John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation's fourth annual national symposium in Tulsa, Oklahoma. "Race and poverty is the civil rights issue, the reconciliation issue, the justice challenge of the twenty-first century," said Peter Edelman in his keynote address.

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Making democracy real

As our taxi pulled up at dawn and the sun surfaced from behind the tablelands, the wash of brilliant fuchsia bougainvillea and clear red geraniums welcomed us as we were serenaded by raucous birds and squabbling monkeys. After 40+ hours of travel my husband Ralph and I had arrived at Asia Plateau, India, to attend the 2nd Making Democracy Real conference.

Friday, March 8, 2013

Hope in the Cities builds trust through honest conversation on race, reconciliation, and responsibility.

The vision is the creation of just and inclusive communities.

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The purpose:

Community Awareness - A focus on economic inclusion and the new realities of race, economics, and jurisdiction. A public process to educate citizens and to mobilize community support for action.

Communty Capacity - An experiential training curriculum that increases the capacity of community leaders to overcome legacies of racial history and to sustain initiatives for reconciliation and equity.

Community Vision - An anual Metropolitan Richmond Day forum convening leaders from the puublic and private sectors of the Richmond region to discuss key issues, engage in dialogue and build partnership.

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