After all these posts, its time to present a concrete plan to implement the NewCO (New Conscientious Objector). What would that actually look like? Following is a proposed plan.
Category: Decolonial
NewCO slides and storybook
I plan to discuss this more thoroughly soon, but if you are wondering how you can become a NewCO, you become a NewCO as soon as you begin to RESHAPE your thinking about the state of the world and what we can do. It is a positive concept and a way to have hope again.
A unifying theme for justice
I am excited about the NewCO (New Conscientious Objector) idea because it offers hope in these increasingly dystopian times. NewCO recognizes that we are entrapped in systems of injustice, and is a vision for a just path forward for us all, together, mutually.
A fork in the road
I urge Quakers and others of conscience to object to Christian, colonial capitalism, and build Beloved communities based upon Mutual Aid, LANDBACK, and the replacement of police and prisons with ways to promote community safety instead.
We have met the enemy and he is us
I need to confront the concept of ‘Whiteness” from the beginning of this journey. From the time white settlers first arrived in this land, they brought with them their culture of supremacy and dominance over the original people. Supported by the Doctrine of Discovery, in which the Church blessed the theft of Indigenous lands. Colonialism is embedded in White society in this country. White people, including myself, must start our decolonial journey here. You cannot work for decolonization until you deal with your Whiteness.
Decolonial Path for Quakers 12 – Our other colonial projects
Does the world make sense to you? As economic and political systems collapse around us, isn’t this time for Quakers to speak out? Isn’t this the time to replace unjust systems with those that serve justice, i.e., LANDBACK, Mutual Aid, and the abolition of police and prisons?
A Discussion Guide: Will we change?
Discussion Guide based on Jeff Kisling’s blog post Decolonial Path for Quakers 11 – Will we change?. This guide is designed to help Quaker communities or other spiritually grounded groups reflect on the themes of decolonization, environmental witness, and systemic change.
Decolonial Path for Quakers 11 – Will we change?
If you believe, as I do, in the need for decolonization, the question becomes how do you change what is currently the status quo?
Decolonial Path for Quakers 10 – Sensemaking
Some Friends have come to the conclusion that we must "conscientiously object to and resist capitalism and white supremacy" just as we have historically conscientiously objected to military service. To live faithfully requires us to seek and build alternatives that are rooted in our spiritual principles. The antidote is LANDBACK, Mutual Aid, and Abolition.
Decolonial Path for Quakers 9 – Asking the right questions
It became clear that many of our queries make assumptions about the legitimacy and ongoing presence of our current systems of Christian colonial capitalist violence. I recently wrote about settler futurity, which is the idea that settler colonialism isn’t just about taking land in the present, but also about controlling the very idea of the future. It’s a way of thinking that presents the settler society as the only possible future—as a permanent and natural reality.