It was an honor to include the staff and board of John R. Oishei Foundation among Open Buffalo's 2024 Race, Power, and Privilege (RPP) trainees. In its July "O Newsletter," JROF relayed its RPP training experience. We commend the foundation for undertaking the difficult and multidimensional work of anti-racism and for telling their stakeholders all about it. See what they had to say below.
We are proud to share that the Oishei Foundation staff and board members recently began the transformative Race, Power, Privilege (RPP) training with Open Buffalo. As we first highlighted in April’s O Newsletter, this initiative is part of our ongoing Learning & Engagement work aimed at fostering a more equitable and just community.
The RPP training dives deep into the issues of structural inequality, racial formations, and systems of power in our complex, pluralistic world. As an anti-racism assessment and training program, RPP provides an in-depth understanding of the history of race and institutionalized racism. Through this comprehensive process, our team is developing essential tools to understand and address both internal and external racial oppression.
An integral part of the RPP process includes conducting a racial equity audit and formulating an organizational improvement plan to ensure lasting impact. Our commitment to this training underscores our dedication to addressing and overcoming the systemic challenges that perpetuate inequality.
Dr. Kush K. Bhardwaj, Director of Racial Equity and Social Justice for Open Buffalo, emphasized the importance of this work: “It helps institutions and agencies see where they are on the needle of social justice and move it. It's not just enough to change your Facebook status or put a sign in your lawn. It’s about doing the critical and important work to understand how racism, how privilege, operate.”
This training is a significant step towards helping businesses and institutions, including our own, develop anti-racist frameworks and practices. We believe that through such dedicated efforts, we can make informed, collective decisions that benefit not only our immediate community on the East Side, but the entire region.
We are committed to continuous learning and action to create a more inclusive environment. This training is just one of many initiatives we are undertaking to advance equity and justice within our organization and beyond.
To learn more about the Race, Power, Privilege process and to find out if this training is right for organization, please contact Open Buffalo.