Elders Reflect on Issues of Racism and Violence

“How can we heal communities torn apart by racism and violence?” asked author and activist Naomi Tutu, this year’s moderator for the annual Gathering of Elders, which closed out the 21st Annual National Service-Learning Conference on March 27 in San Jose, Calif. In response, elders Carol Bellamy, Milton Cambre, Reuven Gal, Mary Syfax Noble, and Leland Little Dog reflected with youth in a cross-generational exchange on community healing.

Drawing on their personal experiences, the elders answered from wide-ranging perspectives. Cambre, the voice for LaBranche Wetlands on Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans for 40 years, said that we are a country with many problems and that “we need to work together for the common good.” This idea was echoed by Bellamy, the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Education for All/Fast Track Initiative and former Executive Director for UNICEF. Bellamy said that we are torn apart by fear of differences and that we need to engage young people much more. She stressed the importance of both education and sports in creating tolerance, as well as the importance of reaching young women with programs and education.

Gal, a former head of Israel’s Civilian Service Authority who has also worked extensively on conflict resolution and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, shared a story of Israeli and Palestinian parents who came together after both their sons had died in an act of terrorism. Noble, a former public school teacher and principal, reflected on her first teaching job and how school administrators were wary of putting an African American teacher in a classroom of all white students. She emphasized the importance of coming together and opening up to new ideas. Little Dog, speaking from his Lakota tradition, called for an ending of racism through prayer.

Youth from the audience then took to the microphones, sparking dialogue about the sources of youth violence, the role of elders in ending violence, and finding the courage to become leaders. All of the elders emphasized how important it is that youth contribute to addressing issues of violence and racism. Noble said, “We assume that leaders are leaders because of their titles. Maybe we need to lead from below.”