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description=UBUNTU   UBUNTU is Women of Color and Survivor-led. This means that we emphasize people most affected by sexual violence as public representatives of the group (i.e., media, mobilizations, public meetings, events, etc.), and in the group’s internal structure and processes (membership/composition, roles, and decision-making). This is our way of reclaiming power.  The name UBUNTU…;

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Text of the page (random words):
and we work persistently to bring that vision into being we recognize the roots of sexual violence to be pervasive and deep and therefore recognize our work to be a steady long term effort to remove these roots from our societies and from within our own hearts 2 although our work is long term it is also urgent and immediate we see providing immediate support for individual survivors and longer term social transformation as interrelated and mutually strengthening types of work to resist we must heal to heal we must resist 3 survivors will create the path forward in resisting violence homophobia transphobia racism sexism and capitalism survivors of oppression have the power to generate the vision for all of us to follow survivors have a right to decide how their safety will be protected within this group that includes an agreement that disclosures of responsibility for acts of sexual violence will not occur within general meetings we work to keep the voices of survivors of sexual violence women of color young people and lesbian gay bisexual queer and transgender people central we are not waiting for leaders we are each of us leaders and we are stepping up to the charge of building a world without sexual violence 4 sexual violence occurs in a culture sick with white supremacy and racism heterosexism and homophobia patriarchy sexism and transphobia and poverty and capitalism these systems all interact and overlap to create a culture of violence that must be changed we must dismantle these systems and work to prevent violence if we hope to end it 5 sexual violence is never the responsibility of the survivor our culture blames survivors of sexual assault for alcohol and drug use for their occupations their moral choices their decision making and the intensity of their struggle in the moment of their assault we reject these assertions sexual violence is always the responsibility of the person who committed the violence 6 sexual violence happens every day in every community women are its primary targets but transgender people and men experience rampant sexual violence worldwide mostly at the hands of non trans men sexual violence is perpetuated by silence we will name sexual violence for what it is whatever the identities of those who commit such acts and the survivors of them we will not be silent 7 real justice comes through healthy communities wherein members are accountable to one another and take one another seriously not through police and prisons many of the injuries that accompany perpetuate foster or stop just short of what is legally defined as sexual assault are not deemed as injuries in the eyes of the legal system of the united states these injuries include psychological and emotional damages to survivors to the survivors of all trauma to the communities of which survivors are a part and fear and intimidation stemming from even the threat of violence the legal system is ill prepared to work for actual justice and it will never be an institution that can promote healing we believe justice can only come about when people are held accountable to the community not just to the letter of the law while we support survivors in seeking assistance and legal remedy through the court system if they desire to do so our work will not wait on or be silenced by legal processes 8 we will fight for accountability for those who have committed acts of sexual violence and or coercion reparations to survivors and their communities and a renewed focus on creating spaces for healing and the prevention of racial and sexual violence a sustaining transformative love is always at the center of our work who we are purpose goals ubuntu was born in the aftermath of the march 13 2006 rape of a durham nc black woman by members of the duke university lacrosse team ubuntu is a women of color and survivor led coalition of individuals and organizational representatives we prioritize the voices analyses and needs of women of color and survivors of sexual violence in both our internal structure and our external work we are women men and people who do not fit into the gender binary we are non trans and trans we are people of color multi racial and white we come from throughout the triangle area and have roots both within and outside of the united states we are sex workers students and community members we are workers we are lesbian gay bisexual two spirit and questioning we are queer and straight we are young old and in between we come from a broad range of economic geographic spiritual and political experiences backgrounds and perspectives organizing structure how we organize our organizing structure is comprised of a general body and working groups we use principles of agreement to guide our work general body the general body meets twice each month in durham the general meetings are where decisions affecting the entire group are made working groups provide report backs on their work and the group participates in internal political education 1 and healing processes as part of this transformative community we will provide childcare at general body meetings working groups working groups are open to all members and dedicated to a focused topic working groups meet independent of the general body design their own activities and plans in accord with the principles of agreement and report back at general meetings adding or deleting a working group like other decisions happens through the consensus of the general body members can add or remove working groups on an as needed basis to initiate a working group members will submit a proposal to the general body that identifies the need goals objectives and point people of the suggested working group working groups can be removed if the working group has 1 met its goals and objectives 2 no longer serves a need or 3 does not indicate that it has the capacity to function effectively currently ubuntu includes the following working groups ø artistic response ø communications ø education ø fundraising ø media ø sustainability point people each working group will have 1 2 rotating point people points at least 1 of who should be a woman of color and or survivor of sexual violence points ensure accountability and occupy a leadership role though they are not the leaders of the working group points are responsible for organizing the working group meetings coordinating communication among group members and serve as a liaison between the general body and the working group working groups will choose their own points in accord with the principles of agreement to ensure collective leadership points will rotate quarterly feb may aug nov prior to the 1 st general meeting of the month before rotating points will distribute an updated toolkit including notes and other materials relevant to the working group to new points to encourage effective leadership points will participate in a leadership check in every 2 weeks to share information challenges victories etc as related to their working group point people will relay notes from the check in with their working group to ensure transparency additionally points will receive a toolkit designed by the sustainability working group to assist them with facilitation and recordkeeping membership members of ubuntu must agree to the purpose and goals of the coalition and its principles of agreement individuals and organizational representatives become members of ubuntu by attending at least 3 general body meetings and actively participating in a working group people who have yet to participate in a working group cannot participate in general body decisions however they are welcome to give their input in discussions about proposals presented for decision making in accord with the purpose goals and principles of agreement members can represent ubuntu in public forums accountability ubuntu is accountable to our principles of agreement and women of color survivors and their communities our principles of agreement are a method of identifying and expressing shared values and help hold us accountable ubuntu s principles of agreement are a political measuring stick and help us determine if we are working toward our collective vision we strive to have committed and authentic relationships rooted in trust and respect our practice will demonstrate our vision ubuntu embraces the following guidelines for accountability ø community investment commitment to the past present and future of the community ø ongoing democratic dialogue shared power and decision making and an appreciation for difference within the group ø systemic analyses of oppression evolving and inclusive critical analyses ø agreed upon principles and practices integrating histories and cultures of the group ø clear boundaries and roles stated and respected limitations rotating leadership ø vision and hope desire for liberation belief that fundamental social change is possible working groups will define its members accountability based upon the needs and demands of the group in addition to the principles of agreement and women of color survivors and their communities decision making ubuntu embraces a modified consensus decision making process also known as consensus minus one this is a form of consensus that prevents 1 person from blocking the group s overall agreement modified consensus is a safety valve to ensure that both women of color and survivors voices analyses and needs are prioritized modified consensus ubuntu will use a modified consensus process that requires at least 3 people to block the group s decision if a decision is not blocked and people have strong feelings about the decision they are encouraged to state document their reservations in writing or verbally using a consensus driven decision making process will also minimize any one body from taking control of the group consensus requires that decisions must be agreed upon by everyone in the group and if used properly does not privilege any individual or organization it does not matter how many people agree with a decision the key is how many people strongly disagree while consensus can be difficult and time consuming it is a democratic and inclusive approach to making decisions and provides an opportunity for new ideas to come to the surface consensus also increases individual investment in the group consensus process in general meetings points from the working groups will give voice to the concerns and needs expressed by their group the points will not make decisions on behalf of their group but will simply serve as the voice of the group relaying feedback to the full body in order for decisions to be made at least 2 3rds of the general body must be present quorum the general body should receive at least 1 week advance notice about proposals for major decisions if people cannot attend a meeting and want to express their concerns about a proposal they can give their feedback to the point of their work group or put them in writing to the general body the consensus decision making process will adhere to the following progression 1 background context 2 discussion 3 presentation of proposal 4 discussion of proposal 5 friendly amendments 6 test for consensus 7 consensus reached 8 decision implemented end of document 1 political education is an internal process for examining social economic and political issues problems share this share on facebook opens in new window facebook share on x opens in new window x one response 16 01 2007 thandisizwe chimurenga 23 20 23 i was sickened and horrified watching out in the open on cnn tonight it has become increasing clear that durham district attorney mike nifong s handling of this case has been incompetent at best and a deliberate sabotage at worst the most sickening aspect however was cnn and zahn s use of jesse lee peterson as a credible spokesman on this issue he is loved and funded by right wing conservatives because his only purpose in life is to attack black people and say the things that these creeps fear they cannot this man has nothing but contempt for the members of his own race and he has even less of that for black women trotting him out to attack the duke accuser s humanity on national television actually flying him into durham north carolina for him to attack black leadership he disagrees with under the cover of attacking this sistah s humanity is beyond sickening she wasn t even the issue she was his excuse you all continue to stay and stand strong you are not alone you have friends and allies in many places peace reply leave a comment cancel reply δ a mother a student a dancer a human a survivor i am that woman end rape now in durham north carolina usa community members are breaking the silence about sexual assault and racist violence as part of a long struggle against racism classism sexism and all forms of oppression be there blogs we read a book without a cover a womyn s ecdysis blackamazon carnival against sexual violence cure this fabulosa mujer falling off my pedestal fight imperialism stand together raleigh having read the fine print hermana resist i ll rise survival blog justice 4 two sisters newblackman no snow here postsecret radical women of color think tank sankofa meets the future sex in the public square slant truth taking place ideas for the masses taking steps women of color blog zapagringo link love a girl like me short film no on sale now 50 under 30 community writing intensive day of truthtelling durham 4 28 07 escaping hades a rape and sexual abuse survivor s site incite international union of sex workers love letters north carolina coalition against sexual assault our heart s world remembering our dead sex worker outreach project sistersong swop east the survivor project workers world online xy men masculinities and gender politics sounds like ubuntu dasan ahanu mosadi music ubuntu member blogs brokenbeautiful press butterfly s voice day of truth telling flight school a black freedom project furious flowering hay que luchar impulsive acts the art of community kitchen table little black book loving learning healing mamashieroglyphics manju s report from highlander mississippi appendectomy no body move photosynthetic poetics problematic serenity s o n g shuck n jive notes spirithouse sustaining transformative love sweating it talitha rise the biolog the primary contradiction ubuntu on myspace pages a call to action a litany for survival a statement about sex work sex workers and sexual assault about ubuntu love art myths about sexual assault rape myths not even a little funny roots and wings the combahee river collective statement supporting a survivor of sexual assault the survivor project intersex and trans survivors of sexual and domestic violence categories about hip hop duke lacrosse rape case feminism gender inspiration local events love misogyny racism rape rape culture resistance sex workers sexual assault survivors sustain transform ubuntu writes 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