CHICAGO (January 23, 2004) - The Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office for Racial Justice today unveiled an anti-racism strategic plan that is a direct response to Cardinal George’s pastoral letter of 2001, “Dwell In My Love,” challenging Catholics to understand the nature of institutional racism and to work to eliminate it. This announcement comes at the end of a week dedicated to raising awareness of racial injustices, which will culminate in Sunday commemorations of the Cardinal’s pastoral letter. The plan is the result of the efforts of the “Dwell In My Love” anti-racism implementation team.

The team, appointed by Cardinal George in 2002 to address racism within parishes, schools and archdiocesan agencies, represents two major service areas of the Archdiocese: the Pastoral Center (the central administration of the Archdiocese) and the Office of Catholic Schools (elementary and secondary school administrators, principals, teachers and staff). The third and last component to be added is the parishes.

“The objective of the anti-racism plan, which has five-year goals and two-year objectives,” said Sr. Anita Baird, DHM, Director of the Office for Racial Justice, “is to dismantle racism and build relationships within our institutions that are socially just and then to carry that pattern into the larger society where we all dwell in God’s love.” New strategies will be incorporated into the plan to address new issues as they emerge.

Sr. Anita noted that this year, in addition to celebrating “Dwell In My Love” Sunday with special homilies and prayers, parishes and schools received informational packets in advance of Racial Justice Week to assist parishes and school communities to raise awareness of injustices – particularly racial and ethnic injustices.

“Raising the consciousness of school and parish communities now,” said Sr. Anita, “will facilitate implementation of the strategic plan.” That’s primarily because the main component of the plan is a series of seminars and training sessions designed to assist participants in recognizing institutional racism and building anti-racism leadership models that will influence both church and societal institutions.
Crossroads Ministry, an interfaith and community-based anti-racism training organization headquartered in Chicago, and trainers from the Implementation Team will conduct the training. The seminars, which began the first week of January, are conducted on two levels – one-day, introductory seminars and two and one-half day intensive training for those who want to develop a deeper analysis of racism and work to dismantle racism in its three manifested forms: individual, institutional and cultural.

Esther Hicks, co-chairperson with Sr. Anita and the Director of Catholic School Identity and Mission, will oversee the plan’s implementation in the Catholic schools of the Archdiocese.

“We must first understand, accept and have a shared view of how and where racism exists in institutions, Hicks said. “Only then can we see clearly how society is affected and then begin to change institutions that support racism.”
“Facing and eliminating racism is a work of faith,” says Cardinal George,
”because conversion of the heart is the work of God’s grace.” “I am grateful for the work of the anti-racism implementation team and share their hope that these efforts will one day make it possible for us to live in an anti-racist and just society.”
The plan’s five immediate goals start with training Pastoral Center and school personnel and eventually parishioners to understand, own and affirm an analysis of systemic racism and to equip them with the tools needed to begin to formalize an anti-racist identity. The other goals flow from the first, namely, that the Archdiocese of Chicago will hold a common understanding of anti-racism teachings; generate a new climate of openness and trust that will result in more cooperative efforts; establish shared leadership as a model and expand the anti racism teams for full implementation of the Strategic Plan.

This level of systemic change will take decades to fully address, and so the full implementation of the strategic plan is projected to take 20-30 years.
“The last paragraph of the Vision Statement of the Strategic Plan more than sums up this enormous task,” says Sr. Anita. That portion states, “We are committed to the ongoing dynamic and faith-centered struggle to dismantle racism and construct socially just patterns of relationships within our ecclesiastical institutions as we strive to build a society that dwells together in God’s unconditional and universal love.”