Clearly given the robust attendance from all parts of the city and region, there is a hunger for this sort of dialogue, racial reconciliation, and to be in community together. Participants explored pathways to close the racial wealth gap through more equitable mortgage and real estate practices, as well as through educational opportunities. Furthermore, the little known impact of redlining on Indigenous communities helped attendees recognize significant injustices in their communities that have been unacknowledged and that impact some of the most marginalized members of our urban communities. ShaDawn Battle, a Trotwood based faculty member at Xavier University, served as the keynote for the symposium. Her talk “Chicago Footwork: A lesson on language and reclaiming Black Humanity” showed the ways in which communities engage in bodily practices, such as footwork, as a mode of embodied resistance against the hypersegregation in urban communities.
What is perhaps most impactful about the event was the ability to have open and challenging dialogue, while at the same time framing ways to change policies and practices that have harmed Black, Brown, and Indigenous Daytonians. For example, out of the Thursday morning plenary session strategies were discussed for putting more resources and opportunities toward historically redlined neighborhoods that had experienced wealth and resource extraction. This would be one way to redress the legacy of redlining in our region.
The symposium highlighted the amazing work taking place in Dayton to advance social justice for all. While there is a lot of great action taking place, we know more work needs to be done, and it can’t be done in silos or in isolation. It can only be done in community.
Nancy McHugh is executive director of the University of Dayton Fitz Center for Leadership in Community
Leslie Picca is University of Dayton Roesch Chair in the Social Sciences
