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Join LRC & Dr. Anita Sanchez to talk about Forgiveness on December 5th
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The U.S. has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Between 1970-2005 the U.S. population grew by 44% while the prison population grew by a staggering 700%. People of color represent over 60% of state prison populations. Multiple studies of these racial disparities identify three recurrent explanations: policies and practices that drive disparity; the role of bias and stereotypes in decision-making; and structural disadvantages in communities of color which are associated with high rates of offending and arrest. As a result, Black men are 6 times more likely to be imprisoned than white men and more than twice as likely to be imprisoned than Hispanic men. The Sentencing Project writes that “African Americans are more likely than white Americans to be arrested; once arrested, they are more likely to be convicted; and once convicted, they are more likely to face stiff sentences.” These statistics paint a bleak picture independent of potential disagreements about which systemic factors contribute to them and why. Is this what we want for our country? Can we do better?
Living Room Conversations offers a simple, sociable and structured way to practice communicating across differences while building understanding and relationships. Typically, 4-6 people meet in person or by video call for about 90 minutes to listen to and be heard by others on one of our nearly 100 topics. Rather than debating or convincing others, we take turns talking to share, learn, and be curious. No preparation is required, though background links with balanced views are available on some topic pages online. Anyone can host using these italicized instructions. Hosts also participate.
Share your name, where you live, what drew you here, and if this is your first conversation.
These will set the tone of our conversation; participants may volunteer to take turns reading them aloud. (Click here for the full conversation agreements.)
Optional: a participant can keep track of time and gently let people know when their time has elapsed.
Each participant can take 1-2 minutes to answer one of these questions:
Take ~2 minutes each to answer a question below without interruption or crosstalk. After everyone has answered, the group may take a few minutes for clarifying or follow up questions/responses. Continue exploring additional questions as time allows..
Take 2 minutes to answer one of the following questions: