Affinity spaces inside of MRC’s (multiracial/multicultural institutions)
I’m a big believer in minding business that is yours and another communities business is not your business. However, watching everything that has transpired with NABJ did make me think it might be helpful to give some thoughts on affinity spaces in MRC (multicultural/multiracial institutions) and society.
When we are more segregated with very little power, affinty spaces serve to provide safe harbor for people who are integrating a space. They are an important place to get resources and lower risk for folks inside of segregated spaces. There are base level survival needs that space provides.
When folks are in an integrated space and have more power (note not necessarily majoritarian power but some real power), I think their purposes can be slightly different and they require a lot more architecture.
In integrated spaces you have to be clear on the purpose and beliefs of an affinity space. You have to be clear if the purpose of the space is to:
- work through internal community issues
- contest for power — specifically rights
- learn how to be in MRC communities and skill build to be in better relationship with other communities
- personal development and self-awareness building
- And a variety of other purposes.
When it comes to beliefs, you have to be clear on what the affinity space as a collective believes.
- do you believe your people should be a part of building out a new world
- -does this space believe all will be better if you’re group is the best of the best
- do you believe as a collective your best use is to expose people to differing ideas
- do you believe the space is sacred and should feel as safe as possible for your people
- do you have defining political beliefs
- do you have beliefs about who and what stories should be centered?
Both of these things are important because it gives the cultural community the ability to choose whether or not this is a space for them. Where in segregated institutions/communities with low power the purpose is clear — help as many of us survive this/here as possible . In integrated spaces and spaces where you have some power — maybe not majoritarian power but some power — that space needs definition.
I honestly don’t know if we could have gotten to the place of power we have gotten to as multiracial communities without representational politics but I do know representational politics hurt us in ways many are only discovering now as our communities get more power. Leading that hurt is the assumption that a race, ethnicity, or class experience gives us the same beliefs and relationships to power.
This is leading to many collectives experiencing betrayal because of a lack of clarity in purpose/beliefs leading to lots of leaders having very different beliefs inside of the same groups or institutions. So when the person with the most power makes a decision, some folks back it up and others can see it as betrayal to community. Diminishing the amount of power that group or institution has attained.
That pain is an institutional and organizing problem that we have to be committed to solving or our groups and institutions will fall apart or fall into unproductive conflict just as we are gaining momentum.
