These are questions we crafted to support meaningful reflection for our group.
Prompts for visiting the National Memorial for Peace and Justice and the Legacy Museum:
- Through which lenses are you observing and making sense of what you saw?
- What did you notice?
- What struck you and how? Why?
- What parallels can you see from your own life story?
- What parallels can you see to challenges of equity and social justice? In other words, how might the legacy of racial terror from lynching still be prevalent today?
- What is a poem, or quote or some other artifact that captures the essence of your experience of the Museum and Memorial?
- What do you feel most compelled to share with your colleagues?
Prompts for meeting with Equal Justice Initiative staff:
- What was your inspiration for the Memorial? What was the local community reaction to the idea of the museum? What was the funding for the museum? Was it a hard sell? What was your experience with the philanthropic sector?
- What has been the evolution of the Memorial’s purpose since its opening? Any learning from the visitor experience and feedback?
- How can philanthropy be leveraged most effectively in addressing equity and healing?
- What is your strategy for moving the needle on such big and complex issues?
- What questions do you have for us?
- What hopes do you have for us and the work we are doing?
Prompts for meeting with local community leaders and/or philanthropists:
- How has the work of EJI and the opening of the Memorial and Museum impacted your work?
- What parallels do we see between equity and justice philanthropic work in the South and (your home region)?
- What is happening “on the ground” in Alabama/the South to address equity and racial justice?
- What challenges are you facing?
- How do you manage these challenges or any other resistance you face in your efforts?
- In this work, what are you doing or seeing particularly innovative or creative?
- How are you measuring progress or impact?
- What is the state of philanthropy in the region?
Prompts for debriefing and transitioning back home:
- How will we bring this home?
- What have we heard that has personally moved us? Professionally inspired us?
- How does this experience relate to other dimensions of diversity and other equity and justice work we are doing?
- What initial ideas do we have to engage our membership/stakeholders?