BaronOfHair
Master Don Juan
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2024
- Messages
- 2,610
- Reaction score
- 1,108
- Age
- 35
SMART Recovery(An organization I've belonged to since 2013)'s current Executive Director(Who also just happens to formerly be the organization's first DEI chief), recently sent out the following newsletter:
"Considering Power Dynamics in Our Meetings
Power dynamics exist any time human beings gather in a community with one another, and our self-management mutual support group meetings are no exception. Noticing and attending to the power dynamics that exist in our meetings is critical as facilitators. Not doing so is a barrier to empowerment that we should all be concerned about if we want our meetings to be safe places for for all participants to pursue their recovery journeys. What do we mean by power? In this context, we are referring to the real and perceived agency that one has over one’s own life and circumstances. There are a variety of factors that help to determine the relative power that an individual perceives in a given situation. Consider these examples:
Accumulated Recovery Time
Closeness to the Facilitator
Financial Security
Relationship Security
Education Level
Gender
Gender Identity
Sexual Orientation
Race
Age
Physical Health and Ability
Mental Health and Ability
History of Trauma
While there are no absolutes as we consider the relative power of individuals in our meetings, we generally learn enough about participants to be able to recognize when an interpersonal situation is occurring between individuals that are not equally “powerful” at that time. It is crucial in those situations that we, the rained facilitators, intervene as necessary to reinforce the agency of the less powerful party to describe their experiences in their terms without judgment from other group members. If a participant is new to the group, we should assume that they are at a relative power disadvantage simply as a newcomer. Telling new or less powerful participants to use a SMART tool or how to use a SMART tool in response to a share is NOT what we are trained to do when a participant shares something vulnerable with the group. Instead, we should validate the person’s experience, ask how the group can provide support, and use our motivational interviewing skills to explore the share with the participant if they are interested in doing so. If a fellow participant, especially a more powerful participant, invalidates a person’s share, we should remind them that we don’t give direct advice in SMART Recovery and proceed with the steps above.
SMART Recovery is an incredible tool for empowerment when it’s implemented in a way that respects that not every person is starting off on a level power playing field. I hope that you’ll join me in reflecting on this topic with an open mind in the spirit of continuous improvement and wanting SMART Recovery to not just be accessible to all, but also empowering for all.
Peace,
Pete Rubinas (he/him/his)"
In response, I posted this, in several online SMART Recovery forums:
"Let me begin by expressing my admiration for Mr. Rubinas's courage and intellectual acuity... He's publicly acknowledged that Race IS NOT a social construct, and that it's indeed vital for us to start forming conclusions about each other, the minute we notice the colors of our skins, hair textures, and facial features. For the past several decades, a handful of unfailingly honest Americans (David Duke, Amy Wax, Nick Wade, J. Philippe Rushton, Anthony Cumia, etc)have waged a lonely crusade, in championing this uncomfortable truth, and it's refreshing to see SMART abide by the ideals we preach... Namely, our commitment to rigorous scientific inquiry and hard-nosed empiricism
As a swarthy-complexioned child of immigrants to The US myself, words cannot describe the joy which electrifies every fiber of my being, whenever I read or hear the leaders of our civic and private institutions encourage fellow citizens to notice my bronze skin tone, raven hair, and aquiline nose, then jump to conclusions regarding my station in life, beliefs, favorite foods, and overall world view based upon my physical traits alone, BEFORE they've even spoken with me. This is an immense improvement over the dark days of The Early-Mid 2000s, when both The Department Of Homeland Security and the producers of TV's 24 convinced pasty-complexioned America that they were performing their civic duty, each time they looked at me, and reflexively inferred: "When he's not beating his wife within inches of her life for exposing too much ankle in public, he's probably beheading infidels in his backyard with a scimitar!!!"
So far, the only reactions I've received have been the mods at these SMART Recovery forums deleting my post
"Considering Power Dynamics in Our Meetings
Power dynamics exist any time human beings gather in a community with one another, and our self-management mutual support group meetings are no exception. Noticing and attending to the power dynamics that exist in our meetings is critical as facilitators. Not doing so is a barrier to empowerment that we should all be concerned about if we want our meetings to be safe places for for all participants to pursue their recovery journeys. What do we mean by power? In this context, we are referring to the real and perceived agency that one has over one’s own life and circumstances. There are a variety of factors that help to determine the relative power that an individual perceives in a given situation. Consider these examples:
Accumulated Recovery Time
Closeness to the Facilitator
Financial Security
Relationship Security
Education Level
Gender
Gender Identity
Sexual Orientation
Race
Age
Physical Health and Ability
Mental Health and Ability
History of Trauma
While there are no absolutes as we consider the relative power of individuals in our meetings, we generally learn enough about participants to be able to recognize when an interpersonal situation is occurring between individuals that are not equally “powerful” at that time. It is crucial in those situations that we, the rained facilitators, intervene as necessary to reinforce the agency of the less powerful party to describe their experiences in their terms without judgment from other group members. If a participant is new to the group, we should assume that they are at a relative power disadvantage simply as a newcomer. Telling new or less powerful participants to use a SMART tool or how to use a SMART tool in response to a share is NOT what we are trained to do when a participant shares something vulnerable with the group. Instead, we should validate the person’s experience, ask how the group can provide support, and use our motivational interviewing skills to explore the share with the participant if they are interested in doing so. If a fellow participant, especially a more powerful participant, invalidates a person’s share, we should remind them that we don’t give direct advice in SMART Recovery and proceed with the steps above.
SMART Recovery is an incredible tool for empowerment when it’s implemented in a way that respects that not every person is starting off on a level power playing field. I hope that you’ll join me in reflecting on this topic with an open mind in the spirit of continuous improvement and wanting SMART Recovery to not just be accessible to all, but also empowering for all.
Peace,
Pete Rubinas (he/him/his)"
In response, I posted this, in several online SMART Recovery forums:
"Let me begin by expressing my admiration for Mr. Rubinas's courage and intellectual acuity... He's publicly acknowledged that Race IS NOT a social construct, and that it's indeed vital for us to start forming conclusions about each other, the minute we notice the colors of our skins, hair textures, and facial features. For the past several decades, a handful of unfailingly honest Americans (David Duke, Amy Wax, Nick Wade, J. Philippe Rushton, Anthony Cumia, etc)have waged a lonely crusade, in championing this uncomfortable truth, and it's refreshing to see SMART abide by the ideals we preach... Namely, our commitment to rigorous scientific inquiry and hard-nosed empiricism
As a swarthy-complexioned child of immigrants to The US myself, words cannot describe the joy which electrifies every fiber of my being, whenever I read or hear the leaders of our civic and private institutions encourage fellow citizens to notice my bronze skin tone, raven hair, and aquiline nose, then jump to conclusions regarding my station in life, beliefs, favorite foods, and overall world view based upon my physical traits alone, BEFORE they've even spoken with me. This is an immense improvement over the dark days of The Early-Mid 2000s, when both The Department Of Homeland Security and the producers of TV's 24 convinced pasty-complexioned America that they were performing their civic duty, each time they looked at me, and reflexively inferred: "When he's not beating his wife within inches of her life for exposing too much ankle in public, he's probably beheading infidels in his backyard with a scimitar!!!"
So far, the only reactions I've received have been the mods at these SMART Recovery forums deleting my post
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