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Above: The Dubuque Presentation Land Justice Team spent time in Racine, Wisconsin, discerning ways their community can make decisions to aid BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) populations in future planning. Dave McDermott, justice promoter, Sisters Suzanne Gallagher, Jessi Beck and Rita Menart attended the conference.
“Profound. Uncomfortable. Deeply moving. Hopeful. It’s difficult to find words to articulate the experience,” states Sister Jessi Beck about the Land Justice Focus Community National Gathering on April 21-25, 2024 held in Racine, Wisconsin.
The movement towards racial and ecological healing gained momentum with this gathering of 14 focus communities (religious communities of Catholic sisters); technical partners (with expertise in law, land and more), movement partners from indigenous communities and the Land Justice Futures staff. The days were filled with teaching, truth-telling, ritual, art, skill-building, song, organizing, somatic practices, lament, witness talks, celebration and commitment. Participants left with a better understanding of the ongoing harm caused by a history of genocide, enslavement and land theft in this country as well as a deeper commitment to meaningful repair, wholeness and healing.
The Dubuque Presentation community is part of the current two-year focus community program along with Dubuque Franciscans and Sisters of Charity, BVM. The next step will be to share the land history of 2360 Carter Road from its original indigenous stewardship as researched by Jessica Intermill of Intermill Land History Consulting at a community gathering in August 2024.
Learn more about Land Justice Futures by visiting https://www.landjusticefutures.org/.