Space to Change–Affinity Spaces, Learning Spaces, and Bridging Spaces

There are at least three types of spaces your community may need as it works towards racial equity and justice.

One space is for bridging. These are spaces for sitting in cross-cultural, multiracial conversations, asking hard questions, responding with humility, and listening to new perspectives. We build bridges as we grow to understand one another. But in order for these bridging spaces to be effective, and in order to reduce the amount of harm they might cause, it’s important to create two additional spaces in your organizational life: learning spaces and healing spaces.

Learning spaces are exactly what they sound like. The focus is on education. This space is for learning frameworks, concepts, histories, and theories with which you might not be familiar. What’s great about learning spaces is that there are no stupid questions. You get to ask whatever you need to in order to move yourself, and your organization, towards greater racial equity. Over the years, I’ve found that learning spaces are most effective when people are able to opt-in as opposed to being required to participate. When it comes to learning about historical systemic oppression, especially if you’ve never experienced it, you might need a learning space that is itself an affinity group for people from the dominant culture you are a member of, i.e. if you are a white person, or if you’re cis-het, or if you are a man…it might be helpful for you to learn about racism/transphobia/gender bias…respectively, in a space with others who share your identity. This way, once you’re in a more diverse group, you’re better equipped to participate in ways that are constructive and less harmful.

Healing spaces are designed for people who have experienced the negative effects of systemic harm and oppression. These are spaces for sharing your story without having to justify, defend, or prove yourself. They are spaces for problem solving and world-building apart from the gaze of dominant culture. I’ve found the most constructive healing spaces to be those outside of my organization life. Through those experiences, I’ve been able to return to my cross-cultural community spaces with more clarity about what I want to contribute. For example, if you are a queer woman of color who has been advocating for change in your workplace for years, once you step into a healing space, you might begin unpacking the motivations truly driving your advocacy. And once you grapple with those motivations in a healing space, you’re able to set better, self-affirming boundaries once you return to your workplace environment. Healing spaces are empowering because they remove the expectations of dominant culture and equip you to place your own well being at the center of your advocacy work. 

When we learn and heal, we are able to build bridges from a place of intention and integrity. We are better prepared to address issues when we cause harm, and we are better equipped to create and maintain boundaries to keep us well.

Prentis Hemphill once said, “Boundaries are where I can love you and love me simultaneously.” Learning spaces, healing spaces, and bridging spaces are each their own sort of boundary–all of which prepare us for the long haul of racial equity work.

As you look at your own race conscious leadership journey, which spaces have you find yourself in most? Which space do you need in this season?