Sarah O’Gara shares how she became a racist; learning these habits of mind from her family and the white supremacist culture into which she was born.  She reflects on how her Buddhist practice supports and informs her efforts to live now as an anti-racist.  She invites others to share reflections on their own path.

After the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, sangha members Doralee Grindler Katonah and Linda Dekker created a curriculum, arising out of Buddhist practice, to explore an appropriate response to the continuing violence against people of color in America.  The first step was “to study the self”,  and also the causes and conditions that created and perpetuate a culture of white supremacy,  white privilege, and structural racism embedded in our laws.  It was with the support of her sangha sisters that Sarah started on this journey.  Download class syllabus here: White Privilege and the Dharma

Sarah has been a member of Valley Streams Zen Sangha since 2007 and currently serves on the Board of Directors, the Practice Committee, and the Dōan-ryo.