Nov 17: Give to the Max Day for Biracial & Rural projects

It's the Great Mni'sota Give Together, Give To the Max Day today! Points of Light Music (polimu) is participating with two projects: Biracial & Rural and Freeing Stuck Refrains.

Please read on to learn more about what we're dreaming for 2023... (or just hop over to this link to make a donation)...

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Biracial & Rural continues to grow a community of care for mixed race and Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) in predominantly white spaces. Over the last year we have continued to connect with folks who are yearning for kindred places to gather, share our stories, and do the healing work of shedding the ways we've internalized oppressive systems.

And there is more connection and healing to do.

In 2023, we want to hold six Freeing Stuck Refrains gatherings and invite 10 folks into a Biracial & Rural retreat space.

Would you help us connect, tell stories, and create arts-based healing spaces?

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*Freeing Stuck Refrains*

Freeing Stuck Refrains (FSR) is a storytelling space asking "Where are we stuck?" and "What liberates us?" FSR invites participants into embodied conversation and the ancient communal practice of singing together. It started as a solo auto-biographical movement memoir and is evolving to include another guest storyteller to resist a monolithic narrative.

We want to plan six public gatherings during 2023. It is undecided if these will be in-person or zoom events; if they will be scheduled every other month or smooshed into the wonderful outdoor season that Mni'sota has. At minimum, the expenses are $300 per gathering: $150 for the guest storyteller, $100 for the organizer's work, and $50 for printing and promotion. More expense are incurred for in-person gatherings.

We held five of these in Fall 2023 and then read Brene Brown's latest book, Atlas of the Heart. In the conclusion, she talks about the three skills sets for meaningful connection and ... we were gobsmacked that Freeing Stuck Refrains essentially meets every single one of them. With that affirmation, we are certain FSR is a transformative space for all types of people.

You can be part of telling stories and helping folks connect with themselves and others.

*Biracial & Rural*

Biracial & Rural (BnR) is a community of care and healing for folks with a multi-racial/cultural experience in predominantly white spaces. It is the fruit of Conie Borchardt's yearning for community with similar experiences to their childhood.

One dream of that yearning is to gather in retreat space. This time set aside from daily routines would allow for deepening connections, more time and space for solo and communal creative practices, and more space for healing.

A weeklong residency at Studio 331 (Rosy Simas Danse) is promised to us for 2023-2024. We would like to support 10 participants during that week long residency with $250 of support to use in whichever way best suits them.

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Can you support the community growth of Biracial & Rural at this time? We welcome your financial contribution today.

Our fiscal sponsor Springboard for the Arts is waiving their administrative fees for the day, which means more of your donation supports rural BIPOC folks directly. (And we'd super appreciate it if you could pay the GiveMN processing fee ... but no shade if you can't.)

There are other ways to stay connected to our work. Your connection and support to our projects are more important than your contribution. Here are a couple of ways: 

• Are you thinking of folks who might fit our BnR description? Yes, please (!) make introductions between your mixed BIPOC friends and family and us. Connect us via listening@pointsoflightmusic.net.
• Read what's new on these projects on the webpage, http://www.pointsoflightmusic.net/p/biracial-rural.html, and past posts, especially our thoughts on words and names (it's definitely imperfect).
• Or signup for the Newsletter and have the stories sent to you. Select “Biracial & Rural” and/or “Freeing Refrains” under the Cultural Catalyst heading. Current newsletter frequency is quarterly.
• Follow us at Instagram @pointsoflight_mu, then share this fundraiser. :)