Explore Identity in Our Free Mini-Course!

After sharing the Power Flower with so many over the years, I am happy to announce that I just wrapped up recording a free mini-course on how you can use this great tool on your own to explore social identity.

Years ago (around the time Obama was president and people were still excited about it), I was introduced to the Power Flower by a brilliant Chicago Freedom School instructor, Erin O’Brien. Since then, I’ve adapted and used this exercise with dozens of groups to help provoke thought on the range of social identities we carry and how this affects the way we see ourselves and others.

Some of you may have seen me use the Power Flower to start my Justice + Equity 101 training, as it sets the stage for understanding the relationship between social identity and social power. We began with reflecting as individuals and then met to discuss in pairs. I challenged participants to do brave sharing of self and deep listening to others about their identities, often in a crowded room.

Now anyone can use this tool for personal exploration and/or with others in community to start a discussion on a topic that seems simple, but is far from being so. I know it is not the same as doing it with a group, but my hope is that you can still use it for reflection and to make meaningful connections with others.