Franklin Abbott has been a practicing psychotherapist in Atlanta for nearly forty
years. He is also a poet, musician, community organizer and amateur oral
historian. His connection to the Congregation and Old Stone Church goes back
more than 40 years to early urban radical faery gatherings held in the sanctuary
before First E became its steward. He has spoken at First E many times,
performed music and poetry there, and coordinated events and memorials.
Shani
Robinson, an
alumna of Tennessee State University, taught in the Atlanta
Public Schools system for three years and was wrongfully convicted
the in Atlanta Public Schools cheating trial. She is free on bond
while her case pends appeal. She is currently an advocate for social
justice causes.
Anna
Simonton is
an independent journalist originally from Atlanta and an editor for
Scalawag
magazine. She is a proud graduate of Atlanta Public Schools, and a
member of the First E.
Our
topic:
Shani
Robinson and Anna Simonton will discuss their book None
of the Above: The Untold Story of the Atlanta Public Schools Cheating
Scandal, Corporate Greed, and the Criminalization of Educators.
The book delves into Shani’s personal story as a new mother facing 25
years in prison for a crime she did not commit. The authors also
explore the historic and political context underlying a trial that
scapegoated Black employees for problems in the education system.
Stretching
all the way back to Brown
v. Board of Education,
the landmark 1954 Supreme Court ruling that outlawed segregation in
public schools, to examining the corporate-led education reform
movement, the policing of black and brown communities, and widening
racial and economic disparities in Atlanta, Robinson and Simonton
reveal how real estate moguls and financiers have lines their pockets
with the education dollars that should have been going to the
classroom.
The word or words of the year are chosen by major dictionary publishers based on search metrics. Come learn about one of these and what it might or might not have to do with Women’s History month.
Rev Marti Keller recently finished a justice ministry with the Unitarian Universalist Women’s Federation that spanned two decades. Prior to this she had been a communications director, legislative advocate and executive director for several women and family policy groups, including a dozen years with Planned Parenthood. She is still serving as consulting parish minister in Auburn Alabama
A founding member of Alternate ROOTS, a service organization for community-based artists in the South, Kathie deNobriga served as ROOTS’ executive director and planning/development director for ten years. She continues to serve on the board, working on various committees as needed, and sharing the institutional memory of 40 years of continuous membership.
Raised in Kingsport TN, deNobriga holds an M.A. in
Theatre (Directing) from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC,
and a B.A. with honors in Speech Communications and Theatre Arts. Her
early employment included directing and managing community theatres
in Smithfield and Sanford, NC and performing with The Road Company, a
professional ensemble in Johnson City, TN. DeNobriga was a Visiting
Artist for two years for the NC Arts Council, and a Fellow in the
Rockefeller Foundation’s Next Generation Leadership program and in
the Rockwood Leadership Institute.
She
is now a consultant, specializing in strategic planning, building
organizational capacity, designing staff/board retreats and guiding
creative conflict engagement. She is project manager for the Arts and
Democracy, a member of the consultant pool at the Georgia Center for
NonProfits. She trained as a mediator at the Atlanta Justice Center
and is a board member for Arts & Democracy and Alternate ROOTS.
She
served two terms as Councilmember and one as Mayor for the City of
Pine Lake, where
she is an
advocate for and practitioner of arts and community development.
Lisa is a psychotherapist in private practice, a poet, writer, and activist. She is a long-time member of the First Existentialist Congregation. She has been a student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh since 1999 and has studied with many other Buddhist teachers. Lisa incorporates feminism, existentialism, mindfulness and compassion in her therapy practice. She also trains therapists how to use mindfulness in their lives and professional practices. She offers her CD, Mindful Meditations for Well Being, as a free download from www.wellbeingpsychotherapy.net.
Barbara Van-Helsdingen is a retired special education teacher and construction supervisor. Formerly from Niagara Falls Canada, she now resides with her wife in Tucker, Georgia. Barbara speaks on a variety of topics from her many travel and work experiences. She believes in a world of love for everyone. She was a pupil of Leo Bisceglia who said hugs were very important. Barbara was a speaker and minister at the Pink Triangle Christian Fellowship PTCF for many years in Buffalo, New York. There she helped to create and run a coffee house for the abandoned LGBT community dealing with many issues. Later she went to the Canadian Arctic and lived among the Inuit for many years. She is happy to be in Georgia now full time and available to speak and share her life moments with others.
“It’s in There: Black Self-Actualization in the face of ‘Social Progress’”
Anthony Knight is the President & CEO of The Baton Foundation—a Georgia nonprofit organization that serves the emotional, intellectual and cultural needs of Black boys in grades five through nine. Before founding the Foundation, Mr. Knight worked for twenty-two years as a museum educator and consultant. Mr. Knight has extensive experience with and interest in African American history and culture, public and living history, informal education and Black youth. Mr. Knight’s work with The Baton Foundation reflects his ongoing interest in the issues and practices related to the collecting, preservation and interpretation of information about and material culture from the African Diaspora. Mr. Knight’s undergraduate work was in Spanish and English (Ohio Wesleyan University), and his graduate work was in museum education (The George Washington University). Mr. Knight also holds a degree in Spanish-to-English translation from the Núcleo de Estudios Lingüísticos y Sociales, Caracas, Venezuela. Mr. Knight is a New York City native.
Pauline Rose Clance, Ph.D., is Professor Emerita of Psychology at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia where she taught in the Doctoral Clinical Program for 28 years and was the first Senior Faculty Associate for the Task Force for the Advancement of Women. In 2012, she received an Honorary Doctorate in Science from Lynchburg College in Virginia.
She has been in private practice in Clinical Psychology for over 33 years and was a co-founder and faculty member of the Gestalt Institute of Georgia, President of the Southeastern Psychological Association, along with being a national and international speaker.
In 1978 Dr. Suzanne Imes and Dr. Clance wrote an important academic article on the Impostor Phenomenon which continues to gain world-wide attention.
She is one of the Founding and a long-term member of the First Existentialist Congregation. Pauline believes that the First E is needed more now than ever at this time in our country.
What can we learn today from the Dutch Resistance to the Nazi occupation? Although only a tiny percentage of Holland’s population decided to act, Mary Dingee Fillmore will explore what motivated both Jewish and Gentile resisters, the actions women and men took, and how they relate to us today. Remembrance isn’t enough; we must act to honor them and learn from their courage.
Bio: After living in Amsterdam and becoming gripped by the stories of the Holocaust and Resistance there, Mary Dingee Fillmore devoted thirteen years to research about that place and time. The result is the acclaimed historical novel, An Address in Amsterdam, about a young Jewish woman who joins the anti-Nazi underground, published in 2016 by She Writes Press. Mary earned an MFA in Writing at Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2005. As a writer, speaker and in her consulting work, Mary facilitates conversations for a fairer, more peaceful world.
“Small Gestures – Big Rewards. Atlanta Transit Angels’ work helping asylum seekers along their rocky path to safety.”
Grace Hawkins, Grandmothers for Peace, will speak about the “Overground Railroad” now called “Atlanta Transit Angels,” a group that goes to bus stations to meet migrants and give them necessities like blankets, baby diapers, children’s clothing. Some of the Grandmothers are going to the border to meet migrants, and Grace may tell us about that.
