Racism & StoryTelling
“Outside of the physical universe, and the laws that govern the physical universe, there is nothing that impacts, informs and transforms the human experience, nor moves our spirit, more than story.”
David Hunt
David uses insight, humor and interactive audience participation to illuminate the use and power of storytelling in the everyday aspects of our lives.
David demonstrates how story & storytelling can be used as a tool for
- Community building
- Civic engagement
- Leadership development
- Celebration
- healing
- Social change
The Role and Power of Storytelling in Understanding Race & Healing the Scars of Racism
Race is a social construct based entirely upon story, not science. Yet race and racism is an undeniably powerful cultural, political, economic, and sociological force.
This workshop creates a safe, and sometimes sacred space to explore these themes, giving participants the opportunity to formulate and express their own ideas of how racism may be affecting their personal life, community, organizations, and campaigns. Participants will also explore ideas on how to use storytelling to heal the wounds of personal and institutional racism.
Storytelling as an Essential Community Building Tool
This three-four hour workshop will train community members and organizations how to plan a Community Building Storytelling project. The workshop will train participants in how to design and hold intentional and strategic community storytelling events that help build relationships, create shared vision, heal community wounds, and celebrate community accomplishments and heroes.
Storytelling as a Public Policy Creation Tool
Public Policy is created out of the expression of our experiences, of the past and present, and dreams of the future. Storytelling is a most effective tool to turn our personal experiences into collective experiences and vision, which in turn creates public policy.
This two-three-hour workshop will demonstrate how story is data with a soul, and that in creating public policy, a powerful story beats powerful data every time! Participants will learn how to add soul to their public policy creation.
Storytelling as an Organizing and Social Change Tool
Organizers and campaigns use story and storytelling to recruit people to their organization or campaigns, to raise money, to explain the problems people face, to remember victories and inspire people, to shape their issues in the media, to testify at meetings with officials, and to build coalitions and collaborations.
This three to four-hour session will train community members, organizations, and coalition partners in how to utilize storytelling effectively to create more powerful campaigns.
Storytelling as an Evaluation Tool
When an organization or community is evaluating their success and failure or reviewing their planned goals and achievements, the session in reality is a storytelling session.
David helps participants use story to review planned goals, retrace the past journey and evaluate their success, failure, achievements, and unexpected growth.
Storytelling as a Strategic Planning Tool
It is through strategic storytelling that we capture people’s hopes; dreams, experiences vision and turn them into collective visions and strategic plans.
When David facilitates a strategic planning session, he teaches how to use story to retrace the past, discover hidden lessons, achievements, unforeseen challenges, and unexpected growth.
Talking Across Generations Using Storytelling
The ancient art of storytelling is a powerful antidote to today’s passive, solitary, and unimaginative world of electronic entertainment. Stories awaken and nourish the timeless and archetypal experiences, symbols, and forces within all of us, even across generations.
This workshop will train participants how to design storytelling projects to bring elders and youth together to hear each other’s voices, share stories and create deeper relationships.
