Regional
Offices
Outside of our National Office in New Orleans, over time we’ve developed regional offices throughout the country. Each area hosts regular Undoing Racism® Community Organizing workshops, and has developed an anti-racist organizing base that is leading the work in that region. Currently, our regional offices include:
- People’s Institute North
- Contact PIN
We began organizing in what we now call People’s Institute North (PIN) in the 1980s. Our co-founders together organized with people in social service agencies, Native American Nations, artists, human service providers and residents to share the anti-racist analysis of The People’s Institute and learn how racism manifests in the region. Hundreds of people seeking to understand and be more effective in their work brought the Undoing Racism® Workshop to the Twin Cities, Duluth, and Native American Nations. After significant organizing, a regional office was established in 2000. Over 10,000 people have attended an Undoing Racism Workshop® in Minnesota. PIN has organized Freedom Schools, participated in organizing the Unfair Campaign (“It’s hard to see racism when you’re white.”), and was part of bringing forward the history of the lynching of three African American men in Duluth and building the Clayton, Jackson, McGhie Memorial in their honor.
PIN continues to be a part of organizing efforts on Native American Nations, such as Grand Portage, in MN. Following George Floyd’s murder, PIN helped plan and facilitate assemblies of neighbors to process their reactions, feelings, learn from history and begin anti-racist organizing for community change.
- People’s Institute Northeast
- Contact PINE
The People’s Institute’s presence in New York runs deep. St. Paul’s Community Baptist Church in East New York, Brooklyn, organizes and presents their annual MAAFA commemoration and includes the Undoing Racism® Workshop in 1997. That foundation established The Institute’s presence in New York and much has grown and developed since. During that same period, helping professionals from Rockland, Westchester and NYC attend the URW. The analysis ignites: organizing. Professors and students bring Undoing Racism® to the schools of social work. Parents impacted by the child welfare system organize alongside social workers and lawyers in the system in both New York and New Jersey. The word spreads and people in New Jersey (therapists, educators, social workers, and residents) organizing for racial equity expand the activity in NY to include New Jersey.
The power of networking expanded the work in New York to include Connecticut and other New England locations. Organizing in Boston and Springfield, Massachusetts has resulted in deep partnerships and the development of the Undoing racism Organizing Committee (UROC) of Springfield over twenty years ago. Faith based organizing has been reignited with initial leadership coming from religious leaders and organizer-trainers and has resulted in a Faith Based Coalition of Greater New York which includes churches, synagogues with plans to expand to additional faith traditions.
Today, the organizing efforts of the Northeast Regional Office has evolved to a full monthly calendar of gatherings of people organizing to understand and Undo Racism®.
- People’s Institute Northwest
- Contact PINW
Our Northwest Regional Office leads and supports a vast network of anti-racist organizers from Oregon to Alaska. For close to 30 years, anti-racist organizers in the region have worked relentlessly to push for a world without racism.
In the Northwest our organizing began with the City of Bellevue, Washington. Then Seattle: growing our roots by organizing with parents and service providers in education, human and social services, and criminal justice.
A high school mascot was changed, Teach-In’s grew to Freedom Schools, and a partnership grew with the Black Prisoners Caucus. We held Undoing Racism® workshops in Monroe County Prison, with Yupik organizers in Alaska. The Village of Hope became a manifestation of living the anti-racist organizing principles. Our network grew to Portland, Spokane, and Nome Alaska.
Over the past forty years the Institute’s reach has been far and wide. In 2021, we will be holding listening circles around the country to learn more about the impact of the Undoing Racism® Workshop, principles, and analysis. This will provide an opportunity to understand the impact of our work and where our growing edges are.
This will support the local base-building and the incredible leadership in each region, which will strengthen our net that works on all levels. It will also inform the development of additional regional offices and organizing committees.
We organize all over the country (and internationally) — the list above only reflects regional offices. If you are looking to connect with organizers in an area not listed above, you can contact our national office and we will put you in touch.