Sojourner Truth School Announces Large Slate of Free Fall Classes
Photo: Sojourner Truth School
The catalog for the Fall 2025 session of classes at the Sojourner Truth School for Social Change Leadership is hot off the press and being distributed throughout the community and online at www.truthschool.org. As always, all classes are free and are taught on Zoom.
Registration for fall class opened on August 1. Pre-registration is required for all classes.
The Truth School teaches movement-building skills, preparing social change leaders to win movement struggles. The school is centered on the following principles:
- Amplifying the leadership of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC); they lead all Truth School classes, or offer them in bi/multi-racial/cultural teams
- Approaching movement-building skills from a horizontal and vertical lens (breadth and depth) and creating course catalogs which reflect this range
- Relationship-building as the heart of movement-building; this informs the style of our classes, and our relationships with site partners, hosts, trainers and volunteers
- Connecting people across counties, economic standing, racial identity, physical and mental ability and gender expression
This fall, Truth School will offer 22 classes in September through December, five of which (indicated with an *) are multi-session classes that will allow for deeper exploration of the topic. Course titles with links to course descriptions are provided below along with start dates. The full course catalog, course details, registration information, and fall course listings can be found at https://truthschool.org/events/
September 2025
September 3 @ 1:15 pm – 2:15 pm EDT
Rest Practice(s) for World Changers Session 1*
You want to help create a world that works for more and more people. And…you’re tired. When you do manage to pause, it doesn’t always feel good. Your body might crash from exhaustion, but your mind keeps racing. What to do? Some of us fear that if we truly pause to attend to our internal …
September 4 @ 1:15 pm – 2:15 pm EDT
Rest Practice(s) for World Changers Session 2
September 5 @ 1:15 pm – 2:15 pm EDT
Rest Practice(s) for World Changers Session 3
September 8 @ 1:15 pm – 2:15 pm EDT
Rest Practice(s) for World Changers Session 4
September 8 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm EDT
Calling In: How to Start Making Change With Those You’d Rather Cancel
What is Calling Out? Calling someone out is the public practice of criticizing a person or a group for something they’ve said or done that you think is politically incorrect. We all call people out by naming instances or patterns of oppressive behaviors and language use by others to seek accountability. Calling In means learning …
September 9 @ 1:15 pm – 2:15 pm EDT
Rest Practice(s) for World Changers Session 5
September 14 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm EDT
Songleading For Protests
Singing brings us joy, connects us to others, heals our bodies and minds, and helps sustain us in movement work. In this workshop, we will learn easily shareable songs for protests and resistance work and we will learn tools on how to teach them to crowds in the moment. We will also learn how to …
September 15 @ 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm EDT
Embodying Justice with Joy: Black Wisdom Traditions of Liberation and Healing*
Those of us who are committed to justice are often deeply engaged in supporting others as we simultaneously work to eliminate policies and practices that create harm. But how do …
September 16 @ 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm EDT
The Middle East: Between War and Resistance
War has reignited in the Middle East: in Gaza, Lebanon, and Yemen. The United States continues to be part of these wars through its funding of the Israeli military, its partnership with Saudi Arabia, and its 44,000 troops on the ground. But opposition to militarism in the region is growing worldwide. What explains the persistence …
September 20 @ 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT
Keeping Your Light Bright! A Writing Workshop for a Community with Something to Say
With the world turned upside down, worry, uncertainty, and negativity are dulling our senses. This workshop is an opportunity to buff up the creative muscle within you so you can do your best work, be flooded with creativity and flow, and have people take notice of your words and thoughts. Come prepared to do some …
September 21 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Dream a New Dream: Navigating Times of Uncertainty*
We live in our stories. Our stories give us meaning and help shape how we see our world. They are our personal mythology. But there are times when the story we live in is shaken up and no longer supports our personal and collective sense of wellbeing. It is as if the past has pushed …
September 27 @ 9:00 pm EDT
Non-Violent Direct Action Training and Forming Affinity Groups
We will discuss the theory and history of Non-Violent Direct Action and social movements as well as learn and practice nonviolence and de-escalation techniques. Participants will have the opportunity to join affinity groups during this workshop ensuring support for this beyond the workshop.Register Trainers:Vanessa Martinez leads and trains with community and equity at the forefront. Her …
September 28 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Dream a New Dream: Navigating Times of Uncertainty
September 29 @ 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm EDT
Embodying Justice with Joy: Black Wisdom Traditions of Liberation and Healing
October 2025
October 5 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Dream a New Dream: Navigating Times of Uncertainty
October 12 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Dream a New Dream: Navigating Times of Uncertainty
October 16 @ 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm EDT
Community Care: Needed Now More Than Ever
As author and poet Yolo Akili says, “Oppression thrives off isolation. Connection is the only thing that can save us.” Join us for conversations about ways to care for ourselves and each other in this political climate. Community care can be as simple as picking up the phone to call someone or stopping by to …
October 18 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm EDT
Following in Sojourner Truth’s Footsteps
There will be a short 2 block walk to see Sojourner’s house and then a return to the Bombyx Center across the street from the statue, for presentations about Sojourner’s life in Florence and her accomplishments in the years after. The Truth School is named after Sojourner Truth. This class will tell you why that …
October 20 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EDT
The Medicine Wheel*
The Medicine Wheel is an ancient system in indigenous culture that allows one to orient oneself in the universe. In this workshop, we will learn about the wheel, approaching it as a developmental tool to assess our relations with ourselves and each other. The Center of the Medicine Wheel is the Children’s Fire, our place …
October 21 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EDT
Beyond Racism 101: A Workshop for Activists Taking New Leaps Forward
Join Tanisha Arena, veteran of and leader in multiple movements for political, social and economic justice, as she challenges anti-racism activists to take bigger and bolder steps forward to confront and dismantle racism. Through story-telling, concrete examples, probing questions, and open discussion, Tanisha will encourage those concerned about racial justice to be less performative, more …
October 23 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Teaching Palestine*
This three-part class series will explore lessons and resources from Teaching Palestine: Lessons, Stories, Voices. The series is for all seeking to learn more about Palestine, but especially educators and organizers. If you are an educator, you will leave with practical ideas to help you build a unit around this crucial subject. If you are …
October 26 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EDT
Both/And: A Conversation for Mixed-Race and Multifaith Teens
Being part of an interracial or multifaith family can be a beautiful and complex journey – especially as a teen navigating identity, belonging, and community. This one-time class creates a safe, supportive space for teens and families who identify as mixed-race, multifaith, or who come from diverse family backgrounds. Together, we’ll share our stories, explore …
October 27 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EDT
The Medicine Wheel Session 2
October 28 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Teaching Palestine Session 2
October 30 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EDT
Teaching Palestine Session 3
November 2025
November 3 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EDT
The Medicine Wheel Session 3
November 6 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm EST
Fundraising in the Time of Trump
Fundraising can be daunting in the best of times. Now in a time of increasing authoritarianism the challenges and opportunities shift but some guiding principles remain the same. In this …
November 10 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EDT
The Medicine Wheel Session 4
November 13 @ 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm EST
Undoing Archival Violence: Exploring Black Embodied Historiography
This course explores the profound silences and absences that structure the archive of Black life in the United States. We will explore what it means to search for Black history …
November 15 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm EST
Bringing Head, Heart, Hands and Spirit to Social Change Work
Join these two deeply spiritual women as they talk with one another and with the gathered group about how their spirituality influences their activism. Learn from a pastor and a …
December 2025
December 3 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm EST
Calling In: How to Start Making Change With Those You’d Rather Cancel
What is Calling Out? Calling someone out is the public practice of criticizing a person or a group for something they’ve said or done that you think is politically incorrect. We all call people out by naming instances or patterns of oppressive behaviors and language use by others to seek accountability. Calling In means learning …
December 9 @ 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm EST
The Turbulent Middle East and US Foreign Policy
Drs. Dahi and Klare will discuss the current conflict environment in the Middle East and how the violent strife that has arisen there is changing the geopolitical landscape in the …
December 11 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm EST
Reflections: Reparations, the Stolen Beam, and the Need to Repair
Andrea, Devorah, and Jeff have facilitated several Stolen Beam courses for the Truth School over the past couple of years. In this class, we will be joined by other facilitators and local Reparations advocates to reflect on the ongoing need to repair, on reparations work, and on the role that the Stolen Beam course has …
December 16 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm EST
How To Be a Stronger and More Effective Ally to the Muslim Community
Non-Muslims often struggle with how to be an effective ally to members of the Muslim community. Lack of understanding about the faith, self-consciousness about what to say and not say, …
