Community Orientation Focuses on Restorative Practices
Jasmyn Story presented concepts of hope and homing as an 鈥渁spirational pigeon鈥 to the 91猫先生 campus community.
In lieu of a traditional convocation, 91猫先生 has in recent years held community orientations to kick off the fall semester. On August 30, the day before classes started, the first of three Community Education Days was held for this purpose.
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For the event, the College invited back Jasmyn Story, who was a Common Good Practitioner-Scholar on campus last year. Story joined nearly 200 students, staff, and faculty members in the Robert Crown Center for a conversation about restorative justice and community building with the theme of 鈥淗ope and Homing.鈥
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Using homing pigeons as a symbol for always returning home, Story discussed finding 鈥渂enchmarks鈥 for going back to a sense of self, encouraging participants to consider the smells, stories, songs, TV shows, and the like that remind them of their homes, figuratively or literally. Story recalled their personal history growing up in the South in a culture of call and response and adopted that method throughout their presentation with the pigeon character front and center, asking the full gym to 鈥渃oo, coo, coo鈥 when prompted.听
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They addressed the fact that students were in a new place, the College, and encouraged finding ways to bring a sense of home into this new place鈥攃reating a home away from home鈥攚hile allowing the new place to surprise them. Lastly, Story looked ahead, asking the group to consider a future send of home鈥攁n aspirational one, in which they have something to give, and hope to find a home for it.
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鈥淚鈥檓 looking for ways to be an aspirational pigeon,鈥 Story concluded to laughter from the crowd. They illustrated ways they do this through restorative justice, which they defined as implementing intentional community practices driven by storytelling, centering healing, celebrating collaboration, and fostering accountability.
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Their talk was followed by attendees applying what they learned in small groups. These Community Building Circles were facilitated by students, staff, and faculty.
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is an international restorative justice facilitator, doula, and the founder of Honeycomb Justice and Freedom Farm Azul. Story was named one of Vice's As the former deputy director of social justice and racial equity for the office of the mayor of Birmingham, Story co-led the launch of Alabama's first government-sustained women's initiative.
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This event was sponsored by the Office of the President, the Office of Justice, Equity and Anti-Racism, the Office of the Dean of Faculty, Community Commons, CAPES, and the Eqbal Ahmad Lecture Fund.
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