FacingRacismLR

Preface & Acknowledgments
Facing Racism began at a series of meetings at the Muncie Public Library (MPL) where a
diverse group of people from the community came together at the invitation of the Director,
Ginny Nilles, to discuss a community read. A book is chosen to be read and discussed
throughout the community. All the books discussed would deal with issues of race and racism.
Those of us on the committee from the group R.A.C.E. (Reconciliation Achieved through
Community Engagement) suggested that, instead, we create a Facing Project focused on
issues of race and racism in Delaware County. After talking with the founders of the Facing
Project, Facing Racism was born as a project of R.A.C.E. Muncie. We are extremely grateful
to the following: Ginny Nilles, MPL, and Yvonne Thompson, Director of the Muncie Human
Rights Commission for providing the initial funding to the Facing Project that launched
Facing Racism; to Mayor Dennis Tyler for his early personal financial support and to the
Muncie Action Plan for their willingness to be the fiscal agent for the project.
Following the model established by J.R. Jamison and Kelsey Timmerman for the Facing
Project, Facing Racism tells the first-person stories of individual experiences with racism and
perceptions of race. The Facing Project is a model for developing community awareness and
integration through first-person narratives and “connects people through stories to strengthen
communities” (www.facingproject.com/about). The project brings together writers and
storytellers, those with stories about a particular issue, and culminates in a book and a
community event(s) to bring the stories to the public. Hopefully, it would enhance awareness,
create dialogue and impact change. We are also very indebted to Kelsey and J.R. for taking a
special interest in this project, giving unsparingly of their time to consult with us and initially
editing all the stories. They also provided help proofreading the final copy of the book that
emerged. Their commitment and depth of involvement have been phenomenal
This project could not happen without people willing to tell their stories, to share their pain
and suffering, anguish, fear, and tears, as well as for some, their personal struggles with their
own racism. There are also stories of great triumph, enlightenment, overcoming of challenges
and coming to terms with the impact of race and racism. These storytellers were open and
brave, revealing themselves so that others might grow from their experiences. We cannot thank
them enough. And then there are the writers who built relationships with storytellers and used
their talents to take on the voice and persona of their subjects. By writing in the first person
they brought to life a variety of unheard voices while keeping the anonymity of their subjects
unless the storytellers gave permission to be identified. We thank you, too.
The stories will also be presented in a theatrical format. We are so appreciative of Muncie Civic
Theater for producing the first public enactment of the stories and especially to Michael Daehn,
faculty member in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Ball State University for coming on
board and writing the script and working with Laura Williamson, Executive Director of Civic
Theatre to recruit actors and co-direct and produce the opening performance. We knew we
were in excellent hands when these two talents signed onto this project. Thank you.
There are many people who have worked diligently to make this project a success. The
Steering Committee who worked on Facing Racism provided their knowledge, expertise,
guidance and support, inspiration and hard work. Special thanks goes to Renae Mayes who
took on the job of Chief Editor and worked with writers and other editors to get the stories in
perfect form for inclusion in the book. Thanks also to Tania Said who took on the initial task of
recruiting and pairing of writers and storytellers. Michelle Kinsey has handled the publicity for
the project, set up our Facebook page and twitter feed and provided her guidance on the best
ways to advertise the project. Thanks to WIPB and IPR for whom she works for partnering
with us in this endeavor. Other members of the Steering Committee include Jason Donati who
manages our web page, Ruby Cain, Yvonne Thompson, Daniel and Lynne Stallings, Laura
Williamson, Maude Jennings, Joshua Holowell, Kimberly Hamilton, Kevin Nolan and Kelby
Stallings. Thanks also to Emilie Carpenter for volunteering her photographic skills.
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