B4 - Building Belonging @ Berkeley and Beyond

A Dialogue Series

Background image: Aerial photograph of the campus with the Campanile.

These virtual dialogues are grounded in Paulo Freire’s concept of conscientização, or critical consciousness, which embodies a mindset of ‘reading the word and the world.’ The topics and speakers are meant to transgress boundaries (hooks, 1994) of how we envision and practice belonging by critically centering intersecting identities at UC Berkeley.

Previous talks in the Building Belonging at Berkeley and Beyond (B4) series

a screen grab of the linked pdf, which is an accessible document
B4 Dialogue 2 - Critical Approaches to Transformative Justice & Trauma. Dec. 9, 2021
B4 first dialogue - Critical Consciousness During Pandemic Times

Building Belonging

Actively engaging in dialogue that challenges colonial and oppressive ideologies and practices by naming the forces that are oppressive and honoring critical forms of consciousness like mestiza consciousness (Anzaldúa, 1987), Indigenísta thought (Grande, 2004), and Black Feminist Thought (Hill-Collins, 1990). 

Series Goals

  • Develop a deeper understanding of structural and internalized oppression.

  • Engage in collaborative efforts to overcome and dismantle structural and internalized oppression. 

  • Develop transformative practitioners whose work centers on restoring shared community values, and equality and social justice. 

Learning is a process where knowledge is presented to us, then shaped through understanding, discussion, and reflection.
Paulo Freire