Advocacy Work

Spirit Weavers Gathering recognizes the importance of Solidarity and Allyship work.  Over the last eight years we have welcomed women from Australia, Indonesia, Spain, Poland, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Chile,  Canada, Singapore, Kenya, South Korea, Japan, China, Israel, United Arab Emirates, UK, Netherlands, and Latvia. We share this work and our Social Advocacy efforts as an Organization, in hopes to lead with clear intentions and transparency, as well as encourage our community to take part in this vital work for themselves.

Creating availability and inclusion within the gathering has been a key focus for us.  Building the gathering from the ground up has brought forth lots of learning curves, as does anything that is planted as a small seed.  We recognize that this work is life long and we are committed to continual growth and needed shifts within the gathering.

Below you will find a few of the programs we have created over the last ten years, and are continually developing and deepening. The gathering itself is truly an ever-changing and evolving workshop. We have a beautiful opportunity each year to work directly with women within the SW Community for needed shifts and focus. Thank you for believing in these small but sincere offerings as we strive to create a empowering gathering for all walks of life.

2023 ALLYSHIP WORK

  • Speak about the Anti- Racism work that Spirit Weavers is committed to at the Opening Ceremony of the Gathering
  • Continue to provide and nurture the space within the gathering led for and by Beings of Color,  Non-Binary, Gender Queer, LGBTQ2IA+ and anyone else who feels called to gather, create and share which you can find under the Village section of the website under Come-Unity
  • Each Body worker practitioner chosen will donate a free session to a B.O.C.  We will also have someone present to give body work to B.O.C at sliding scale prices
  • The Wellness and Herbalist team will make and donate tinctures for the Come-Unity Village
  • Tickets reserved for B.O.C
  • All Instructor, Staff and Seva must commit to our Anti-Racism work guidelines/Allyship guide that is shared with the community each Spring

ALLYSHIP BOOKLET

The Allyship Booklet is offered by the Spirit Weavers ComeUNITY Village, an inclusive village within SW committed to creating community, conversations, and educational opportunities that center issues of equity and collective liberation.

This booklet was created in 2018 as we, the Spirit Weavers community, became increasingly aware of the following needs: 

1. The need for greater safety and inclusivity of the BIPOC SW Community

2. The need for white instructors and participants to understand and do their part in contributing to the greater gathering’s goal to fulfill those needs through allyship. 

This Allyship Booklet was created in service to bridging the gap not only at the gathering, but in our everyday lives as well.

In the first year, through the donations of curious and eager folks, we raised over $2500.00 that was contributed to the BIPOC scholarship fund. This year during the virtual weave we intend to continue the effort to educate and bridge the gap through educational resources and communal spaces and we hope that yet again the community will join us in our excitement and dedication to this work.

RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

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Now that we have found our home in Southern Oregon we have begun to establish relationship with the local Takelma People.  For our 7th Annual gathering Takelma Elder and member of the 13th Indigenous Grandmothers Council, Agnes Baker Pilgrim joined us for the Opening Ceremony of the gathering offering her blessings on the land and gathering.  This fall we hosted Grandmother and her Family for Grandma’s 95th Birthday Celebration on the Cedar Bloom land here in Oregon.  Her Family brought their traditional feast, drumming and dancing to the land.  It was a moment in time that will live in our hearts forever.  We gifted Grandma with a mural of herself and her plant and medicine allies which lives here on the land. We are working with Grandma and her Family so that Cedar Bloom can be open to the Indigenous people of the area to fish, swim, camp and hunt on their Ancestral lands. Donations from Ticket Sales are always gifted to the local tribes of the area in which we gather. UPDATE: We are heartbroken to share that beloved Grandmother Agnes passed on to the Spirit Realm Nov 27th 2019 just a few months after we celebrated her 95th Birthday on the land.  If you make your way to the land, we have our mural of her and place to pray with Grandma.  We were truly blessed to have spent time and space with her at Spirit Weavers!

SEVA PROGRAM (Work Exchange)

Each year we offer almost 200 work exchange positions for the gatherings.  This means that in exchange for seva, you receive a free ticket to the session of your choice.  This ticket includes all meals, camping, and your choice of early arrival or to stay later on the land.  Priority is given to those who would otherwise be unable to attend the gathering on their own.  We have an incredible seva program and many women end up returning year after year.

 

If you are interested in joining our Seva Program, please visit the Seva Page in our Village Section of the website.

SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

These scholarships are made possible by you. Donations of handmade items and funds for this year’s scholarships were made and gifted by women who attended last year’s gathering. We share an amazing raffle throughout the weekend and all funds from the raffle go toward scholarships. In addition, we have an official Spirit Weavers Merchandise booth and online store where all proceeds go to next years Scholarship fund.  If you feel called to donate or help with our scholarship fund, please email sponsorship@spiritweaversgathering.com. This year we are happy to announce we have 20 scholarships available for the 2020 gathering. Great thanks to the SW Community and all of the 2019 raffle donations and tickets sold. That is double what we were able to offer last year. All Scholarship info and details will be announced MARCH 1st. Scholarships include a ticket for one session but do not include travel or accommodations.

WOMEN OF COLOR IN THE WILDERNESS

Each Autumn our Spirit Weavers Guest DJ Bibi Mcgill hosts a gathering she created called “Women of Color in the Wilderness” at Cedar Bloom, the Spirit Weavers land.   The gathering is a more intimate version of Spirit Weavers with the intention to connect in the wilderness and find comfort in camping and gathering in the presence of other WOC.   We are honored to share the land with Bibi and community each year.

2016 WEBINAR SERIES

In 2016 we partnered with our sister community Sisters Bonded in Action and created a 6 part webinar series focusing on Social Justice Issues.  We hosted special guests such as Barbara Jefferson, Lyla June, Jade Begay, Yasmine Christopher, Mollie Crittenden, Malia Hulleman and Joanna Macey.   We dove into topics such as Power, Oppression and Intersectionality, Decolonizing and reclaiming Indigeneity, Dismantling Systemic White Supremacy, Exerting and Expanding our Rights, Direct Action from the Grass Roots, and Keeping sane and active among mass Psychosis.  Our 2018 Spring Webinar series will be announced in April!

Sisters Bonded in Action is a national network of local groups committed to the intellectual, emotional and tangible work of being an activist amid a languishing paradigm birthed at the Spirit Weavers Gathering. The intention behind this webinar is to provide emerging activists with a foundation for their craft, and/or to prepare any interested women to lead a local group of their own. Our prayer is that through these talks we can create a safe, held space for women to listen and learn from our incredible panel of unique guests.  Each segment of the Webinar is 1 hour and 15 minutes. The first hour features interview-style presentations by outstanding guests speakers, followed by audience questions and comments.

SISTERS BONDED IN ACTION

Sisters Bonded in Action is a network of local groups of women working in service of the Earth, social justice and indigenous rights and sovereignty.  The organization emerged from a seminar given by Ayana Young at the fourth annual Spirit Weavers Gathering, where alliances began to take shape around common passions and complementary processes. A series of actions and projects have already begun in the spirit of unseating the narratives of exploitation of land and livelihood. In August, a group of 10 dedicated women initiated a film and campaign to halt the logging of old growth forests in Alaska’s Tongass National Forest. This Fall, several women ventured to Standing Rock in support of the water protectors. From there Mea Woodruff, Ayana Young, and Jade Begay collaborated with Idle No More SF to organize a powerful woman-led March on San Francisco’s financial district demanding the divestment of the banks involved in the Dakota Access pipeline project. As solidarity actions arose in other American cities, principal financier Wells Fargo agreed to meet with Standing Rock Sioux elders, a major inroad in this ongoing resistance to colonialism and fossil fuels.

Underlying principles include:
  • The protection of biodiversity at every level of society
  • Decolonization and the support of Indigenous and Marginalized communities
  • Direct Action and resistance to institutional threats to natural communities
  • Empowerment through ongoing education

EDUCATIONAL CLASSES OFFERED AT THE GATHERING

Each year we offer a variety of classes that can support and empower the Spirit Weavers Community and beyond.

Classes from last year include:
  • Allyship & Reconciliation
  • Sisters Bonded in Action
  • Sacred Activism
  • White Women as Allies
  • Allyship & Collective Healing
  • Between the Frontlines
  • Cultural Exchange
  • Earth is Ohana
  • Spiritual Activism
  • Ending extractive storytelling
  • Honoring the gifts of our Ancestors
  • Love Light & Whiteness
  • Empathy & Allyship

PROGRAMS WE SUPPORT

The Spirit Weavers community extends beyond the annual Gathering. Every year Spirit Weavers Gathering chooses a number of different organizations to support. This year, we will announce in the Spring a few selective organizations for 2023 and will donate a percentage of ticket sales to these causes.

Causes we have supported in the past:: Cow Creek Band of Umqua Tribe of Indians,  Seven Seed Farms, Happy Period , Grandmother Agnes, Save the Redwoods, Call of the Forests, Restoration of Camp Navarro, Standing Rock, Purple W.I.N.G.S  and Save Little Lake.

WRITE TO US

If you are unable to attend the gathering on your own and would like to attend there are a variety of ways we can work with you.  We encourage you to reach out so that we can accommodate all those who truly feel called to join us. Read more here or email info@spiritweaversgathering.com.