UnLearning Space NFP

It was an honor to engage with such wisdom, joy, and fun people! Chicago Public Allies always offer so much more than we can ever give. What a beautiful space to explore values and create our own pathways to authenticity. I’m still floating in gratitude. Love you, allies!

Creating and imagining is your birthright, and also a form of resistance. We invite you to take moments to do so today and anytime you want!

Sometimes changing for our own good can be overwhelming. Perhaps we should start with one decision or one narrative. We invite you to try. Let us know how it goes! With so much care the (Un)learning Team. XO

It’s impressive how the body reacts to oppression in everyday decisions. It’s so loud in how our bodies feel stress, and the anxiety and weight our minds attach to decisions, harms our humanity as we react in conditioned ways. It’s also impressive how our body remembers the feeling of choosing humanity. Where we find ease and release. Your logic can sometimes go against what you really need, so we encourage you to tune into your gut, listen deeply to heart and tune into feeling.

It’s a special thing to be able to work with a deeply aligned and powerful organization, led by a sister - Cecily! What a blast to co-create the OLAAI Liberatory Learning Framework with OLAAI, community members and youth. Some moments and experiences remind us how blessed we are to do truly transformative work. Thank you OLAAI. With So much love! Excited for continued partnership. .lawndale.arts.activism

One of our favoriteeee things to do is partner and unlearn with young people. It was such a gift to work with Public Allies. We have completed 2 sessions so far, where we dug into our values and unlearned. We told stories, illuminating our values. We talked about how value shifts and change as we grow. It was so powerful uncovering that the most authentic and rooted person is one who knows their values and makes decisions that align with them. This helps us set boundaries and operate within our agency. It was an honor to partner with these brilliant young people and we can’t wait until our next session!

(Un)Learning Space is US. It’s ALL of us. ALL the time. You belong…yep, I’m talking to you. Without you, it ain’t US. We are so excited to share a new version of our logo that makes this clear: (Un)Learning Space is US. You are US. We are US. Thank you for being a part of this healing movement.

(Un)Learning Space™ is inviting new board members to join our amazing team!!

We are seeking individuals committed to liberatory practice. People who are willing to engage in the ongoing work of unlearning, healing, and reimagining a world where we all BElong.

This is relational, reflective, and transformative work. Maybe you, or someone you know wants to learn more?

Please email Lydia Mercer at [email protected] with a letter of interest.

Healing justice is not a trend. It’s a movement.

It asks us to do more than cope—it asks us to transform. To tend to harm, yes—but also to question the conditions that created it.

Healing justice invites us to unlearn:
– the belief that we have to push through at all costs
– the idea that rest is earned
– the normalization of disconnection from ourselves and each other

Unlearning is part of healing.
Because so much of what we carry was never ours to begin with.

This movement is about returning to ourselves,
to each other, and to ways of being that honor our humanity. equitycenteredchange

Sharing power and decision-making is possible even within hierarchy.

And—it’s not the same as consensus.

Sharing power doesn’t mean everyone agrees.
It doesn’t mean every decision is made collectively.

It doesn’t mean hierarchy magically disappears.

It does mean we are honest about the systems and power dynamics at play. It means we name hierarchy instead of pretending it’s not there.
It means we make intentional choices about how we show up within it.

Sharing power looks like:
– Transparency in how decisions are made
– Centering voices that are often excluded
– Being accountable for how power is used
– Creating space for impact, not just input