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Beloved Community Organizer Calls Recent Gathering "A Turning Point"

DeKalb’s Beloved Community holds regular gatherings to talk about a range of topics including race and religion. This month, the group met at Hopkins Park to discuss statistics involving officer-involved shootings. 

Several dozen residents and community leaders sat in a circle with the sun beating down. The mayor was there, the president of Northern Illinois University too. And the DeKalb County State’s Attorney. But they weren’t center stage. Instead, they listened as two young men stood in the middle of the circle and offered statistics and anecdotes about recent violence in the headlines. The men called on residents to add their views, opinions, and questions.  Some questioned the use of national statistics instead of more local information. 

Beth Campen is one of the organizers behind these meetings.

“We had some people like that tonight who felt that the conversation needs to be friendlier, or that we can all work from a friendlier thing. I understand that because I am that kind of person too—plant flowers and you’ll get rid of the weeds," Campen said.

"Sometimes we have to admit that there’s a problem there before the flower is going to grow, or if we plant the flower too late or whatever. What I would tell people is, if you don’t want to take part in the conversation, but if there’s something that upsets you, invite those people to talk to you.”

Jacob Clayton was one of the evening’s facilitators:

“I’ve been coming to these community dinners for the last year now and we have made great progress, Clayton said.

"We’ve got some new people coming to the table. Initially, we started with a small group, and now that group is a large group. Change is being made, but of course there’s still more work to be done. We would love to have a thousand people here and not fifty. There are always conversations that are going to need to be had and there are solutions that people have that are not here now.”

Clayton says it’s important for the monthly events to raise awareness and leave the people with a call to action.

“We have a bystander effect which means we always think that somebody else is going to do it or somebody else is going to take care of it. If everybody has that same mentality then the job never gets done," Clayton said.

"We have to physically be the changes that we want to see. If you believe there are injustices in your community and you don’t believe that the people in your community are in the right position, then you need to try and get that position yourself. You try and gain as much experience and you work as hard as you can to take over.”

Amirius Clinton listened intently during the course of the gathering. He’s an NIU student who has been working to re-establish an NAACP chapter at the school. Clinton says he feels DeKalb in general has been proactive in efforts to bring students together with city leaders to address police accountability. He says he wants to be part of that effort.

“There are a lot of students who already have this radical view and already have this view ‘the police are against us,’ or ‘the administration is against us.’ The energy is there, I just think it needs to be directed in the right way,” Clinton said.

Clinton took notes as he prepares for a new school year.  He says the Beloved Community means there is already a foundation for his goals.

“Students get out of DeKalb, or when they graduate, they are quick to leave DeKalb. Why? That’s the big question. Why aren’t students willing to stay here in DeKalb or find an internship opportunity or find just a resource before they leave? That’s what we are working to connect with, and connect students to the school more, and to the administration more, and city leaders more.”

Shatoya Black lives in DeKalb and is working on an advanced degree at NIU in community leadership. She says she has found the community potlucks to be important as she faces life’s challenges.

“A lot of times coming to this is a way to discuss some of the things, and allow you to pour out so that you can go back and be in a place of peace. Sometimes you are bogged down by being able to get someone to understand how you feel or what you are saying when we all know that perspectives are different,” Black said.

DeKalb resident Sean Johnson says the takeaway for him involves a simple concept.

“Be aware of what is going on, whether you are white or black, it doesn’t matter. Just be aware of things that are happening in our community. If we start in our community, then we can reach out into other places,” Johnson said.

Beloved Community organizers are planning another gathering next month.

Jenna Dooley has spent her professional career in public radio. She is a graduate of Northern Illinois University and the Public Affairs Reporting Program at the University of Illinois - Springfield. She returned to Northern Public Radio in DeKalb after several years hosting Morning Edition at WUIS-FM in Springfield. She is a former "Newsfinder of the Year" from the Illinois Associated Press and recipient of NIU's Donald R. Grubb Journalism Alumni Award. She is an active member of the Illinois News Broadcasters Association and an adjunct instructor at NIU.
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