Newsletter: February 2026 Issue 1

Cultures Connecting
3 days ago
4 min read

February is Black History Month

Silhouettes of faces in grayscale on left. "February BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2026" in bold, colorful letters on a dark background.

Black History Month is celebrated in February to recognize the significant contributions and sacrifices of African Americans that have often been neglected in U.S. history. Officially recognized in 1976, it honors achievements in areas like science, politics, and culture, while encouraging reflection on the ongoing movements for racial equity and social justice.

Here are some things you can do to honor this month:

Learn about and support organizations such as:

A small sampling of local events in the Pudget Sound area include:

While Black history is American history and should be recognized every month, February offers a dedicated time to deepen our learning, show up in meaningful ways, and commit to ongoing action beyond this month. Honoring Black history means supporting Black communities year-round and continuing the work toward equity and justice.

DEI Facilitation and Social Status Workshop

Lunch & Learn flyer for "DEI Facilitation and Social Status" with Dr. J.P. Anderson on Zoom, Feb 27, 2026, 12-1:30pm PT.

Have you signed up for our next workshop yet? DEI Facilitation and Social Status: Getting the Change We Want is a lunch and learn designed to help organizations identify and repair one of the most common pitfalls of DEIBelonging work: status inversions.

Status inversion shows up when an organization genuinely wants to advance equity but ends up flipping who is seen as credible instead of changing the deeper rules of the game. Rather than separating competence and leadership from things like race, gender, or sexual orientation, those assumptions quietly get reassigned.

Even though this dynamic can look like progress on the surface, it keeps the same hierarchy in place. Real transformation happens when we stop tying worth, competence, and leadership to identity at all—not when we just reshuffle who holds status.

This workshop is facilitated by Dr. J.P. Anderson is based on 2 years of field research. It will take place on Friday, February 27 at 12:00pm PT / 3:00pm ET on Zoom.

2nd Edition of Train the Trainer Book Coming this Year

Diverse group of illustrated people below text "BRAVE SPACE BUILDERS" on a white background, showcasing various hairstyles and clothing.

Have you joined our Brave Space Builders list yet? The list is for those of you interested in learning more about the 2nd edition of our book that we use for our Train the Trainer workshops. We will share information about new content and provide sneak peeks into the cover, publish date, and more.

You can join simply by replying to this email and ask to join the Brave Space Builders list or BSB if you don't feel like typing it all out.

Ways to Take Action for Change

Like all of you, we too are feeling overwhelmed with ICE, Minnesota, and the 8 deaths so far this year of Geraldo Lunas Campos (1/3), Luis Gustavo Nunez Caceres (1/5), Luis Beltran Yanez-Cruz (1/6), Renee Good (1/7), Parady La (1/9), Victor Manuel Diaz (1/14), Heber Sanchaz Dominguez (1/14), and Alex Pretti (1/24). This is in addition to the 32 deaths last year, not including Keith Porter who was killed on New Year's Eve.

You may be feeling rage and grief. Nikita Gill reminds us,

The rage you are feeling

comes from the same place

inside your heart as the love.

This is why you refuse to accept

a world where cruelty reigns

and the fire consumes all.

You have known hope

and joy and kindness

like you have known water.

And justice is a river

that demands

you do not give up on it.

Sign up for Rapid Response Training with WAISN

We featured the WA Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) in our last newsletter but wanted to make you aware of a few Rapid Response trainings coming up. These trainings teach you how to safely and effectively respond to immigrant enforcement (like ICE), support affected families, and advocate. The Rapid Response trainings are in both English and Spanish and are held on Zoom.

Use 5 Calls App

Calling your representatives to voice your opinion is an important way to create change. The 5 Calls app, which you can download on your phone, makes it easy and convenient by directly connecting you to your representatives and providing scripts for issues you care about.

Attend Our Common Power's Teach-In on ICE and How We Win 2026

Our Common Power is holding an event, "The Return of the Slavecatchers: A Teach-In on ICE & How We Win 2026," on February 1st at 3:00-8:00pm PT / 1:00-5:00pm ET. The event is free and you can register on Eventbrite.

A colorful calendar page with visible dates and days of the week. Text reads Diversity Calendar Dates on a green banner at the bottom.

It's a new month which means taking a look at our Diversity Calendar to look at significant dates to consider when planning meetings or events to create greater inclusion. Click on the name of the day to learn more.

2/01: National Freedom Day (United States)
2/01: Imbolc (Neo-Pagan)
2/03: Setsubun-sai (Shinto)
2/15-16: Maha Shivaratri (Hindu)
2/17: Lunar New Year/Tết (Asian)
2/17-19: Ramadan (Islamic)
2/18-02: Lenten Season (Christian)
2/19: Day of Remembrance (Japanese Incarceration) (United States)
2/20: World Day of Justice (International)

If you'd like to add our Diversity Calendar dates to your Google calendar, you can add it using this link.

Calendar page on blue background, showing months in red text. Bold black text reads "Social Justice DEIB Calendar" on the left.

Upcoming DEIB/Social Justice Events

For details on these and other events, workshops and conferences happening in the social justice space, visit our Events Calendar. If you have an event you would like us to share, please reach out to us!