The Four AgreementsCourageous Conversations Protocol

To participate effectively in interracial dialogue about race, the first step is to commit to honoring and practicing the Four Agreements of Courageous Conversation.

Embracing these agreements will allow educators to engage, sustain, and deepen interracial dialogue.

1. Stay EngagedThis means remaining morally, emotionally, intellectually, and relationally involved in the dialogueTo stay engaged is to not let your heart and mind “check out” of the conversation while leaving you body seated at the tableResist the natural inclination to move away from the conversation by disengaging

2. Speak Your TruthMeans being absolutely honest about your thoughts, feelings, and opinions and not just saying what you perceive others want to hearTo not speak our truth often leads to deeper confusion, mistrust, and misunderstandingSpeaking your own personal truth allows you to fully engage and develop your racial consciousness

3. Experience Discomfort

Means engaging in tough conversations that may make you feel uncomfortableAgreeing to experience discomfort allows you to deal with the reality of race and racism in an honest and forthright wayThis is how we “build muscle”, increasing our tolerance for discomfort so that we increase our ability to address the challenges associated with racial achievement disparity

4. Expect/Accept Non-closure

Committing to an ongoing dialogue Rule out any possibility of discovering a “quick fix”There is no technical solution

The Six ConditionsCourageous Conversations Protocol

1. Focus on Personal, Local, and Immediate

What are my own racial attitudes, beliefs, and expectations?Always speak from a place of “I”

I feel…I believe...

2. Isolate RaceThe critical need to address race explicitly and intentionallyIdentify your race when speaking

I’m Brandon and I am a white male…As a white male, I believe...

3. Normalize Social Construction & Multiple Perspectives

Different racial groups offering different points of view as determined and defined by their shared racial experiencesThe social construction is not just the dominant narrative, our social construction is from our experiences

4. Monitor Agreements, Conditions, and Establish Parameters

Keeping us all at the table by focusing on the dialogue process as a way of ensuring greater safety and sustained, deeper introspectionChecking in through the protocol and identifying where we are on the Compass.

5. Use a “Working Definition” for Race

Differentiated from “nationality” and “ethnicity”Examining and understanding how race is lived differently by white people and by people of color

6. Examine the Presence and Role of “Whiteness”

Understanding how racial assimilation is present in everyday lifeWhere is “whiteness” playing out in each situation?

Courageous Conversations Compass