Kendra Davis
Summary
The workshop inspired a lot of great ideas, particularly around the idea that
1) empathy is an ongoing skill that you can never "master" and
2) empathy takes different forms.
Further, it became clear how much we need to treat intellectual empathy versus shared empathy differently, and that closing that gap is deeply important.
Intention
I want to create tools structured by empathic design that ultimately reduce the equity in our world, particularly in the United States and particularly as it relates to racism and gender-based violence.
Herbert interviews Kendra
What was your experience of the Empathy Circle?
like you I didn’t have expectations
interesting to have 3 roles
speaker
listener
silent listeners
I feel I wanted to respond and add on to what you said.
What was the most engaging or fun moment? The least engaging/fun?
The whole exercise is fun
Fun tool
Privilege to be part of
Not many spaces like this because of time and place constraints
Nice to practice empathic listening
Drove home — a skill-building exercise — muscle
Is there situations in your everyday life where you communicate like we do here?
Intentional groups in a structured way--both friends and groups.
Lucky
Not entirely empathic listening
People who are working towards it
Roommate: dialogues about social issues — empathic listening, not quite as precisely
Why is it so? Not obvious that it’s empathic listening. Always like that?
Definitely not
Family members ‚ positive trait
Started in college:
association for change and transformation.
not always like that.
Diversity talking group:
racism, ageism,
Not give advice, listen to others, more equity
Why are you so engaged in this kind of groups?
Diversity is extremely important
Not utopian: age, race, gender, nationality
Physical bodies that are members of all different groups but don’t know how to talk to each other (tokens)
…
Why?
Constantly have experiences that disappoint me in this country
Seeing people who look like me, the way that they treat members of other groups
Built into programs, policies norms
Not an option not to do this
Things as they are are problematic
Herbert Interview Kendra
Insight: Kendra’s motivation is to overcome all intolerance and “..isms” she’s observing in her country. She is engaged in groups aiming to change the attitude of people and organizations.
Feedback: Changing norms, create equity, urgency.
support network. group specific contribution
Feelings
frustration
hope
Needs
contribute
group contribution
support
hugs
Brainstorm
How Might We… close the gap between limited intellectual empathy and shared experience empathy?
Simulation activities (e.g. games where you take on the persona/role of someone unlike you)
Encourage primary resource consumption of specific topics (especially if new to reader) and moments in time/history
Consolidate resources of specific experiences, especially those that are not had by dominant groups of people
Discourage "understanding" rhetoric when no shared experience is truly present
Encourage empathy self-discovery (e.g. tests, definitions of vocabulary)
Promote the division between types of empathy (e.g. intellectual versus shared, etc.) so that no one ever feels like they've "mastered" empathy or have no more work to do
