One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous or honest. — Maya Angelou

In this workshop, youth consider the role of courage in creating justice. They discuss courageous acts, big and small, as well as feelings of fear, and taking the consequences of actions.

This workshop also introduces a new tool for the Justicemakers Guide: an oppression continuum. The tool is explored lightly in Activity 3, Opposing Oppression, but more thoroughly in Faith in Action, in which participants can learn to be an ally to a marginalized group. This option includes several steps and is continued in subsequent workshops.

Goals

This workshop will:

• Identify courage as a quality needed to bring about a more just world
• Examine how we can act with courage in big and small ways
• Encourage youth to be courageous
• Explore the role that fear plays in acting with courage
• Introduce the Oppression Continuum, a new tool for the Justicemakers Guide.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• See courage as an important quality in justice making and imagine ways to be more courageous
• Identify courageous acts
• Recognize that we build courage by doing brave acts, both big and small
• Explore fears and ways to approach their fears with courage
• Discover steps to take to be an ally.