What We Do

Mission:

The Center (and the people who visit and support it) will work collectively to listen and learn from one another in hopes that we can develop more humane, healthy, enriching, and sustaining ways to live together.

Goals:

The Center will:
—build a strong and nurturing community
—promote connections between people and between groups in Galesburg and the neighboring areas
—meet local needs via these connections, through volunteerism, and through care

—serve as a location where healthy and forward thinking dialogue can occur and where specialized skills and local knowledge can be shared
—provide a space where those that have been silenced can be heard, where those that have endured/suffered can be recognized
—provide a space where those with vision can grow and cross-fertilize with other's dreams

We Promote:

CONNECTION through VOLUNTEERISM, COMMUNITY-BUILDING, AND EMPOWERMENT

Operating Principles of The Center

Popular Education
Often in our society, we expect "experts" to tell us what is right or wrong without giving ourselves any credit for having knowledge, wisdom or experience. There are two major problems with this. First, it completely ignores the knowledge that each one of us has. We all have knowledge based on our lived experience. We all have knowledge from things we've read and viewed. We all have knowledge based on jobs we've held and conversations we've had. We all have knowledge based on challenges we've faced and the outcomes that we have dealt with. Therefore, there is a tremendous amount of knowledge, know-how, and wisdom in our community and each one of us has something to contribute.

When we have discussions at The Center, we do so with this understanding. We all come to these discussions with something to share and something to learn. We all are equals in this conversation. We might have visiting "experts" from time to time share their thoughts on a topic near and dear to them, but the ensuing Q&A and/or discussion involves everyone, including the speaker. The discussion is not to be conducted in a hierarchical form; anyone can participate and everyone must be acknowledged, respected, and heard.

It is imperative that people share the stage during discussions as well. Some members are undoubtedly shyer than others yet they deserve to be heard just as much as outspoken people. It is important that the more vocal members make an effort to leave the floor open so those less vocal can partake.

This form of education, where everyone contributes to the learning experience is known as popular education. It is a fundamental form of interaction and education at The Highlander Center in eastern Tennessee.

Participatory Democracy
The second major reason it is problematic to defer to "experts" too much of the time relates to our involvement in decision making. If we leave all the decisions up to others, it takes power out of our hands. It puts the onus of making important decisions on a few members of our society. With more and more politicians detached from communities (and beholden to corporate and monetary interests), we need to empower ourselves by directly participating in the decisions that affect our lives.

At The Center, we firmly believe that ordinary people need to be engaged locally with political issues. Voting yearly is important but far from sufficient to drive a healthy democracy. The Center serves as a space for political organizing to occur, for residents to meet, raise, and discuss relevant issues. It is through this dialogue and engagement that The Center hopes that all of us will become empowered and active participants in a flourishing democracy.

Non-monetary Focus
Our society is consumed with the notion that money is required to do anything. Routinely, people resign themselves to the idea that such-and-such cannot be done because there isn't enough money to do so. The Center is dedicated to showing that this pervasive attitude is short-sighted and fails to consider the abundance of non-monetary resources that exist in our community.

Everything at The Center is donated (except for the rent and the electricity). This means that every item one finds in The Center has been given to The Center for use by the people that come to it. Additionally, all the time that is provided by volunteers is given freely without monetary rewards or strings attached. The people that contribute to The Center do so because they firmly believe we can make our community more supportive and better connected without the necessity of additional money.
In this vein, all events at The Center are free. People wishing to conduct workshops, tutorials, slide shows, etc., do so with this understanding. There are very limited funds available for preparatory items, but no monies can be charged to participants before, during, or after sponsored events.

All videos, books, and magazines housed in The Center are for visitors to borrow, watch or read and return, in a timely fashion, for the next visitor.