December 2023
Announcing The Bold Transformation from
Middle Project to Freedom Rising
Preparing Ethical Leaders for a Just Society
We are delighted to announce the transition we are making from Middle Project to Freedom Rising.
Our charter remains the same, but we have a new board, and an even more robust mission to help freedom rise in a more just society.
Welcome to Freedom Rising, the movement for love and justice that's in motion
with fierce, revolutionary lovers across the nation and around the globe.
Earlier this year, we co-sponsored the three-day
Freedom Rising Conference 2023 with Middle Church.
We came together to learn, dream, and build towards a better future.
Highlights from the Freedom Rising Conference
On Day One, we explored the fundamental lies of Christo-fascism that are undermining our democracy, forcing its values on a pluralistic society. We confronted the racist and sexist legacies of our founding, and the ongoing harm they cause.
Day Two was about liberating our stories and expanding our moral imaginations. We examined the ways current stories about race, class, gender, ableness and sexuality need re-writing, owning our grief, rest and joy.
On Day Three, inspired by the politics of Ubuntu—the ancient African philosophy that stresses how our destinies are intertwined in a network of mutuality—we imagined a future in which and politics enable the flourishing of all of us.
Sunday worship featured a fierce sermonic conversation between Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis, Rabbi Joshua Stanton, activist Linda Sarsour, and the Jerriese Johnson Gospel Choir put us on our feet.
We are delighted to announce our next justice gathering:
Freedom Rising: You. Move. The World.
April 26-28, 2024
A THREE-DAY GATHERING TO NURTURE LOVE FOR OURSELVES,
MOVEMENT-BUILDING ACROSS OUR DIFFERENCES, AND WILD
DREAMING OF THE WORLD WE CAN CREATE—TOGETHER—IN
THIS NEXT ELECTION SEASON AND BEYOND.
NYC | April 28, 2023
Day 1
UPROOTING CHRISTIAN FASCISM’S LIE.
The undemocratic takeover of our judicial system is just the tip of a movement that seeks to force a pluralistic country to conform to fundamentalist Christianity. It’s also based on fundamental lies:
We live in abundance, not scarcity. People deserve autonomy over whether they create new life. The Earth is not a limitless resource for us to plunder. And we do not have to live by the vision of founders who named Indigenous siblings “savages,” treated women as property and legislated Black folks as ⅗ of a person.
NYC | April 29, 2023
Day 2
LIBERATING YOUR STORY
Living within these damaging systems confines our moral imaginations. On the second day, we’ll hear from folks who help us dream more expansively about what we deserve. We’ll examine the ways that stories about race, class, gender and sexuality have conditioned us, and help each other write different stories—ones grounded in the love and freedom we’re meant to enjoy. We'll explore the centrality of rest and joy in activism, and how to
NYC | April 30, 2023
Day 3
THE POLITICS OF UBUNTU
The ancient wisdom of Ubuntu teaches us an essential truth: We become a person through other people. Or, as Dr. King would express it, all of us are “caught in an inescapable network of mutuality,” our destinies intertwined. What would a politics look like that honors these truths? How would it change the way we think about borders? The existence of policing? Our voting laws? On this day, we’ll host subject experts across a wide array of topics to help you dream about policy solutions that help all people flourish.
Sponsors
Rooted in Ethics.
Committed to Serve.
Inspired to Lead.
So you want to change the world, and you’ve discovered it’s more difficult than you thought. At Freedom Rising, we first start with ourselves. We begin with tools for greater self-awareness. We utilize experiential learning to help participants:
Engage in Spiritual Practices
Lead with Vision for a Just Society
Negotiate Difference and Conflict
Understand the Dynamics of Change
Understand Leadership Styles and Building a Team
Exert Ethical Leadership in the Public Square
Understand Race, Culture, and the Dynamics of Power and Privilege
Freedom Rising prepares ethical leaders for a more just society. It is an institute that brings together youth, young adults and adults from many fields and faith traditions.
Freedom Rising unites progressive leaders who are ready for a revolutionary and prophetic way of using power and resources to act locally and think globally to heal the human family. Freedom Rising takes its strength and approach from the progressive faith traditions that have played a major role in America’s greatest democratic achievements: the abolition of slavery, civil rights, universal suffrage, and the anti-war movement.
Contact
➤ LOCATION
PO Box 1400
New York, NY 10276
☎ CONTACT
Middleprojectfinance@gmail.com
middleinfo@middlechurch.org
(212) 477-0666
ConferenceS & Freedom rising
Join us for more Freedom Rising tools, tactics, and truth-telling to dismantle racism.
Young Adult Leadership Lab
The Freedom Rising Leadership Lab provides experiential education on strategic ways to create a more just society.
middle-on-the-road
Middle-on-the-Road is a new program initiative aiming to facilitate broader outreach, engagement and organizing to recruit and mobilize new voters based on ethical values and citizen leadership.
Consulting
Freedom Rising is committed to supporting and resourcing progressive congregations as they strive for excellence in ministry.
Resources
Looking practical and meaningful resources for your work to heal the soul and heal the world?
Project Incubation
We provide fiscal sponsorship and other program support to special initiatives that are mission aligned.