Our community grows stronger when we listen to  and connect with each other. Accepting Our Neighbors is a group dedicated to exploring & understanding the diversity that makes our community unique. We share a desire to learn about the experiences of people from diverse cultures, races, sexual identities, and economic backgrounds. Join us for monthly community conversations about diversity and identity.

This month, we'll discuss a TED talk by multidisciplinary artist Paul Rucker. Rucker is unstitching the legacy of systemic racism in the United States. A collector of artifacts connected to the history of slavery -- from branding irons and shackles to postcards depicting lynchings -- Rucker couldn't find an undamaged Ku Klux Klan robe for his collection, so he began making his own. The result: striking garments in non-traditional fabrics like kente cloth, camouflage and silk that confront the normalization of systemic racism in the US. "If we as a people collectively look at these objects and realize that they are part of our history, we can find a way to where they have no more power over us," Rucker says.