Police

[Michael Herman]

my two cents on this one...

my very first ost event was at a very dynamic catholic church, in the
area of young adult ministry, a booming operation that was revitalizing
the church here in chicago, inviting 20- and 30-somethings back into
conversation and community about church and spirit.

they asked me to organize a one-day conference they'd done for years.  i
said yes, but i want to do it in ost.  they listened to what that meant
and then said "we think this is great, we understand it, and we're not
sure if catholics can do this... they (we) really like structure..."

"ack!" i say to myself... and explain a bit more... AND THEN go find a
70-year old nun whose whole community of sisters used ost every year at
their annual days-long meeting.  arguably some of the most catholic
folks you could hope to find... living adn loving openspace.  my friends
were reassured and we had a fantastic day in open space.

all of which to say that sometimes these judgments come from within a
culture rather than outside of a culture.  and regardless of where they
arise, it seems hard to generalize about whether such references to
culture are dangerous and harmful or simply an important naming and
acknowledging of the various and real ways an existing culture may be
tested and challenged by the culture that is implied by ost.

mh



Esther . wrote:

> Birgitt:
>
> I completely agree with you about the need to not characterize or
> stereotype people. Perhaps I could add a couple of thoughts...
>
> I find that I am sometimes blindsided by assumptions I've made about
> people either because I've not examined them (the assumptions) or
> because I'm wrapped up in an unexamined fear of not measuring up.
>
> So when I saw the postings about doing OS with police officers, I
> assumed that it came from a concern to do well rather than a bias
> toward police officers or any other group. And I saw the responses as
> reassurance.
>
> I had an experience once when I was a very new consultant of
> faciliation with some Cdn armed forces folks where I felt completely
> intimidated (I think one officer meant to do it) but it taught me some
> valuable lessons finding out in advance how people would react
> to certain kinds of processes. I should say that they weren't my
> client. Another consultant had called me in to contribute to the
> facilitation and so I didn't have as much influence on the overall
> process as I would have if it had been my client. And in retrospect, I
> can imagine that Open Space would have worked brilliantly.
>
> But examining the assumptions about a group you are about to work
> with, checking them out, and being open to new information is
> important pre-work (and ongoing work) for ourselves to do as consultants.
>
> With great respect,
> Esther
>
>
> Esther Ewing
> The Change Alliance - Assisting Individuals and Organizations to Build
> Capability
> www.ChangeAlliance.com <http://www.changealliance.com/>
> 330 East 38th St, Suite 53K
> New York, NY 10016-9804
> 212-661-6024
>
> Authorized Distributor, Panoramic Feedback
> www.panoramicfeedback.com <http://www.panoramicfeedback.com/>
>
> * * ==========================================================
> OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU ------------------------------ To
> subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of
> oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu, Visit:
>
> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html
>

--

Michael Herman
Michael Herman Associates
300 West North Avenue #1105
Chicago IL 60610 USA
(312) 280-7838

http://www.michaelherman.com - consulting & publications
http://www.globalchicago.net - laboratory & playground
http://www.openspaceworld.org - worldwide open space

...inviting organization into movement

*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu,
Visit:

http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html