BRIDGE BUILDERS
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A Word from Jason Daum

At Valley Christian Church our mission is to Seek God, Share Our Lives, and Serve Others. As part of the fulfillment of that mission, we have formed Bridge Builders, to:
  • Expand our understanding of what it means to love our neighbor,
  • Journey alongside one another as we reflect on issues like white   privilege, historical trauma and racism, and
  • Extend Christ’s love to the community in ways that advance racial equity and promote social justice.

SEEKING...
We want to become more and more like Christ by caring deeply for all people. Part of caring deeply about people is learning about who they are, where they’ve come from, and understanding the oppression they face daily for simply existing. Additionally, we want to reflect on how we as individuals, and as a church, have (un)consciously contributed to that oppression.    
1 John 4:20-21

SHARING...
We want to love each other no matter what. We want to explore our own biases individually and support each other in unpacking those biases in loving ways. We want to love the community around us. We want to build relationships in our community that helps us understand our own lives and the lives of our neighbors.
Romans 12:10-18

SERVING...
We want to act. We want to act in big ways and in small ways — both unseen. We want to learn to do what is right for our neighbors, seek justice for all communities, and defend those who are experiencing oppression.
Isaiah 1:17a
Where do we start?
Caring, listening, and learning.

As a starting point for Valley Christian Church, we are curating the resources below to support an ongoing initiative we’re calling “Know Your Neighbor”.

Each trimester we’ll focus our listening and learning around specific cultures and communities that we interact with in Dakota County and Greater Minnesota. Our hope is that by learning and listening, our fear of others will be driven out by love and that love would lead to further trust and community. 1 John 4:20

This list will be updated and expanded to include resources appropriate for all ages. At this point, we recommend the following resources only for adults.
Know Your Dakota Neighbor
There are 4 Federally recognized Dakota communities in Minnesota: Prairie Island, Lower Sioux, Upper Sioux, and Shakopee and 1 non-Federally recognized community, Mendota. There are about 4000 Dakota people in Minnesota, with only an estimated 8 fluent speakers remaining. With a long history of systemic oppression and government assimilation policies, including boarding schools and the Indian Relocation Act, Dakota leaders and activists have to address a plethora of issues in the communities: Violence, substance abuse, alcohol, dropout rates, suicide rates, incarceration rates, etc. The effects of The War of 1862 are still felt today: Thousands of Dakota still remain as refugees. The language and culture, deemed wrong and illegal, was not encouraged for four generations.

To learn more, consider these resources:

Books:
  • Massacre in Minnesota: The Dakota War of 1862, the Most Violent Ethnic Conflict in American History by Gary Clayton Anderson
  • The Dakota War of 1862: Minnesota's Other Civil War by Kenneth Carley
  • Mni Sota Makoce: The Land of the Dakota by Gwen Westerman and Bruce White
  • North Country: The Making of Minnesota by Mary Lethert Wingerd
  • Indian Boyhood: The True Story of a Sioux Upbringing by Charles Alexander Eastman
  • The Dakota Indian Internment at Fort Snelling, 1862-1864 by Corinne L. Monjeau-Marz
  • The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman and Beth Dooley

Documentaries:    
Websites:
Podcast: