At the first-ever gathering of Buddhist teachers of black African descent, held at New York’s Union Theological Seminary, two panels of leading Buddhist teachers took questions about what it means to be a black Buddhist in America today.
Radical Dharma: Emergence Magazine Interview
In this in-depth interview with Emergence Magazine, Reverend angel Kyodo Williams reflects on our widespread crisis of story, the failure of institutional religions to offer a new way forward, and her philosophy of Radical Dharma—a path to individual and collective liberation.
Black Queer Buddhist Teacher Leading An Awakening
Rev. angel Kyodo Williams doesn’t like stereotypes. That’s not entirely surprising, since she also seems to enjoy shattering them. She’s a black queer woman in an American Buddhist tradition often steered by white men; a Buddhist operating in activist circles of mostly Christians and Jews; a leader of the Religious Left who doesn’t use the word “God.”
An Unprecedented Opportunity
When I previously interviewed Rev. angel, for the January 2014 issue of The MOON, I was taken with several of her statements. “The only way the world is going to change the way we want it to is for us to show up in that same way,” she said. “If we want sustainability in the world, we have to live in sustainable ways. If we want peace in the world, we have to live in peaceful ways. If we want justice in the world, we have to be just in all our dealings.”
Inhabiting Multiple Spaces
An interview with angel Kyodo williams By Garrison Institute In an upcoming “Garrison Talks at the JCC” event in New York City on August 10, “Bridging Spirituality and Activism,” Zen […]
Inhabiting Multiple Spaces
Zen teacher angel Kyodo Williams and meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg will discuss challenging questions about the relationship between the personal and social transformation. The central message of Radical Dharma is that personal and social transformation must be brought together, with an extra emphasis on those who have been historically marginalized. Do I have that right
Beyond Privilege: a Q&A with angel Kyodo williams
To make diversity real, says Zen teacher angel Kyodo williams, Buddhists must look deep into their own hearts. Brooklyn Zen Center executive director Greg Snyder has spoken of a mind-meld […]
Beyond Privilege: a Q&A with angel Kyodo williams
I’m a New Yorker. I lived in Fort Greene and had a little sitting group, an offshoot of my main practice home of Village Zendo. Not in the sense of tomorrow, but I’m hopeful that the seed has been planted, that the irrelevance of the systems that continue to privilege small groups of people is laid bare now. We’re in this wonderful moment of going, “Oh, this doesn’t work. There are no winners in this.”
15 Years Later: American Buddhism & Diversity
When Being Black came out in 2000, I was chagrined by what I had done. Being Black author angel Kyodo Williams speaks about the evolution of diversity in American Buddhism and her work to promote inclusivity in Buddhism across communities
Self-care For Activists
Zen teacher, activist, and author of Being Black and Radical Dharma Rev. angel Kyodo Williams describes how nurturing a sense of inner well-being results in outward action that doesn’t feel like a struggle.