Tom Adams
See our Resource Pages for additional information on each topic.
I needed to be part of a community to fully come to love and accept myself as a person with a physical disability. However, acceptance was not enough. Much change was and is needed to make it possible for all people to participate equitably in a free and open society.
My life as a physically disabled person has become my primary justice issue. My disability is a spinal cord injury and I use a wheelchair to live independently. I was born and raised in Japan and lived in an institution from age 4 to 10 years old. After leaving the institution, I attended a special school for the disabled kids for twelve years. The school was not integrated in that, though I was living at home, I was still segregated from mainstream society.
You may not know who Lois Wilson is but you should. She lived 97 years. Fifty-three of those years she was the wife of Bill Wilson, the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. She lived 17 years after Bill died. March 4 is Lois' birthday – she would be 129. Who is she?...
As February ends, I find myself reflecting back on its designation as Black History Month and the many opportunities it provides us each year, across a wide variety of media, to dive into that history.
Until 2012, I didn’t know better. I thought that the civil rights legislation of the 1960s had leveled the playing field. I thought, I, as a Black woman, had opportunities to succeed equal to anyone in America. I was living in an illusion, thinking that some people just didn’t try hard enough, and others needed more education. I believed in a meritocracy. I thought if you dressed a certain way, got a certain level of education, talked a certain way, you could, no, you would get ahead in America. Then Trayvon Martin happened.
A friend and former colleague of mine accepted the position of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Director Officer at a large national accounting and consulting firm a little over a year ago. In my quest to assess progress on racial justice work and what others are learning that advances racial equity and justice, I checked in with her.
Two lessons from Northern Ireland have caught my attention as I have reflected on our progress in advancing racial justice. Specifically, I have been thinking about how these lessons might apply to our own national conundrum.
I have been drawn to people radiating faith as long as I can remember and yet never had any of my own faith other than the joy of sunsets and moonrises, the glory of deep dark forests, and delight in the power of persistence to change lives and worlds.
I write this post with the echo of MLK’s 2022 holiday celebration still reverberating. Just as we honor his legacy, we recognize those who came before him to guide and inspire.
As I paused and reflected yesterday on the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy, it was hard to avoid wanting a clear report card on the progress made on his mission. As I pondered the question, “How are we doing in becoming a more equal and just nation?”, my first thoughts were all negative.
Tom Adams writes and speaks on topics vital to the intersection of our personal lives with our community and global lives. He has for decades been engaged in and written about nonprofit leadership and transitions, spirituality and spiritual growth, how we each contribute to a more just and equitable world and recovery from addictions and the Twelve Step recovery movement.