Inclusivity Committee
Our purpose is to actively attract and welcome people who want to stop drinking, specifically embracing those typically marginalized by society. Some examples of marginalized groups: senior citizens, youth, racial or cultural minorities, military combat veterans, LGBTQIA+ people, learning challenged, individuals with justice history, the homeless, persons with grave behavioral or mental health disorders.
Suggested Duties
Share information, along with our accumulated experience, awareness, and understanding, with the Area 48 districts, groups, and online AA communities.
Inclusivity: Suggestions to enhance Unity
For Individuals
- Continue to take inventory and when we are wrong, promptly admit it, (Step 10)
- Be mindful.
- When we know better, we do better.
For Meetings
- Adopt the new preamble wording.
- Invite newcomers to introduce themselves at the beginning of the meeting.
- Redirect meetings by sharing your experience in spiritual terms.
- Talk to members who share in a non-inclusive way privately after the meeting. Explain why what they said might have been exclusionary or limiting.
- Members are charged with educating newcomers in the traditions. They should teach accountability and accessibility, and what is acceptable.
- Service is a pleasurable duty; I can never repay what AA has given me.
For Group Business Meetings
- Establish a spiritual position whose job it is to make sure everyone has a voice.
- Take a hard look at taking an institutional commitment – make sure that the commitment will be covered. Treatment and corrections are where we will reach more minorities.
- Take a stronger responsibility to welcome and include the sick and suffering vulnerable newcomers.
- Having a group culture of service. Encourage people to get involved in general service. Exposed to traditions in living color in real time.
For District and Area Meetings
- Be mindful of including those sitting near you in conversations. Invite them to join your conversation.
- Have signs around the meeting space that say something like “Have you greeted someone you don’t know today?”
- Continue with virtual meetings for those with different needs: sensory issues, hearing, those who work on weekends, those who are on probation and can’t leave the county,
- Ride share coordination – list of people who are willing to give rides.
- Inclusive language – not binary. As an example of one easy thing you can do: including your pronouns on your email signature and video id.
To contact Area 48’s Inclusivity chair, you can email: inclusivity@nenyaa.org
Inclusivity Panel and Workshop Recordings:
The monthly Inclusivity Committee meeting is the third Tuesday of each month at 6:30pm. All are welcome!
Meeting ID: 898 3966 8615
Passcode: 974900