Anyone who is interested in exploring ideas about race and participating in thought provoking group discussion.
The Dinner Table Experience is hosted virtually or in the homes of hosts.
Participants are assigned to a virtual or in person experience. An icebreaker is included and is centered around questions. The questions focus on personal experiences, values, beliefs, fears, needs, and goals. Each participant will have several minutes to share thoughts and reactions, with limited inquiry from other participants. It is important to listen to others and suspend judgment.
Participants should bring an open mind and willingness to share personal experiences. Trained facilitators will lend structure and utilize established techniques designed to minimize debate and maximize understanding. The program design allows for an hour or more of discussion.
No, there is no charge to attend. All costs are covered by donations of hosts, sponsors, Board of Directors, organizers, and Facilitators.
You may donate to the work of the America’s Dinner Table here click here to donate. All donations are greatly appreciated and contribute to the improvement and expansion of our mission.
The Dallas Dinner Table begins promptly at 6:30 pm, though all Guests and Hosts are requested to login to the Zoom site by 6:15. Facilitators will join earlier. The event is designed to end at 8:30 pm on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday, the third Monday of January each year. Please be on time. Remember, we have a limited number of seats. If you know in advance that you will not be able to attend, please contact us at info@dallasdinnertable.com so that we can make that seat available to someone else.
Participation will be limited by the number of hosts and the number of facilitators. We want to assure that each table has a diverse group of participants. People will generally be assigned to tables in the order that they registered, but subject to the need to balance participants at each table. Everyone will be notified the week before the event.
To sign up, complete the registration information on the Register page of this website once registration has opened. Registration will close two weeks prior to the event or earlier if capacity is met.
Once registration opens, register for the event and participate as either a Guest, Facilitator or Host. Guests are expected to arrive promptly by 6:00 pm at their designated dinner location on the day of the event and be prepared to hear and share their diverse perspectives about the impact of race in their daily lives with their fellow guests, facilitator, and host. Facilitators will attend orientation sessions prior to the event so that they will be prepared to guide dialogue at each table towards cross-cultural communication with a focus on personal action and growth, and foster the advantages of cross-racial relationships. Hosts provide an evening meal, either privately or with resources provided by their religious organizations or businesses, to participants.
No, there is no charge to attend. Dinner is provided through the generosity of our hosts. Please feel free to make a donation to the Dallas Dinner Table so that we may continue this program.
Explore this website to learn more about the Dallas Dinner Table and how you may participate. Join our email list to stay informed of developments for Dallas Dinner Table throughout the year. Donate to the Dallas Dinner Table, we are an independent non-profit organization focused on improving race relations in the DFW metroplex; every donation, large or small, is important and greatly appreciated.
Dinners are held in private homes, churches, businesses, or restaurants and hosted by gracious citizens who provide an evening meal to participants from diverse backgrounds.
To assure diversity at each table, we need certain information about each participant. The personal characteristics information is used only for that purpose and is not shared with anyone nor any other organizations. Your contact information is needed to ensure that we can communicate with you.
The Dallas Dinner Table keeps our event, and your comments, safe and secure by requiring you to take the following steps when you register to participate.
If you do not already have a Zoom account, with your own login name and password, you must go to Zoom.us and register. You will be required to provide an email account and create a password for yourself.
You must use the same email address that you gave Zoom to register for the Dallas Dinner Table event. If you are using your Zoom login to your corporate Zoom account, please register using that email address.
The email address is your key to allowing you to participate on January 18th. To ensure your own safety and security, as well as the safety and security of others, no one at Dallas Dinner Table has the authority to override that requirement.
Most of us have been living in a Zoom environment for almost a year. Always remember your video camera and sound may be on. Please behave, and dress, accordingly.
You will receive an email communication providing you with the Zoom link for your entry to the event. You will also receive periodic reminders. Remember, when you login to Zoom, you may be required to enter your email address that you used to register for Zoom and for Dallas Dinner Table to enter the event.
Yes. When registering as a Guest, you will be asked if you want to register a second person. If you select that option, you will be asked to provide details about the second person. Both you and that second person must share the same computer to enter the event. If you and your guest are in separate locations, and use different devices, you must register separately.
Facilitators guide the conversation using proven techniques. Facilitators will be provided with guidelines and materials to use during the dinner, and they will be required to attend a training session in December or January.
Yes, but the primary role of the Facilitator is to follow the Dallas Dinner Table process and encourage the guests to share their own experiences, thoughts, and beliefs. They are not experts on the topics under discussion. Their primary focus is to encourage the open sharing of thoughts and feelings among the guests. Remember, this event is both for and about you.
For the past 20 years, the Dallas Dinner Table has depended on the generosity of hosts to provide dinner to the guests. In 2021, because of the pandemic, that has changed. You may sponsor a virtual table, or several tables, by your donation to the Dallas Dinner Table. You may go to this link, click here to donate to make your donation to defray the costs of this virtual experience. There are no other expectations, than to attend, listen, and share at your designated virtual table.
