Continuing Revolution 2025: Queer Liberation and Spirit-Rooted Justice

On-Site Registration  |  Online Registration

A gathering of young adults (ages 18-35) to explore connections between our spiritual, political, and interpersonal lives. Join us on-site at Friends Place in Washington, DC, or participate online hosted by Pendle Hill.

In celebration of World Pride taking place in Washington, DC, this year’s programming is centered around the theme of queer liberation and spirit-rooted justice. Participants will be invited to explore where their spiritual practice intersects with the collective pursuit for queer liberation. They will leave with a sense of connection with individuals and organizations that can support and inform their role(s) in creating peace and justice in their communities and in the world.

See the full schedule of workshops and activities.

This program welcomes young adults aged 18-35 who are Quaker or Quaker-adjacent/interested, “fellow travelers and seekers,” and any of the following:

• Inspired to seek justice;
• Curious about the structures of our world at present;
• Curious about queer liberation in particular;
• Curious about the interplay of current structures and oppression;
• Looking for tools to bring about a more just and sustainable future;
• Seeking to be in community with other spiritually-minded individuals;
• Seeking spiritual grounding/tools.
  

Download the flyer to share with your community

This program is open to young adults in the LGBTQ+ community and those who are allies in the quest for queer liberation. 

Speakers

Dr. Sa’ed Atshan (Plenary Speaker) is Associate Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies and Anthropology and Chair of the Department of Peace and Conflict Studies at Swarthmore College. He has previously served as an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Emory University, as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Senior Research Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, and as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Brown University’s Watson Institute for International Studies. He earned a PhD in Anthropology and Middle Eastern Studies and MA in Social Anthropology from Harvard University, an MPP from the Harvard Kennedy School, and BA from Swarthmore College.

Atshan is the author of Queer Palestine and the Empire of Critique (Stanford University Press, 2020), co-author (with Katharina Galor) of The Moral Triangle: Germans, Israelis, Palestinians (Duke University Press, 2020), and co-editor (with Galor) of Reel Gender: Palestinian and Israeli Cinema (Bloomsbury, 2022).

Sarah Gillooly serves as the General Secretary (Chief Executive) of Baltimore Yearly Meeting, the regional body of Quakers in the Mid-Atlantic. Prior to this role, Sarah spent 20 years in policy and advocacy, working on civil rights and civil liberties issues in Missouri, Kansas, North Carolina, and Washington, DC. Sarah has recently completed a Master of Divinity degree at Earlham School of Religion and also holds an M.A. and B.A. in Women’s & Gender Studies from Loyola University Chicago and Agnes Scott College. Sarah is a member of Adelphi Friends Meeting near College Park, MD, where they are in the process of being recorded in the ministry of chaplaincy. Sarah lives in Takoma Park, MD, with their partner, Mari, and their rescue dogs. Sarah is completing clinical pastoral education at DC’s largest Level 1 trauma center, and in their free time is a podcast aficionado, avid hiker/camper, and agrees with Adrienne Rich that there are days when housework really is the only outlet.

Inaara Neal-Shiraz (she/her) serves as the Inclusion and Belonging Coordinator for the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends which encompasses 100+ Quaker meetings of nearly 10,000 Friends across the states of New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. Inaara works in collaboration with local and quarterly Quaker meetings to facilitate conversations and programming on belonging, finding new, organic, and innovative ways for Friends to be welcomed into and participate more dynamically in the life of their Quaker communities. She helps organize and lead programming related to across various intersections, including disability rights, addressing racism and reparations work, LGBTQ+ inclusion, along with serving the Young Adult Friends community (ages 18-35).

Inaara received her Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Certificate from Rowan University, and has served at the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting since Fall of 2023. She worships regularly with Friends in the Philadelphia region having graduated from Harvard University with a joint degree in History and Literature as well as in Theater, Dance & Media, minoring in South Asian Studies. Experienced in the non-profit sector with a focus in serving religious institutions, Inaara enjoys working with community members throughout the region, supporting impactful and service-oriented initiatives.

Leader(s)

Continuing Revolution 2025: Queer Liberation and Spirit-Rooted Justice is co-hosted by Friends Place on Capitol Hill and Pendle Hill. The on-site program leads from Friends Place are Sarah Johnson, Olivia Delaplaine, and Jackson Malkus. The online program lead from Pendle Hill is Maddie Rose.

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