A LOOK AHEAD * Angelenos broke ground in 1995 by setting aside a day for discussion of race relations. Similar events now are being held in 60 cities, showing that . . . : L.A.’s Dialogue on Race Is Heard Around Nation

From Frenchie’s Patio Soul Food on Western Avenue to the Getty Museum in Brentwood to St. Brigid’s Catholic Church, Angelenos will come together in scores of places this week to talk.

And organizers hope it will be the kind of candid talk usually reserved for close friends with shared biases--risky talk about issues that people too often prefer to avoid.

These conversations have their genesis in reactions to the O.J. Simpson verdict, as long-ignored fissures in Los Angeles’ social landscape threatened to sink the city in acrimony.

City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas decided in 1995 that it was time to bring together people from varied backgrounds to talk about race and all its implications. He launched a “Day of Dialogue” to provide some “collective form of relief” for a painfully polarized city.

This year, Los Angeles residents will seek that relief at 160 sites for six days beginning Wednesday. And using the Los Angeles model, residents of 60 cities across the country will gather in similar sessions for the first National Days of Dialogue on Race Relations, confronting one another’s fears, hopes, anger and optimism.

“It represents the maturing of our society on the question of race such that we can bring it out of the closet,” said Ridley-Thomas, a co-convener of the national effort. “And it’s time. It’s high time.”

Participants in past discussions say only good can come from people agreeing not only to talk about race, but to listen.

“It’s crucial that we talk to each other across class, culture, race, gender and sexual preference lines,” said Joshua Rubin, 50, of Long Beach, who participated last year and will be a facilitator this week. “This is one of the few opportunities that I know of to do that. There’s a lot of anger among white men. They feel dispossessed.”

Members of Los Angeles’ University Synagogue and Eternal Promise Baptist Church met during the Day of Dialogue in 1996 and have been talking to each other ever since.

“These are not cute, polite sessions,” said Eternal Promise’s pastor, the Rev. Richard Lamar Horton. “These have been some gut-wrenching sessions. These things could only have been said in an atmosphere of trust and mutual care.”

The dialogue has “not only strengthened the rapport among the individuals who participate, but it continues to break down stereotypes and create a sense of community that is long-lasting,” said Universal Synagogue’s senior Rabbi Allen I. Freehling.

Ridley-Thomas sees the country’s embrace of this year’s Days of Dialogue as a sign of the times, coming when President Clinton has launched his own initiative promoting open discussions of race.

But critics say the efforts amount to all talk and no action--activities simply unnecessary in the nation today.

“On an overall day-to-day basis, the races are able to live quite well together,” said Edward Thomas, a city councilman in Denver, where white supremacists are suspected of shooting and killing African immigrant Oumar Dia last year. “In some cases, the activists can’t wait for a racial incident to pour more fuel on the fire. It’s their notoriety security blanket.”

But across the country, communities are heeding the call for residents from divergent backgrounds to talk to each other.

In Wilmington, N.C., the discussions are being promoted by the 1898 Centennial Foundation, a group organizing a commemoration of race riots in which scores of African Americans were killed and others forcibly expelled from the city on Nov. 10, 1898.

“Our point is not to blame, but to come together and turn our dialogue into action that benefits this community,” said Centennial Foundation’s Trish Snyder.

Discussions in Washington are being organized by the National Council of La Raza, the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium and the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People, among other groups.

“I think this is a great opportunity for everyone as individuals to really challenge themselves and say, ‘I may not be able to change the world, but I can definitely change my behavior with those around me in a much more positive way,’ ” said Carmen Joge, civil rights policy analyst for the National Council of La Raza.

In Los Angeles, Ridley-Thomas’ wife, Avis, said the discussions are not “feel-good” sessions. The exchanges are challenging, the views widely divergent, she said.

“The goal is not to agree, but to understand the experiences that have gone into the positions that people take on race relations,” said Avis Ridley-Thomas, who heads the Dispute Resolution Program in the city attorney’s office. Those interested in participating in the discussions should contact that office.

Avis Ridley-Thomas recently organized a training session to teach volunteer facilitators how to conduct the discussions.

The format is simple. Groups of 10 to 20 people face each other in a circle and talk--ideally for at least three hours. The facilitator spells out the rules and makes sure everyone abides by them--no name-calling, shouting or dominance by one person.

“I would like to have better communication, better understanding of other people’s problems,” said Raul Cejudo, a volunteer who was trained to facilitate this week’s dialogues.

“Everyone doesn’t have to accept what you’re saying, but you’ve got to be heard,” said another volunteer, Shenia Davis, holding her 1 1/2-year-old son Malik. “A lot of times, being heard can neutralize a situation.”

When Mark Ridley-Thomas set out to launch the Days of Dialogue, he turned to Connecticut-based Study Circles Resource Center for help. The Days of Dialogue format is derived from the center’s emphasis on small group discussions on issues of common concern.

And once the discussions were launched between University Synagogue and Eternal Promise Baptist Church, the day of dialogue became years.

“At the very first meeting, we decided we’ve had too many of these one-day sessions,” Horton said. “If we really wanted to deal with the issues and get to the core of racism, we needed to continue to meet.”

Since their first meeting two years ago, a group of 16 people--half from the church and half from the synagogue--have held monthly discussions and shared meals at group members’ homes.

The greatest advantage of meeting regularly has been the development of trust and respect among the members, Horton said.

Freehling said the discussions have “evolved into a process in which individuals are benefiting while at the same time they are providing a safe place for everyone to not only open up their minds but also their hearts.

“I think that over a period of time, the group has gone from superficialities and niceties to honest candor. The group’s sense of comfort is so strong that there is no hesitance on the part of any of the participants to bring up any matters of concern for fear that it will be taken out of context.”

Whether the dialogues will produce anything other than talk is a concern voiced even by some participants, but supporters say talk must be part of any solution.

“Nothing can happen until after talk,” Horton said. “I’ve never known any issue, national or international, to be resolved without talking. People come to a peace table before making peace. We’re not talking at one another. We’re talking with one another. It’s the honest, open sharing that opens up the avenue for other possibilities.”

Robert Wilkins participated in the first event in Los Angeles and has taken the discussions to Oakland, where he now lives.

“All of us look for real grand schemes to solve the problem of race,” said Wilkins, head of the East Bay YMCA. “Simply talking may not necessarily be good enough, but it is good.”