David Ryan Barcega Castro-Harris

Really though. Trying to navigate this has taken up so much time this month. It’s made so many parts of this work more complicated.

I know iCloud storage is A solution but I’ve been trying to delete pics little by little and the maps data keeps growing.

Send help!

“The only minority destroying this country are the billionaires”

-I can’t find who originally said this but, it’s a f*cking bar.

Want to bring more connection into your classroom?

Grab my “180 Questions for Building Classroom Connection”

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Talking circles don’t just build language skills—they build relationships, confidence, and community.
If we want students to thrive, we need to slow down, listen deeply, and make space for every voice.

What other benefits have you seen from talking circles?

5. Talking Circles Reduce Performance Pressure:
In circle, everyone gets a turn—no hand-raising, no competing. This lowers anxiety and helps students participate at their own pace.

4. Talking Circles Foster Cultural & Personal Expression:
ELLs often come from cultures not centered in school.
Circles invite them to share who they are—building belonging and honoring their stories.

3. Talking Circles Expands Vocabulary & Language Structures:
With intentional prompts and themes, students use and hear key vocabulary in context. This repetition and modeling reinforce their learning in an organic way.

2. Talking Circles Encourage Active Listening & Comprehension:
Listening to peers helps ELLs hear how language is used in real life. They pick up new words, sentence patterns, and pronunciation while hearing real stories from classmates.

1. Talking Circles help ELL Students Build Confidence in Speaking:
ELLs often feel anxious about making mistakes.
Talking circles create a predictable, respectful space where everyone has a turn—no competition, no pressure.
Over time, this builds the confidence to speak up.

Last week, I helped teachers with their talking circles. One positive impacts a teacher shared was something that I'd never thought of:

A student who spoke no English at the beginning of the year now shares confidently in circle.

Here are 5 Ways Talking Circles help English Language Learners...

Sacred reminder:

YOUR SOUL IS EQUIPPED FOR THESE TIMES.

You carry gifts from your BLOODLINE.

WE are more powerful than we have been led to believe.

It’s not fool proof but I high-key judge how “restorative” an organization is by their snack game.

Hospitality is a revolutionary act!

I know this person meant well, and their remark wasn’t really harmful, but it got me thinking:

What does it actually mean to be an elder?

Who do you consider your elders?
At what point did you recognize them as elders?
Do you think of yourself as an elder? Since when?

Drop your thoughts 👇🏽

internally, my immediate thought was:

First of all, I’m not your elder.
Second, I don’t know you like that—we don’t have that kind of relationship.
But what I really left wondering was: How are you using the term elder?

What does it mean to be an elder?

A little while ago, I was facilitating a circle, & afterward, a white person in their 40s came up to me & said:

"Thank you so much. It was so good to be held in space by an elder in this work."

I said, "You're welcome," & kept it moving but…

When do you shift from labeling someone’s behavior as racist vs. labeling them as a racist?

Is it:
-the severity of the action
-repeated behavior
-how many incidents
-something else?

I believe in redemption & people’s ability to change through the lens of #restorativejustice. But what’s the line?

At the moment it is a reminder to myself as I’m struggling to streamline the Amplify RJ communication channels, learning materials, and community platforms.

visit amplifyrj.com to get/stay connected

Whether you’re learning a new skill, navigating tricky relationship dynamics, addressing oppressive institutions, you won’t get things 100% “right” on your first try.

Don’t let that stop you from trying, reflecting, (un)learning, getting support, & trying again.

With all respect to everyone’s nuanced circumstances and perspectives, we don’t need to be duplicating efforts, before you start your next project or organization from scratch look around to see who’s already working on your issue see how you can: support, join, and or learn from them.

Connect with community, focus on what you can do today, and rest. That’s enough.

Wake tomorrow and repeat.

There are a lot of things pulling for your attention today, some more deserving than others.

Here’s a gentle invitation to keep the main thing (Collective liberation from empire, capitalism, racism, cis-hetro-patriarchy)
the main thing.

Do the things that you can impact at the intersection of your roles, identity, & social & geographical positioning. Trust that your contribution to our collective liberation is enough.

We have a long road ahead, so connect with community, get to work, & don’t for get to breathe, eat, & hydrate.

Today is a good day to double down on your commitment to do the work of bending the moral arc of the universe towards justice and equity for all.

But also remember that not ALL of the work is your responsibility. We get there together.

Traditional Native wisdom on land stewardship utilizes techniques such as controlled burning specifically to PREVENT something like this. Also the Tongva/Gabrielino people to this day ARE NOT FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED.

Land Back is climate justice AND restorative justice.

Thanks for the invitation

“If I have to choose between despair, apathy, and hope, I choose hope. It’s the outlook that’s most likely to inspire action for positive change.”
-me 😜

What is one specific way you can use the idea of a "fresh start" in your interactions this week to build or repair trust?

The New Year invites us to begin again, but #RestorativeJustice reminds us that EVERY moment is a chance to build, strengthen, or repair a relationship. Fresh starts aren’t tied to dates—they’re tied to choices.

I’m not looking for perfection. I understand that humans are flawed, we are products of our socialization, and we’re all operating under capitalism.

Just looking for orgs, people, and leaders who routinely put principles over profit/“productivity”.

Miss me with the “DEI” initiatives. Can anyone name an organization/institution that employs more than 50 people that actually stands for justice and equity for all their stakeholders?

6/6 Adjust practices accordingly, get additional support and resources as needed & REPEAT:
This is life long work and as your life changes, so will your needs. So stay flexible and open to change. When you notice a gap, explore new tools, systems, or relationships to fill it and keep moving forward.