Comfort vs Courage: Disrupting Power to Center Family Voice and Belonging

Do families feel seen, heard, and centered when policy and advocacy decisions get made? We say we value family voice, but do we? In this interactive session, we asked hard questions about whose voices are welcomed, who’s being asked to adapt, and whose comfort we prioritize. Through courageous reflection, openness to bold dialogue, and hearing about real-life experiences, participants were inspired and provided with tools that align their values with action.

Together, we:

• Learned from allies who have made courageous shifts toward shared power and family-led change
• Reflected on how we can, individually and organizationally, recognize unintended performative inclusion and extractive practices
• Left with renewed clarity about what we must unlearn and what we must do differently to center family voice and leadership

This was not a session for the faint of heart! But rather a space for those ready to uninvite harm, welcome truth, and redesign tables to be places of true belonging.