People from all walks of life gathered at El Centro College in Dallas Friday night to talk about the past and how to build a better future. The forum – Actions Speak Louder – was put on by the Dallas Festival of Ideas.
"Our city was thrust into the limelight by a tragedy meant to divide," said Byron Sanders, of the Dallas Festival of Ideas. "But we have the chance to be the change many are saying they want to see."
Participants were asked to raise their hands if they were afraid, sad, angry or hopeful.
"Anger is necessary for healing," the facilitator, Rev. Alvin Herring, told the crowd.
"We've got issues in this room. We've got issues in this city. There are things that have been done and said and they've wounded us to our core," Herring preached. "And we've not given an accounting of those things yet. We've got work yet to do."
The participants were told to write down their truths on a piece of paper and post it to the walls. These are truths most people don't share.
The first post on the wall was telling.
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"It can be risky to tell the truth in Dallas," it read.
Another person wrote, "I don't know why we didn't have this meeting on July 6th."
The deadly shooting that left five police officers dead was July 7.
There will be another public forum in August to fine-tune ideas and send action items to the mayor's office.
