Artwork by Lienne Bick

Toward Liberation LLC is a woman-owned business founded in 2023 in Vermont to help us unlearn, dismantle, and heal from racism and other systems of domination while being part of the rebuilding of communities that support people in their full humanity. We offer coaching, consultations, educational workshops, and cohort groups on racial equity and liberation to support personal, organizational, and cultural change.

Founder and director, Rachel Siegel, is a white Jewish woman who works with a team of advisors who are all People of Color and equity consultants.

Workshops - Coaching - Cohorts - Consultation

Who we work with:

  • Public

  • Nonprofit organizations

  • Educational Institutions

  • Businesses

  • Government entities

  • Faith-based groups

  • Other groups

What we offer:

  • Educational workshops by contract

  • Public programs

  • Cohort and accountability groups

  • Consultation and facilitation with an equity lens

  • Individual coaching

Rachel Siegel, founder and director of Toward Liberation LLC

 Community mural by Mary Lacey, Sloane Collins, and neighborhood youth in the Old North End, Burlington, VT

All educational workshops are interactive, introspective, and informative. Our goal is to provide tools and motivation to further individual and organizational work against oppression and toward equity and liberation. Workshops are facilitated by Rachel Siegel (a white woman and the founder of Toward Liberation) or by a team of three including Rachel plus two facilitators of color.*

Workshops are held in-person whenever possible.

Meeting facilitation and coaching are done with much collaboration, sensitivity, care, and attention. At times I am directive and will share information when that feels valuable to move things. I am not always a “neutral” facilitator.

I believe it is healthy for people to go through some discomfort as they grow and learn — especially about things they care about deeply that cause so much pain, heartbreak, and rage. I try to move people into a “stretch zone” without going into panic or full nervous system activation. I spend time in all of my work reminding people to stay in touch with their physical experience to practice self regulation and stay present to discomfort.

I am committed to normalizing mistakes so we are freer to try to speak up, even when we will not be perfect.

*There are many terms used to designate different racial groups. When speaking widely about all people other than white people, Toward Liberation will default to the term People of Color or POC. Other terms commonly used include Black, Indigenous and other People of Color (BIPOC) and People of the Global Majority (PoGM).

Style of facilitation

“I fully trust Rachel to speak to white people in a way that both holds them accountable and helps them build empathy so they can be part of anti-racist work. She is a flexible facilitator who can customize what an audience needs to move deeper into the work of social justice. I loved facilitating alongside Rachel and through that collaboration she taught me a lot about the activist work I was doing in my own community and how it was grounded in a wider global movement.” 

Zoraya Hightower, first woman of color elected the Burlington City Council

 Community mural by Mary Lacey, Sloane Collins, and neighborhood youth in the Old North End, Burlington, VT

Power and privilege, implicit bias, intersectionality, racial capitalism, types of racism, classism, power dynamics, identity, ableism/disability justice, the power of empathy, “Let’s Talk Race” cards, what is whiteness, white supremacy culture and antidotes, unpacking white guilt, what is equity, systems of oppression, addressing conflict, naming mistakes and taking responsibility in DEI work, and more.

Topics include

“Rachel’s compassion is her greatest strength. She leads from a place of collective learning and growth. Rachel shares her own experiences and journeys as a way to show others that this work is lifelong and that nobody, not even the ‘experts,’ are perfect or done in their learning. Her willingness to be vulnerable with participants allows and encourages them to be vulnerable, make and own mistakes, and ask questions in a supportive space.” 

Kina Thorpe, former Peace & Justice Center Educational Program Manager and Rokeby Museum Board Member

 Community mural by Mary Lacey, Mary Sloane, and neighborhood youth in the Old North End, Burlington, VT

Philosophy and Approach

There were systems deliberately put in place when Europeans arrived on this continent that created disparities to benefit the wealthiest among us. Over the following 400 years, these systems have changed but the underlying harms and benefits remain. We believe that because these systems were created, they can also be undone. To take down these systems and create the possibility for liberation, we must work together, from a place of love for our communities. We must come to understand that systems of domination harm everyone (in different ways). Our goal is to bring people together for this common good. We support people to develop community, motivation, and tools to keep working Toward Liberation. (Read more here.)

“Rachel Siegel is the peaceful warrior you want to lead Toward Liberation. She walks the halls of power with compassion and clarity. Rachel is humble and honest about her path to racial and social justice and has the courage to speak truth to power. As a person who identifies as white, Rachel relentlessly questions whiteness.”

Hal Colston, Former State Representative

 Community mural by Mary Lacey and neighborhood youth in the Old North End, Burlington, VT

Accountability

Toward Liberation LLC works with advisors who are People of Color with experience doing equity consultation and education. The advisors review and support TL’s work. At minimum, 20% of the money paid to Toward Liberation is redistributied to the Advisory Team and/or movement-building POC-led groups.

Advisors include:

  • Ita Meno

  • Zoraya Hightower

  • Sherwood Smith

  • Hal Colston

Fee Schedule

Workshops and group facilitation

Programs are designed for up to 25 participants. Groups larger than 25 people to be negotiated. Multi day or long-term contracts are negotiable.

Single facilitator

  • Half day (up to 4 hours) $500

  • Full day (up to 8 hours) $900

Three facilitators

  • Half day (up to 4 hours) $1,300

  • Full day (up to 8 hours) $2,400

Single facilitator programs are led by Rachel Siegel, a white woman and founder of Toward Liberation.

Multiple facilitator programs include Rachel plus two other facilitators from the Toward Liberation facilitator team – both People of Color. There are two facilitators of color to avoid the possibility of one of them being the only Person of Color in the room.

Consulting and Coaching

  • One-on-one consultation $150/hour

Additional fees

  • Travel fee of $.55/mile for travel further than 15 miles from Burlington.

  • If printed materials are needed, you can create them in-house or you will be invoiced to cover the cost.

  • Negotiable accommodation and meals fees for multi-day programs more than 90 miles from Burlington.