Today is Saturday, August 3. August is National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM). NIAM raises the awareness about why vaccines are important for people of all ages and how they can help prevent serious, sometimes deadly, diseases and illnesses. Friday, August 9 is the Internatioinal Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, celebrates the richness of indigenous cultures and recognizes the challenges indigenous peoples face today, ranging from poverty and disease to dispossession, discrimination, and denial of basic human rights
Quote of the Week: “I very much believe in values-based leadership and that the values that I believe in and try to govern by are transcendent values.” Deval Patrick born July 31, 1956 – present, an American politician, the first Black governor of Massachusetts.
Featured Civil Rights Activist/Abolitionist/Pioneer for this week: Deval Patrick born July 31, 1956 – present, an American politician, the first Black governor of Massachusetts.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Deval-Patrick
EVENTS:
1. See the “SUPPORT BLACK OWNED BUSINESSES” section below for information on the Friday August 16th 12th 4:30pm-7:30pm, Paddleboard Chocolate Mindfulness Retreat at Canandaigua Lake.
2. The Rochester Area Community Foundation is sponsoring an interactive workshop and experience pieces of the “Our Local History” curriculum with program founders Kesha James and Shane Weigand on Tuesday August 13th
4:00-5:30pm, at 1040 East Avenue, at Asbury First United Methodist Church Gathering Center. See details below.
3. The 26th Annual Clarissa Street Reunion will be celebrated on Saturday, August 17th from 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM on Clarissa Street.
https://www.clarissastreetlegacy.com
https://www.minorityreporter.net/post/26th-year-annual-clarissa-street-reunion-festival-celebration
4. The Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester is hosting the Mort Skillboll Lecture on Antisemitism with Dr. Rachel Fish on September 5 at 7:00 PM (location to be determined). See further information at link below.
https://jewishfederationofgreaterroche.regfox.com/mort-skirboll-lecture-on-antisemitism
5. Save the date, 9/18/2024 for the Urban League – Rochester’s (UL-R) 5th Annual ‘Interrupt Racism’ Summit. This year’s theme is ‘Honoring Whence We Came”. This year’s Keynote Speaker is Ms. Cheryl Brown Henderson, daughter of the late Rev. Oliver Brown, lead plaintiff in the Brown vs. Board of Education court case that led to the desegregation of schools.
6. Exploring Racism Group program celebrates 5 years. Join us on Tuesday, September 24 from 5:00 – 7:00 PM to reunite and energize for the next 5 years. See link for more information and to register.
http://evite.me/QCsFn5A2eD
7. Monday, October 14 is Indigenous People’s Day. There are 3 major gatherings that day in City parks at sunrise, noon and sunset. The City of Rochester is sponsoring but is seekig co-sponsors. Attached below are details for the day and an application for co-sponsors.
NEWS, HISTORY & RESOURCES:
8. George Yeoman shares this documentary film from 1963, ‘Eloquent Civil Rights Leaders Dialogue On TV in 1963 A Powerful Moment’.
Eloquent Civil Rights Leaders Dialogue On TV in 1963 A Powerful Moment (youtube.com)
9. Drew Saur provided 2 articles from the NY Times
a. Who Can Achieve the American Dream? Race Matters Less Than It Used To.
b. Merit, Excellence and Intelligence: An Anti.-DEI Approach Catches On
Merit, Excellence and Intelligence: An Anti-DEI Approach Catches On – WSJ
10. Bill Wynne shares his thoughts and resources in his August Update. Find below.
11. Dr. Frederick Jefferson provided this article on the Finger Lakes Choral Festival held at the Hochstein Performance Hall this past Sunday, July 28. Frederick asks if anyone is interested in joining (the FLCF seeks to be a younger, more diverse group) or making a donation to FLCF for future community support, please contact him at fjefferson@admin.rochester.edu.
12. This latest article from the Pink Elephant Newsletter by Dr. Janice Gassam Asare; ‘Dear America: Black Women Are Tired’.
13. Here is an article from the Minority Reporter;
Agape Haven of Abundance Responds to Mass Shooting in Maplewood Park.
Here are two (2) articles from the Beacon this week.
a. ACT Rochester puts data, rigorous research at the forefront.
The Good Cause question – Rochester BeaconRochester Beacon
14. There are 8 articles that deal with Race, Poverty, Hate or Intolerance found in D&C over the past week.
a. Judge faces removal over ‘racially offensive’ rant. (Hard to ignore her bias towards minorities).
b. Sojourner Truth statue inspires artist. (It would be difficult not to be inspired by Sojourner Truth
c. Tenants demand rights, Rochester woman says she’s being evicted for no reason (It would appear that the number of units owned should not impact the tenant).
d. Study finds monthly basic income helpful (it is more than a handout).
e. City adopts urban forest master plan (New tree-planting blueprint seeks more equitable distribution across Rochester).
f. Shooting site once segregated neighborhood (What is the catalyst for this violence?).
g. Black women say they have Harris’ back (They expect VP to be the target of racism, sexism).
h. Illinois sheriff asks public for forgiveness (Official recognition of the intent of policing).
9. Filmmakers discuss 1964 racial uprising (this is a history that most are not aware of).
OPPORTUNITIES: Please share any opportunities for employment, assistance, grants, etc. that you are aware of with the community by sending them to “tcmitch1951@gmail.com”.
15. We repeat the link Bill Wynne provided to a video of Alvin Mitchell’s for youth at Rochester’s Cobbs Hill. As shared in the past, Alvin is virtually a one man band aiding kids and young adults at Cobbs Hill during the summer…the resources it takes for the program all flows through him with small donations makes this all possible … but he needs help. See below.
https://rocovp.com/2024/07/11/meet-x-the-mayor-of-cobbs-hill
16 Here is an opportunity to directly help the poor and homeless. Please read.
Brooks Landing Diner gives back by serving those in need
SUPPORT BLACK OWNED BUSINESSES:
17. Support the Black Community by supporting their businesses. Please share Black businesses you support and value. A good resource is “Black Owned in Rochester”
Black Owned Businesses Rochester NY Black-Owned In Rochester (blackownedinrochester.com)
18. Interested in eating healthy but don’t have time or know how? Check out the Hungry Root. See below.
19. Looking for a program to immerse your employees in experiential wellness practices that decrease stress to increase productivity and improve retention? Check out MYRetreat, a wellness app that pairs chocolate with mindfulness to dramatically improve habit formation. Also, see the business case for MYRetreat below that.
https://exploringracism.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/MYRetreat-wellness-app.docx
https://exploringracism.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Business-Case-for-MyRetreat.pdf
Here’s a Paddleboarding Chocolate Mindfulness Retreat in partnership with Fingerlakes Yogascapes
If you have an item to include in the week’s sharing we need to have it by noon on Friday.
Thank you!