Today is Saturday, October 18. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, National Book Month and LGBT History Month. The Hindu faith celebrate Diwali, Monday, September 20, the third night of the festival. Diwali is a five day festival of lights representing the start of the Hindu New Year. Diwali celebrates to victory of Good over the Evil and Light over Darkness. The Baha’i faith commemorates the Birth of the Bab, the co-founder of their faith on Wednesday, September 22.
Quote of the week: “Of the five most important things in life, health is first, education or knowledge is second, and wealth is third. I forget the other two.” Chuck Berry born October 18, 1926 – died March 18, 2017; American musician.
Featured civil rights activist/abolitionist/pioneer: Chuck Berry born October 18, 1926 – died March 18, 2017; American musician
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Chuck-Berry
Attention; New Half Day ERG program: Below you will find a link to a 75 second video message from the CEO of one of the largest private companies in the Rochester area introducing an ERG Exploring Racism Group special half-day seminar on Friday, November 7 and repeated on Thursday, January 15. Please talk to and share with friends, colleagues and relatives requesting that they consider attendance. https://vimeo.com/wroc/review/1122288731/8ad3c3c96e
To register, use the QR code at the end of the video or this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd3og5iNzdUz9qoG2e45FRliVE9l1WfEMR70DVVbGTRJW41Mw/viewform?usp=header
EVENTS
1. There will be a Confidence & Career Building event for men of color on Saturday, October 18, 2025, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM at the REOC in Rochester. Hosted by RMAPI, the City of Rochester, Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce, and other partners, this event offers a welcoming space focused on confidence-building, skill development, and access to emerging career opportunities. Below is the link to view the post and flyer on LinkedIn. Please pass along to men who may be interested in attending and to employers who may want to recruit. For questions, reach out to Melanie Russo at melanie.russo@greaterrochesterchamber.com or Jen Suppe at jennifer.suppe@greaterrochesterchamber.com. Let’s work together to create meaningful opportunities for all.
2. Two items related to “No Kings” Protest.
a. Bill Wynne provides information on today’s “No Kings” Protest Locations;
b. Maryellen Giese asks “Interested in Singing protest and patriotic songs you already know (plus the one called “Be the Change” with short lyrics from Mahatma Gandhi) at the NO KINGS rally on October 18th in Rochester 12:30-3?” Join the Be the Change Singers! No rehearsal necessary. Contact maryellen.giese@gmail.com : -)
3. Concerned about our Democracy? Steve Martin suggests joining the Constitutional Crisis Call, Wednesday, October 22 from noon to 1:00 PM and every Wednesday in front of the Federal Building on State St., Rochester. See below for details.
4. Bob Castle and Laurie Mahoney share that the Asbury First United Methodist Church, 1050 East Ave., Rochester 14607 is holding a workshop on Thursday, October 23rd, 5:30-7:30 pm titled ‘Build a Better Rochester: Workshop on Advocating for Inclusive Housing’. See file below for details and to register.
5. Being Black in America: Discussion & Collective Action – Legacy Drama House, Thursday, October 23rd, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Free event. See link below for details.
6. Get to know the Rochester eastside neighbors at the Lewis St. YMCA ‘Trunk or Treat’ on Friday, October 24th, 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM.
7. New York State Community Commission on Reparations Remedies Business Meeting – Friday, October 24; 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM. Can be viewed virtually at the link below.
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUgv7QdkqOE
8. The Urban League of Rochester’s 6th Annual INTERRUPT RACISM Summit is for Monday, November 3, 2025, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM. See below for more information and to register.
https://www.urbanleagueroc.org/interrupt-racism-summit-2025
9. The Urban League Virtual Speaker Series next date is Friday, November 7, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM. See details below.
NEWS, HISTORY & RESOURCES
10. Drew Saur shares this piece from Politico, ‘I love Hitler’: Leaked messages expose Young Republicans’ racist chat
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/10/14/private-chat-among-young-gop-club-members-00592146
11.. From the Medium Daily Digest we share 2 pieces;
a. “Why Black Women Carry The Burden of Racist Beauty Standards“ by Dr. Allison Wiltz:
https://readcultured.com/why-black-women-carry-the-burden-of-racist-beauty-standards-76f0a96ef001
b. “Black Communities Deserve Peace, Not a Boot on Their Neck“ by Dr. Allison Wiltz:
https://momentum.medium.com/black-communities-deserve-peace-not-a-boot-on-their-neck-b4e3ccacf470
12. Here is this week’s Urban League of Rochester – The Interrupter Newsletter
The Interrupter Newsletter – October 16, 2025
13. We share two articles from this week’s The Minority Reporter;
a. Senator Samra Brouk to honor Aqua Porter as her New York State Senate 2025 Woman of Distinction
b. W. Kamau Bell’s “Who’s With Me?” multi-city tour comes to Nazareth University
14. Here is one article from this week’s Beacon:
In its current term, the justices will decide several important cases—and perhaps answer fundamental questions about the legitimacy of the nation’s highest court.
https://rochesterbeacon.com/2025/10/13/supreme-court-politics-or-principles/
15. There are 7 articles that deal with Race, Poverty, Hate or Intolerance found in D&C this past week.
a. Can we lead with understanding? (Hope First Roc is a bold experiment to see what will happen if we call someone other than police for help).
b. Bull’s Head banking branch open (catalyst for an abandoned neighborhood).
c. As ex-Klan member, I know cost of political (Opinion piece).
d. Battle lines drawn over Confederate monument.
e. Some say land acknowledgments misrepresent history (Tribal leaders say).
f. Voting rights face test (Supreme Court to review Louisiana map).
g. VOTING LAW VOTING LAW SCRUTINIZED SCRUTINIZED (Conservative justices appear willing to blunt key provision)
OPPORTUNITIES: We share opportunities to get involved in addressing some of the communities challenges. Please share any opportunities for employment, assistance, grants, etc. that you are aware of with the community by sending them to “tcmitch1951@gmail.com”.
16. Elders and Allies connected to Free The People ROC. We are a social justice group of seasoned black and white activists who came together after the death of Daniel Prude five years ago. We engage in various projects that connect to issues of racism in Rochester. One of those projects is our Saturday Vigils, where from 12 noon to 1pm, we stand together on various corners in Rochester and suburbs with our Black Lives Matter signs. It is a simple action but we are made aware each week from the responses we get, both positive and negative, that the message is an important reminder to those who drive by. We invite anyone who would like to jon us to contact me for information and for a sign. Contact Sister Barbara Staropoli for the next Saturday Vigil at bstaropolissj@gmail.com
17. The Urban League of Rochester’s Scholarship Program is open. It is not too early to consider and apply. See below for information and application.
https://www.urbanleagueroc.org/scholarships
18. Here is a call for volunteers for the Judicial Observation Project. See flyer below:
SUPPORT BLACK OWNED BUSINESSES:
19. 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)
20. Need a Multimedia Production Studio for your video or audio productions? Check out EXP Studio.
https://expstudio.org
If you have an item to include in the week’s sharing we need to have it by noon on Friday.
Thank you!