On Saturday, January 26, I was fortunate to participate in the 15th Annual Pittsburgh Summit Against Racism at the East Liberty Presbyterian Church. In spite of the progress that has been made via the Civil Rights Movement, racism and discrimination is still evident in our society. Therefore, I was more than happy to have battled the cold, snowy Pittsburgh weather to attend and participate in such an event.
The summit was first organized in 1996 in response to the horrendous murder of Jonny Gammage, a black motorist that fell victim to DWB-Driving While Black. Gammage was choked to death after a traffic stop involving 5 white police officers while on driving in a suburban area of Pittsburgh. According to a coroner’s report, “Gammage died from asphyxiation due to pressure applied to the chest and neck.”
This year’s summit was an astounding success, designed to raise awareness on the lingering problems and effects of racism in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The goals are for participants to work on creating constructive solutions to eliminate racism and bigotry from our communities. There were some very thought provoking and powerful workshops: Voter Empowerment (of which I was a co-facilitator), Challenging White Supremacy in the Workplace (my personal favorite), Gentrification and Displacement, along with several others. The organizers of this event are to be commended for their commitmet and dedication to the cause of ending racism.
For more information about the Summit Against Racism please visit: http://summitagainstracism.blogspot.com/p/live-stream-of-conference.html
Was this something you posted on Facebook beforehand? If so, I missed it. In the future, please let us know about community meetings that might be of interest so that we may participate. I for one would have been extremely interested in all of these topics. Thanking you in advance for giving the average person an opportunity to make a difference in our community. GiGi
ReplyDelete