Stand Against Racism

Addressing Racism as a Public Health Crisis | Virtual Community Rally
Thurs., April 29, 2021 | 12pm – 1pm

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We take a Stand Against Racism every day by raising awareness about the impact of institutional and structural racism and by building community among those who work for racial justice.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we will host our Stand Against Racism community rally virtually. You are invited to hear from community and civil rights leaders and experts in the field of public health including:

Brenda Haywood, Deputy Mayor – Metro Nashville

Beverly Watts, Exec. Director – TN Human Rights Commission

Kinika Young, JD – Sr. Dir. Health Policy & Advocacy – Tennessee Justice Center

Wayne J. Riley, M.D., MPH, MBA – President, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University | Former 10th President, Meharry Medical College | Director, HCA Healthcare, Inc.

This year’s Stand Against Racism event will also feature music, poetry, and the 2021 Carrie Hull Award for Service will also be presented.

Regions Foundation of Tennessee is our Presenting Sponsor for the 2021 Stand Against Racism. The Tennessee Human Rights Commission and Metro Human Relations Commission are also returning sponsors of our community rally.

Past Stand Against Racism Webinars

Racism and sexism in sports have persisted over generations. Enduring legacies of these injustices have spurred activism and advocacy across Nashville and the United States. Teams and athletes around the country have held strikes, taken a knee, and used their platform to speak up and out against racism and oppression. During the month of March Madness, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee hosted a virtual panel discussion on the intersection of sports, racism and sexism featuring leaders from our community.

Thank you to our panelists Shan Foster, Dr. Candice Storey Lee, & Andrew Maraniss and our CEO & moderator Sharon K. Roberson.

Amid historic protests in support of the Movement for Black Lives and the recent white nationalist insurrection at the Capitol, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee hosted a panel discussion on the ways in which the First Amendment supports and challenges the fight for racial justice in Nashville, Tennessee and across the country. Panelists provided the audience with short-term and long-term calls to action as we work together to invest in Black and Brown communities and to seek peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all in our democratic society.

Our panelists include:

Brandon Tucker, Policy Director, American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee
Gautam Hans, Assistant Clinical Professor of Law, Vanderbilt University
David Hudson Jr., Fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum Institute; Visiting Associate Professor of Legal Practice at Belmont University’s College of Law
Sharon K. Roberson, President & CEO YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee

On January 26, 2021, our Stand Against Racism webinar focused on education. The coronavirus has exposed and heightened historical racial disparities in our society and has spotlighted racism as a public health issue, particularly impacting Black children and youth of color in our public education and K-12 school system. YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee hosted a Stand Against Racism webinar – Education in a Time of Crisis on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021.Moderator: Sharon K. Roberson, President & CEO, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee

Panelist: Christian Buggs, Chair, Metro Nashville Public School Board of Education

Panelist: Kasar Abdulla, Chief Diversity, Inclusion, & Equity Officer – Valor Collegiate Academy

Panelist: Dwanna Kimbro, Girls Inc. Program Coordinator, YWCA Nashville & Middle TN

Panelist: DeeAnne Miree, Principal, Cambridge Early Learning Center

Join us on Nov. 19 for a panel discussion addressing the intersection of policing and racism, particularly highlighting policing of vulnerable communities of color in Nashville. This Stand Against Racism panel, presented by Regions Foundation of Tennessee, will address the level of distrust of police that exists in many communities due to the history of racism in America, especially in communities of color. We will also discuss ways that policing can be changed to address the concerns of individuals in our community about present policing methods.

Host & Moderator: Shan Foster Executive Director, AMEND Together and VP of External Affairs YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee

Panelists: Featuring members of the Policing Policy Commission and the Interim Chief of Police

Ashlee Davis, VP, Alliance Bernstein, Member Community Oversight Board|
John Drake, Interim Chief of Police, MNPD
Sabina Mohyuddin, Executive Director American Muslim Advisory Council
Juliana Ospina Cano, Executive Director, Conexion Americas
Larry Turnley, Violence Interrupter, Gideon’s Army

For Domestic Violence Awareness Month, please join us for a Stand Against Racism Lunch & Learn – Domestic Violence in a Time of Crisis. This virtual panel discussion is presented by Regions Foundation of Tennessee and will examine how racism and domestic violence are intersecting forms of social injustice. Our expert panelists will discuss how domestic violence providers, services, and response systems are not immune to the individual, institutional, and systemic racism that pervades our society; thus domestic violence prevention and intervention strategies must address the effects of racism in order to establish community safety and accountability.

You will hear from:

Host: Sharon K. Roberson, President & CEO, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee

Moderator: LaToya Townsend, Director of Training, Outreach and Development, Metropolitan Government of Nashville-Davidson County’s Office of Family Safety

Panelist: Alexandra Chambers, Founding Member, Free Hearts; Ph.D. candidate in Religion and Ethics at Vanderbilt University

Panelist: Sparkle Johnson, Founder, SuperWomen Inc.

Panelist: Chay Sengkhounmany, Lead Immigration Attorney, Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee

Panelist: Damien Talley, Director of Residential Services, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee – Weaver Domestic Violence Center

Today, we face two global pandemics – COVID-19 and racial injustice. At this intersection, nearly one-third of Black people in the U.S. say they know someone who has died from coronavirus.

Join us to address different levels of racism impacting healthcare. You will hear from experts in healthcare who lead fights for the health and well-being of Black people and people of color amid COVID-19. The event will be moderated by YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee president & CEO, Sharon K. Roberson and feature these panelists:

Celia Ezidiegwu, MD, Pharmacovigilance Physician at Otsuka Pharmaceuticals; Specialty: Preventive Medicine

Tanzye Hill, DT, M.Ed., Founder and Owner of Birth Manifesta, LLC

Betsy Swann, MA, Community Health Manager at Siloam Health

Consuela H. Wilkins, MD, MSCI, Executive Director, Meharry-Vanderbilt Alliance, Professor of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center; Associate Professor of Medicine, Meharry Medical College

Kinika Young, JD, Senior Director of Health Policy and Advocacy, Tennessee Justice Center

As the August and November elections approach, we must equip ourselves with the knowledge and tools to advocate for our most vulnerably positioned community members to have access to the ballot. View our virtual lunch & learn on the state of felony disenfranchisement in Tennessee, voter restoration campaigns, and what you can do to advocate for expanded access to the ballot.Host: Sharon K. Roberson, President & CEO, YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee

Moderator: Charles Grant, Veteran Litigator, Baker Donelson

Panelist: Dawn Harrington, Executive Director, Free Hearts

Panelist: Brandon Tucker, Policy Director, ACLU of Tennessee

Panelist: Robert Sherrill, The Equity Alliance

Click below to view our Stand Against Racism Virtual Community Rally that took place on April 22, 2020.

Pledge Against Racism

As an individual committed to social justice, I stand with YWCA against racism and discrimination of any kind. I will commit to a lifetime of promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all people in my community and in the world.

The Stand Against Racism is a signature campaign of YWCA USA and is part of the larger national strategy to fulfill our mission of eliminating racism. Race and the legacy of discrimination continue to affect our lives – whether in our everyday interactions with others at work, school, or in our neighborhoods and communities. The 2020 Stand Against Racism is co-sponsored by the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, Metro Human Relations Commission, and Vanderbilt Divinity School Public Theology and Racial Justice Collaborative.

Presenting Sponsor

Peace Sponsor

Learn more about our social justice work and advocacy platform here.

Pledge Against Racism

The Stand Against Racism is a signature campaign of YWCA USA and is part of the larger national strategy to fulfill our mission of eliminating racism. Race and the legacy of discrimination continue to affect our lives – whether in our everyday interactions with others at work, school, or in our neighborhoods and communities.The 2020 Stand Against Racism is co-sponsored by the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, Metro Human Relations Commission, and Vanderbilt Divinity School Public Theology and Racial Justice Collaborative.

Please contact YWCA Sr. Manager for Social Justice Hannah Cornfield for more information 615-983-5129 or hannah.cornfield@ywcanashville.com

To learn more about our Social Justice & Advocacy work, click here.

CO-SPONSORS

2019 Stand Against Racism

YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee hosted the annual Stand Against Racism on Thursday, April 25 on the steps of the Historic Metro Courthouse and Public Square Park. Neither the threat of rain nor the NFL Draft (kicking off a few blocks away) could keep more than 100 advocates, supporters, and partners away from this annual gathering that builds community among those working for racial and social justice. The program was packed with prominent political leaders and Civil Rights icons, including Kwame Lillard, King Hollands, Gloria McKissack, and Ernest “Rip” Patton. The Freedom Rider led the crowd in a powerful rendition of “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Mayor David Briley and Congressman Jim Cooper urged the crowd to continue working towards justice and reducing racism and intolerance. YWCA was presented with a Metro Council Resolution for its social justice work, and YWCA President and CEO Sharon K. Roberson shared with the crowd how national policies can have a very real local impact during the public rally. This year’s Stand Against Racism theme was aptly titled No Hate No Fear – and examined the intersection of racism and immigration.

“In recent months, YWCA presented a series of community conversations where we heard compelling stories of the human cost of racism for very vulnerable people,” she said. “We learned that immigrant children are being separated from their parents right here in Nashville. These conversations served as a call to action for all of us to understand the moral imperative that we must treat all people with dignity and respect.”

Martesha Johnson, the first African American and woman elected to lead the Metro Davidson Public Defender’s Office, urged the crowd to speak up and speak out against racism and hate. Chris Echegaray with Metro Nashville Public Schools reminded the crowd that the “It City” of Nashville is being supported through immigrant labor. Co-founder of the American Muslim Advisory Council, Sabina Mohyuddin, made a passionate plea on how we can work together to eliminate racism.

“These systems are not just about our individual biases or fear of others or even ignorance, but it is about institutionalized methods of discriminating against people of color, immigrants, and Muslims,” said Mohyuddin. “In order to dismantle and eliminate racism, we must bring down all of these systems.”

The Metro Human Relations Commission and Tennessee Human Rights Commission co-sponsored the event and luncheon series. TN HRC Executive Director Beverly Watts led the crowd in the pledge against racism to close the event. MHRC board members Dr. Erin Pryor and Commissioner Kobie Pretorius attended the Stand Against Racism and joined Watts and the Civil Rights icons and speakers in the pledge.

2018 Stand Against Racism

YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee hosted the annual Stand Against Racism April 27 and 28 with a community rally in Public Square Park and a Youth-Led Forum at the Downtown Nashville Public Library. The Stand Against Racism is a signature campaign of YWCA USA to build community among those who work for racial justice and to raise awareness about the negative impact of institutional and structural racism. More than 400 Stand Against Racism events were held across the country between April 27 and 29.

Mayor David Briley welcomed the crowd to the annual event that drew more than 200 people. Civil Rights Activist and retired educator Gloria McKissack shared how young people in the 1960’s sat down so we could all stand today. McKissack was part of the student movement from Tennessee A & I (now Tennessee State University) and Fisk University that integrated the lunch counters and other businesses across Nashville. Legal Aid Executive Director and YWCA Board Member DarKenya Waller urged the attendees to work together. “If Black or Brown people could have solved this problem by ourselves, we would have done so already,” she said.

The Friday rally included a look to the future, with remarks from Antioch High School senior and Girls Inc. club member Carol Salas. Singer Dara Tucker entertained the crowd and Southern Word Poet and Hume-Fogg High School student Bella Dotson shared a powerful spoken word piece. Two dozen community partners took part in an advocacy fair.

The first-ever, intergenerational Youth-Led Forum took place at the Downtown Nashville Public Library the following day. Planned by the YWCA’s Youth Empowerment Committee, the event kicked off with the Tennessee Titans’ Caravan. A panel discussion with players Jayon Brown, Corey Davis, and retired Titan Chris Hope, focused on character and working together to eliminate racism. Nashville 16 members Ethel Carr Crowder and Errol Groves joined the youth forum to share their experiences integrating Nashville Public Schools in 1957.

Activist and recent Fisk University graduate Justin Jones inspired the crowd with his words and a symbolic gift of stones from the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma. He had just returned to Nashville from the opening of the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Alabama.

The Tennessee Titans were the presenting sponsor of the 2018 two-day event. The Metro Human Relations Commission and Tennessee Human Rights Commission were returning sponsors.