Stand Against Racism – No Hate No Fear
April 25, 2019 | 12 – 1 pm
Historic Metro Courthouse | Public Square Park (in case of rain, the Stand will be held in Metro Council Chambers)
Community Advocacy Fair before & after program
Stand Against Racism is a signature campaign of YWCA USA to build community among those working for racial and social justice. The Stand Against Racism seeks to raise awareness about the negative impact of institutional and structural racism in our communities. Our 2019 theme is No Hate No Fear – how racism and immigration intersect. We know that immigrant justice is racial justice, and that xenophobia, bigotry, and racism is continuing to impact the lives and safety of our communities.
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 Stand Against Racism is co-sponsored by the Tennessee Human Rights Commission and Metro Human Relations Commission.
Join us April 25, 2019 for a community gathering and public pledge to eliminate racism and prejudice.
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 Community Partners
100 Black Men of Middle Tennessee
A VOICE for the Reduction of Poverty
American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee
American Muslim Advisory Council
Civil Rights Room – Downtown Nashville Public Library
Clergy for Tolerance
Coalition for Education About Immigration
Metro Nashville Office of Family Safety
Nashville International Center for Empowerment (NICE)
Nashville Student Organizing Committee
Tennessee Educational Equity Coalition
Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC)
The Nashville Jewish Social Justice Roundtable
Urban League of Middle Tennessee
Vanderbilt Divinity School – Public Theology and Racial Justice Collaborative
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 two-day event. The Metro Human Relations Commission and Tennessee Human Rights Commission were returning sponsors.
