CA: In January and February, the Westboro Baptist Church, a hate group from Topeka, Kansas, targeted schools, religious institutions and other organizations across California.
We'd like to share a few of the creative, peaceful ways students and community members are responding to Westboro's message of hate, and open our comments section up to spread the word about any other unity activities taking place across the state.
Blog
January 26, 2010 - 7:04pm
January 22, 2010 - 5:04pm
San Francisco Bay Area, CA: Fred Phelps of the so-called Westboro Baptist Church, a hate group from Topeka, Kansas, is targeting San Francisco-Bay Area schools, organizations, and houses of worship to picket this coming week. We'd like to help facilitate community strategies for response.
January 19, 2010 - 5:47pm
Walnut Creek, CA-
Three dozen residents of Contra Costa County, California, gathered January 14 to discuss new ways to coordinate community responses to hate and intolerance through NIOT.org at a breakfast meeting co-sponsored by the Interfaith Council of Contra Costa.
After a welcome by Reverend Brian Stein-Webber, the Interfaith Council's Executive Director, and Mary Alice O'Connor of the Mount Diablo Peace and Justice Center, Not In Our Town Executive Producer Patrice O'Neill led a group discussion about emerging local issues that ranged from concerns over bullying in the local schools, attacks on day laborers, and the challenges of community response after a recent gang rape.
January 15, 2010 - 2:44pm
This week in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, we are highlighting three stories of youth standing up to intolerance and violence.
Spread the Peace (Mother Caroline Academy)
Ariana's brother was killed in a drive-by shooting. Most of her classmates at Mother Caroline Academy in Dorchester, Massachusetts have been affected by violence. After watching "Not In Our Town" in a Facing History class, Ariana and her peers launch their own neighborhood “Spread the Peace” campaign to help stop the violence. (11 min 13 sec)
Students Teach Students to Stand Up to Bullying
At Shaw High School in East Cleveland, OH, students in Lori Urogody-Eiler's Facing History and Ourselves class mentor younger students in how to be an upstander, not a bystander, when faced with bullying and intolerant acts. (5 min 47 sec)
January 12, 2010 - 2:04pm
San Francisco, CA- The community turned out in force for yesterday's Not In Our Town meeting at the San Francisco Public Library. Nearly 50 people representing city agencies, law enforcement, faith-based organizations and ethnic advocacy groups shared ideas, suggested ongoing actions, and stayed on to chat long after the coffee ran out.
Some have pledged to join the SF Network, a group for people in the San Francisco Bay Area who want to stop prejudice, bigotry, intolerance and hate-based violence in the city, and wish to share ideas, information and resources with like-minded fellows. Victor Hwang, Hate Crime Prosecutor for the San Francisco District Attorney's Office (pictured at left), was one of several attending who offered concrete suggestions for ongoing actions.