Today we uploaded three new files to the Not In Our Town Action Kit [1]: Materials from West Virginia's successful multi-pronged action campaign titled, West Virginia: No Place for Hate.
Though this counter-protest occured in 2010, we believe these resources remain relevant and inspiring today. West Virginia leaders came together after Fred Phelps' Westboro hate group announced it would picket Catholic and Jewish institutions in the two towns, a local university, and a mine where more than a dozen miners had recently lost their lives.
The Not In Our Town Action Kit [1] is a hidden gem on NIOT.org, compiling resources from communities standing up to hate and intolerance. In addition to these materials from West Virginia, you will find:
- Sample posters
- Sample pledges
- Sample proclamations
- Guidance on hosting a screening in your town
- Video viewing and discussion guides
- Materials from anti-hate campaigns on K-12 and college campuses.
The above statement was published as a full-page ad in two Charleston newspapers in the spring of 2010.
The heart image appeared alongside the statement as a tear-out poster, which community members were encouraged to display on their windows that week, as a response to messages of hate and representation of the "power of love in [the] community."
Meanwhile, the West Virginia "No Place for Hate" poster was designed, printed and distributed by the WV Chamber of Commerce.
Visit the Not In Our Town Action Kit [1].