Tuesday, March 16, 2021, beginning at 7 pm

Diversity United

On Tuesday, March 16th at 7 pm, Congregation Ahavas Sholom and the City of Newark will begin a year-long program of outreach to people of all faiths, ethnicities, and races in Newark and the surrounding suburban communities, to discuss an anti-racist agenda and create a tangible platform to work collectively toward a just society. 

The Diversity United monthly program will feature a roundtable discussion featuring:

Mildred Crump: Newark’s longtime community leader and first African-American Councilwoman and City Council President  

Rabbi Capers Funnyem:“Obama’s Rabbi,” Michelle Obama’s cousin, the leader of 200-member Beth Shalom B’nai Zaken Ethiopian Hebrew Congregation of Chicago

Pastor Steffie Bartley: New Jersey Coordinator, National Action Network and Pastor, New Hope Memorial Baptist Church, Elizabeth, New Jersey

Over the next year, “DIVERSITY UNITED” will present issues of social justice, including mass incarceration, education, housing, healthcare, environmental justice, poverty, Jim Crow, and public monuments, all from the viewpoint of the systemic inequalities that have resulted from 401 years of American History.

The forum will be formatted as a book club, with participants viewing films and reading materials before each of the monthly meetings. The panelists, African-American leaders, who have spent their lives in the trenches battling for civil rights, equality, and justice, will lead discussion. 

The inaugural program will be Tuesday, March 16, 2021, from 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.  During this session the panelists will introduce the topics to be discussed over the year.

Initial programs will be held remotely on Zoom; to register and receive the link, click here: Registration Form.   

When the nation’s health crisis warrants, subsequent programs will be held in person, with participants able to remotely participate as well.

Following the first session, participants will be asked watch the Netflix documentary “13^th” , which will be discussed at the second session, on April 13^th. 

Succeeding programs will be the third Tuesday of each month and will discuss “When Heritage Equals Hate: The Truth About the Confederacy in the United States” by ACLU’s Jeffrey Robinson and “The Untold Story of Emmett Luis Till” by Keith Beauchamp and other relevant articles and books.

For further information, contact Eric Freedman, cahavassholom@optimum.net,  President and CEO, Congregation Ahavas Sholom, or 201.988.3799.