ERASE Racism is pleased to announce it has received a large grant of $100,000 from the Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Shelter Rock (UUCSR). Grant funds will support the new ERASE Racism project Changing the Narrative Around Race and Racial Dynamics on Long Island.
ERASE Racism is pleased to announce it has received a large grant of $100,000 from the Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Shelter Rock (UUCSR).
Grant funds will support the new ERASE Racism project Changing the Narrative Around Race and Racial Dynamics on Long Island. Consisting of a series of public forums along with storytelling, educational activities, and calls to action, the project is designed to educate the public, promote empathy and understanding around the often difficult conversations regarding race, segregation, and inequity on Long Island and foster activism.
Long Island has a long history of documented racial discrimination, which has led to it being one of the ten most racially segregated regions in the United States (U.S. Census). This has led to significant inequities in housing, education, economic opportunities, and wealth. This separation has also led to fear and a lack of understanding between different racial groups.
Changing the Narrative Around Race and Racial Dynamics on Long Island will bring diverse Long Islanders together to build a shared understanding of our history, objective facts about current challenges facing Nassau and Suffolk County and how to address them, and familiarity with and empathy for people who are not like oneself.
“Myths, fears, and stereotypes fester and harden when residents are isolated from one another,” said ERASE Racism President Elaine Gross. “What we need right now are informed champions for change in their own communities and in the region that reject hate and embrace inclusion. The UUCSR’s support of our Changing the Narrative Around Race and Racial Dynamics on Long Island is a big step in the right direction.”
About ERASE Racism: Founded in 2001, ERASE Racism is a regional organization that leads public policy advocacy campaigns and related programmatic initiatives to promote racial equity in areas such as housing and public school education. It engages in a variety of research, education, community organizing, and policy advocacy to identify and address institutional and structural racism, primarily on Long Island. ERASE Racism’s vision is transformed, integrated communities in which no person’s access to opportunity is limited by race or ethnicity.
About the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Shelter Rock’s Large Grants Program: UUCSR is one of more than more than 1,000 Unitarian Universalist (UU) congregations in the United States under the aegis of the Boston-based Unitarian Universalist Association. Unitarian Universalism is a liberal religion committed to deeds, not creeds. UU congregations affirm and promote Seven Principles, including the inherent dignity and worth of every person.
