Upcoming Events
Touro Law's Annual Civil Rights and Public Policy Lecture
April 9, 2013
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2013 Annual Benefit
June 5, 2013
More details
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Elaine Gross Delivers Howard A. Glickstein Civil Rights and Public Policy Lecture at Touro Law Center
Ms. Gross has been asked to deliver the 4th Annual Civil Rights and Public Policy Lecture, which Touro Dean Patricia Salkin describes as "a critical component of this Country's ongoing dialogue about race relation, civil rights and public policy."
Read more and register! |
 info@eraseracismny.org
Phone: (516)-921-4863
Fax: (516)-921-4866
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President's Message
It is Black History Month once again. Many are remembering 1863 when President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation that freed some of the slaves 150 years ago, although it wasn't until 1865 that the 13th Amendment to the Constitution abolished slavery for all Africans in the United States. Others are remembering momentous civil rights achievements and set-backs of 50 years ago.
I'm particularly remembering that In March and April of 1963, there were sit-ins at lunch counters in Alabama (similar to the 1960 sit-ins in Greensboro, NC), demanding desegregation of public accommodations and hiring of Negro clerks. During a demonstration on Good Friday, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was arrested, jailed and subsequently wrote the awe-inspiring "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" addressed to "My Dear Fellow Clergymen," in response to white Christian and Jewish clergy who called the "direct action" of the sit-ins "unwise and untimely." Dr. King's letter patiently reminded the clergy of the reasons for the protests; he explained in detail how the protesters had thoughtfully approached the step of taking direct action and had participated in workshops on nonviolence. He also reminded them that the civil rights gains had only come as a result of determined legal and nonviolent pressure. The call to "wait," he said, has almost always meant "never." In this issue of Emerge, you will see how ERASE Racism is continuing the civil rights movement's call of 1963. Our Education Equity Campaign is still fighting school segregation; Long Island's schools are overwhelmingly separate and unequal. How many more decades must we wait for equal access to opportunity? Our Student Leadership Forum is educating high school students about the continuing impact of the social construct of race and of structural impediments to racial equity. Our Hurricane Sandy efforts are aimed at ensuring that the federal relief package does not exacerbate already severe racial segregation on Long Island and that low- and moderate-income residents are fairly included as relief recipients. The time for waiting is past. Please join us in the struggle.
V. Elaine Gross
President
ERASE Racism
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New Education Working Groups
This month we are proud to announce four new opportunities to partner with ERASE Racism and help move our goal of education equity into action. In 2011 we launched our Education Equity campaign with several strategy sessions across Long Island and a regional forum at Stony Brook University. Through those efforts to educate the public and catalyze a dialogue about educational disparities on Long Island, we formed ERASE Racism's Education Equity Working Group, which was charged with helping to identify actions that would provide African American and Hispanic students with the same access to quality education as their white and Asian counterparts. Throughout the past year we have strengthened our understanding of the structural impediments to equitable education and fair housing on Long Island by conducting a detailed analysis of population changes from 2000 to 2010. You can learn more about that research o n our website. This past October we shared our findings with the Working Group and other ERASE Racism Partners and that discussion has helped to transition the campaign from identifying problems to taking action with four work groups in the following areas:
- Structural Strategies: focusing on re-districting, magnet schools, inter-district transfers, and other mechanisms that would move beyond the current rigid school district boundaries.
- Pedagogy: exploring the impact of the International Baccalaureate Program (IB) as a tool for academic rigor and racial integration, combating implicit bias in the classroom, strategies to reduce the achievement gap, and incentives for cultural competency training for public school teachers and administrators.
- Funding: exploring new ways to use funding to decrease the academic gap, such as providing universal pre-K, altering state and commercial and residential tax funding formulae to increase resources where needed.
- Current Affairs: Evaluating state-wide education policies and local school district policies and practices for potentially harmful effects on education equity, educating others and formulating appropriate responses.
In addition to the activities that we will undertake with the working groups, ERASE Racism will continue its research and seek effective messaging to persuade residents to listen and engage. If you are passionate about ensuring that every child on Long Island, regardless of their race or income, is offered a quality education, then we hope you will consider joining one of these working groups.
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Hurricane Sandy Relief and Fair Housing
In the aftermath of Sandy, ERASE Racism partnered with the Fair Share Housing Center of New Jersey to advocate for fair housing goals to be incorporated into the Sandy Relief package. Together we drafted a letter for New York and New Jersey congressional delegations to ensure that fair housing laws were not waived for federal relief funds that would be used to build housing. We also wanted to ensure that low-income residents and communities of color were properly served by FEMA and CDBG funds post- Sandy. Additionally we used the opportunity to advocate for an increase in the Low Income Housing Tax Credits used to build affordable housing for the NY/NJ region. We only had a matter of days to draft the letter and recruit others to sign on to the letter; however, we had 77 signatories, which included Long Island organizations ranging from local non-profits to business groups.
Since then, the President has signed the $50.5 billion dollar package into law. The bill complies with two of the three key principles set forth in the letter-adhering to fair housing and civil rights principles and providing significant funding for the Community Development Block Grant program. The third principle, expanding the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program, is part of a separate bill that is just starting to be considered. We will keep you posted as that progresses.
Now communities in New York and New Jersey can truly begin the rebuilding process. ERASE Racism is working with fair housing organizations and others to ensure that the relief money does not exacerbate our already severe racial segregation on Long Island and also that low- and moderate-income residents are fairly included as relief recipients. We hope you will join these efforts.
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SAVE THE DATE
ERASE Racism's 2013 Annual Benefit
June 5th from 5:30-9:00pm
 | | Kenneth I. Chenault, Chairman and CEO, American Express |
Please save the date for ERASE Racism's biggest event of the year, our 2013 Annual Benefit Reception on June 5, 2013 at The Garden City Hotel. Kenneth I. Chenault, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of American Express, is our 2013 Abraham Krasnoff Courage and Commitment Award Honoree. He will be recognized for his life-time commitment to creating racial justice and promoting racial diversity. JOBCO, INC. will receive ERASE Racism's Corporate Leadership Award for its commitment to increasing quality affordable housing on Long Island.
We hope to see you there!
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4th Annual Student Leadership Forum
ERASE Racism's 4th Annual Student Leadership Forum, which was held for the first time on Martin Luther King Day, was a huge success! The Forum provided over 50 Long Island high school students with a meaningful way to commemorate one of the most important leaders for racial justice in our nation's history, while deepening their understanding about the current struggle for civil rights.
The six hour workshop began with a treasure hunt icebreaker, which gave students the chance to meet youth from 12 different school districts and challenge their own stereotypes and assumptions about one another. Sergio Argueta, Former Executive Director of STRONG Youth, Inc. and the current Director of the Undergraduate Program of the School of Social Work at Adelphi University spoke to the students about the legacy of Dr. King, the urgency to take action, and the power that youth hold to make a difference in the fight for equity. Throughout the day the students watched clips and participated in discussions that expanded their knowledge about the history of racism in the US and how race continues to affect all of us.
When asked "How much did you learn about these issues after participating?" 63% of the students chose "a lot" on their evaluation sheets; 37% selected "some" and no participant chose "not much" or "nothing." One student, who wrote an article about her experience at the Forum said, "The students who participated in the Student Leadership Forum are better able to recognize racism in all its forms and are inspired to make a difference...We can no longer turn a blind eye to the racial discrimination that goes on all around us. We will strive to be the voice that speaks words of equality and change!"
Here are some comments from the participants:
"It was very interesting, eye-opening and it inspired me to do something. I understand the issues of racism more."
"I learned a lot about racial prejudices...We are going to share a lot of info with our school."
"This is still a big issue. It is surprising what a human can do to another human. You guys are doing a great job - keep up the work."
"I can take what I learned today and make a difference starting in my community."
"What I engaged in with this forum should be presented at schools. The debate allowed me to open up to many different issues and fostered a lot of different ideas. It did allow me to think differently than I would."
To see the students participating in the Forum, please visit our photo gallery.
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