Speakers and panelists will address the question, What Happened to Our Country?
Forum to be followed by an “activist fair” of community groups.
What happened to our country and its promise of liberty and justice for all? On Sunday, June 11, the Gatherings Initiative: Connecting Communities for Action will host a community forum on equity and social justice to address this question. Activists from several communities will share their experiences and lessons learned on how to effect change that will bring equity into the social, economic, and political systems affecting people’s everyday lives.
Sasha Abramsky, journalist for The Nation and author of the New York Times notable book for 2013, The American Way of Poverty, will open the event. Abramsky will draw from the research for his new book Jumping at Shadows: The Triumph of Fear and the End of the American Dream to discuss the current political situation and how to fight a national agenda that perpetuates inequality.
Presentations will be followed by a panel discussion, moderated by Davis City Councilmember Lucas Frerichs. The panel includes:
Mindy Romero, UC Davis Center for Regional Change
Sandy Holman, Culture Co-op / United in Unity
Kate Laddish, Democracy Winters
Anne Kjemtrup, Davis Muslim Hands
The forum takes place from 2:30 to 5 PM at the Davis Senior Center, 646 A St., Davis. The event is free and open to the public, but tickets are required to reserve a space. To register, visit http://bit.ly/gatherings4. (A flyer for this event is available at http://bit.ly/Gatherings4flyer)
Following the forum, community members will have the opportunity to connect with organizations from all over Yolo County at an Activists Fair that center on issues such as immigrant and farm workers’ rights, NODAPL and climate change, advocacy with members of Congress, and universal health care.
For more information, visit The Gatherings Initiative on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GatheringsInitiative/. The Gatherings Initiative: Connecting Communities for Action is a project of the Davis Phoenix Coalition.