Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable

We are less than two weeks away from the 2025 National Day of Racial Healing. This meaningful day— held the Tuesday after Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – centers around experiences rooted in truth-telling and racial healing, bringing people together to take collective action for a more just and equitable world.   One way to participate in the National Day of Racial Healing is to invite friends, family, colleagues and neighbors to talk about the impact of racism. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation developed this conversation guide that can serve as a helpful starting point and a possible pathway to future conversations. There is also a toolkit for advancing racial healing in your workplace on the National Day of Racial Healing website. Click the link below. #HowWeHeal   https://lnkd.in/gWPsjK9g

Did you know that the composer who wrote the National Anthem for Mexico called Western New York home for nearly 40 years?   From being discovered for musical talent in Barcelona, to studying in Italy, to specializing in military bands in Cuba, to leading Mexico’s Military Band, Jaime Nuno led a storied life before he arrived in Buffalo in 1869. He taught voice lessons on Pearl Street, and served as a church music director.   And the tale of how Jaime was happily rediscovered during the Pan-American Exposition of 1901 is one that lives on today.   You can learn about that and the unique circumstances surrounding his place of rest here:   https://lnkd.in/eEDSTizY   Each month, the Roundtable is proud to feature leaders of the past with ties to Western New York. We encourage you to share these stories on your social pages or with friends and family and help spread the word about these incredible individuals who have helped shape our region!

The Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable would like to wish you a peaceful holiday season with loved ones.  With more than 350 community partners working together in coordinated ways to achieve an expanded, inclusive economy, we are honored to share some highlights of some of our collective efforts and give you a preview of what's to come in 2025.   https://lnkd.in/ej9QWkdv

The Roundtable engaged in a thought-provoking conversation about moving our racial equity work forward in 2025. Given the changing landscape of diversity, equity and inclusion, it is important to have a unified, collective voice and intensify our efforts to challenge common perceptions about racial equity and show why it is important for everyone by centering lived experiences. Please take a moment to join this conversation by adding your voice by sharing examples and highlights of your work to change the narrative in our community in the comments below.

“When we are talking about juvenile justice, it's aspirational,” reflected Lieutenant David Mann. Lt. Mann joined the Buffalo Police Department in 1986 and has supervised the Special Victims Unit since 1995. He also chairs the Racial Equity Roundtable’s Juvenile Justice Works Coalition, which focuses on reducing contact with and improving outcomes resulting from juvenile justice systems to advance equitable outcomes for young people. “Justice is a lofty term that means something different to every individual,” he noted. “And as a Coalition, we're trying to understand what justice looks like and then how to revise the system to adequately address the function that it's supposed to perform, and in a way that helps and supports kids in the community at the same time.” Read about current Juvenile Justice Works efforts underway and how this coalition leverages other Roundtable initiatives to advance the work. https://lnkd.in/gvzvhDtT

We are so grateful for ALL of the community partners who make our work possible year round. Recognizing the power of art as a healing tool, we incorporated a community art project into our Roundtable partner event last November at the Buffalo AKG Museum. We’re excited to share a first look at the finished piece with you that will soon be on display at the Reentry Opportunity Center (ROC), previously known as the Service Link Stop.  Dozens of attendees at the event decorated fabric strips with colorful pictures and inspirational words that were then transformed into a large rising sun on a hangable, canvas background. The ROC, a collaborative effort created through the Roundtable’s Reentry Coalition, provides a one-stop shop for reentering individuals to connect with more than 20 agencies that are on-site to assist in identifying their needs and ensuring that they are linked to resources covering a wide range of areas, including mental health, substance abuse prevention, health screenings, education and more.

As we lift up Native American Heritage Month, we spotlight Gaiänt'wakê, also known as Cornplanter, a Dutch-Seneca chief warrior and prominent diplomat of the Seneca Nation. Cornplanter rose to prominence in the years immediately preceding the American Revolution when he urged the Iroquois Confederacy to remain neutral in the war. Although his efforts failed, Cornplanter continued to work toward keeping the Senecas out of the foray. In 1792, George Washington gave a pipe tomahawk to Cornplater as a gift during discussions for the Treaty of Canandaigua, which confirmed the sovereignty of the Haudenosaunee with the United States pledging to honor the land rights of the Haudenosaunee people. The United States also praised Cornplanter for his actions by awarding him with 1,500 acres of former Seneca territory. By 1798, 400 Seneca Nation members lived on the land, which was called the Cornplanter Tract. If you’re looking for ways to honor Native American heritage and Cornplanter this month, consider visiting the Seneca Museum to explore a permanent collection on Cornplanter: Distinct Community – Seneca-Iroquois National Museum https://lnkd.in/e3HCcBSA

📣 Help us spread the word! Join Buffalo Futures on December 6, 2024, at 6 p.m. for its first-ever Holiday Resource and Benefit Concert!   Buffalo Futures, an initiative of the Greater Buffalo Racial Equity Roundtable’s Youth Employment Coalition, helps aspiring professionals identify, explore, and pursue local, high-demand career pathways. This event will bring together youth, families and community members for an evening of live music, prizes, and an opportunity for youth to connect to employers and training and resource providers. Proceeds support youth wraparound needs as well as future Buffalo Futures programming.   Tickets for youth ages 16-24 are FREE and discounted tickets are also available. For more information, contact Nia Warren, Buffalo Futures Success Coach, at nwarren@tscwny.org or click here to purchase tickets: https://lnkd.in/eNiTyC43

We are celebrating a prestigious national honor today with all our Roundtable partners! Our Reentry Coalition was recognized with the “Excellence in Criminal Justice Award” from the Bureau of Justice Assistance for our work providing key support to improve outcomes for reentering citizens and the impact our work has made in reducing the recidivism rate in our community. Felicia Beard, Associate Vice President, Racial Equity Initiatives, joined the Reentry Coalition’s Co-Chairs Thomas Diina, Chief of Community Reintegration, Erie County Sheriff’s Office, and Mark O’Brien, Erie County’s Mental Health Commissioner in Washington, D.C. on November 14 to accept the award at the Bureau of Justice Assistance’s 40th Anniversary event.

If you’ve ever been to the Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor, there’s a good chance you’ve passed by the Nash House Museum named after this month’s spotlight leader, Rev. J. Edward Nash. Rev. Nash came to Buffalo from Virginia in 1892, serving as a pastor of the Michigan Street Baptist Church, and quickly became a key leader and spokesperson for the city’s African American community. From helping found the Buffalo Urban League to hosting nationally known African American leaders, including Booker T. Washington and WEB DuBois, Rev. Nash’s leadership and presence in the community allowed him to intercede on behalf of other Black Buffalonians who were being wronged because of their race. In the 1950s, Buffalo underwent a series of urban renewal projects that disproportionately impacted African American neighborhoods. Rev. Nash held community meetings to advocate for fair housing and worked to stop the loss of affordable housing. Rev. Nash retired in 1953 and following year, the City renamed Potter Street to Nash Street and awarded Rev. Nash one of the first Brotherhood Awards from the National Conference of Christians and Jews. The Nash Museum, which was the home he shared with his wife until his passing in 1957, is located at 36 Nash Street. It has been designated as a local historical landmark and is open to the public. We encourage you to watch this short documentary on the Nash House museum: https://lnkd.in/gGYytC_V and to visit the museum’s website to learn more about visiting this cultural gem! https://lnkd.in/e57EuRXf