Happy Monday Fellow Rotarians! I know, I know, its Monday and I missed my Sunday timeframe that I was hoping to send out the spinoffs in! Time got away from me yesterday and all of the sudden it was 10pm! Next week they will be out on Sunday!
First, let's talk about our amazing program from last Thursday! It really made me step back and think about all of the injustice and racism that has been prevalent in our society for generations, and what we as a community need to do in order to combat it.
Now, for anyone who missed this week's Zoom call, we had the pleasure of hearing from Mr. Lee Braggs, First Vice-President of the Glens Falls chapter of the NAACP. He shared stories and experiences that some of us could never imagine happening.
I know for me, as a young adult in this community, I would not have thought that a young black man riding his bike would be stopped EVERYDAY while going to work by Police in our community. I would not have thought that a black man could have the police called on him simply because he was standing outside of a bank in our community. I would not have thought that a black man and his wife would be pulled over simply because someone thought the car was "too new and expensive" for them to be driving it so, therefore, it must be stolen in our community. That is unsettling to me. And I am sure that it is unsettling to everyone in our club as well. It is unsettling that some members of our community, of which I am proud of and that I grew up in, think that it is acceptable to judge someone based on the color of their skin, and not their actions, character, work ethic, or personality.
I am calling on all of our club members to change the narrative. Speak up, speak out, stand AGAINST racism and injustice while standing FOR humanity, freedom, and civil rights. Isn't that what we all joined this club to do? We are here to help the community, and sure, there are many ways to do that. But I think one of the most important is to help the members of this community, and what better way to do that than standing up against the mistreatment of our neighbors?
At the top of your spinoff (just like last week) you will see a box saying "Click Me....". Once again, I promise this one is safe to click on! I have included a link to the book mentioned by Linda in this week's meeting 'Waking up White, Finding Myself in the Story of Race' by Debby Irving. I have downloaded the book on audible and plan to listen to it myself here as soon as possible. I also wanted to highlight the book that Charla Jennings mentioned, Gilded Dreams: The Journey to Suffrage by Donna Russo Morin. The link to buy that on Amazon is posted below as well!
So now I ask everyone, what are you going to do to combat racism in our community? How can the Rotary Club of Glens Falls help in the fight against Racism? What can we bring to the table to help community members such as Lee Braggs and the young man who gets stopped each day on his bike during his commute to work?
Thanks for reading, and I can't wait to see everyone on the Zoom call this Thursday!
And always remember what we have been taught since Day One.....
