Senator Oppenheimer Asks Citizens to Join Her on April 29th in the Stand Against Racism

Suzi Oppenheimer

April 26, 2011

District Office Designated a Participating Site in YWCA-Sponsored “Stand Against Racism”

Senator Suzi Oppenheimer (D-Mamaroneck) has designated her district office (222 Grace Church Street, Suite 305, Port Chester, NY) as a “Participating Site” in the Fourth Annual Stand Against Racism, sponsored by the YWCA.  Stand Against Racism is a movement that began in 2008 to unite communities in celebration of diversity and to raise awareness that racism and injustice still exist in the world today.

Senator Oppenheimer will begin her day on April 29th at a Stand Against Racism breakfast and book signing with author Sana Butler at the Jay Heritage Center in Rye.  The event is sponsored by YWCA of White Plains and the Harriet Tubman House.  Sana Butler, a freelance reporter and special correspondent with Newsweek International, is the author of “Sugar of the Crop,” which tells the compelling story of the quest to find the last surviving children of slaves.  The Jay Heritage Center is the boyhood home of founding father, John Jay, a known leader of the anti-slavery movement of the 18th and 19th centuries. 

At 11:00 AM, Senator Oppenheimer will join with her staff and members of the public to take the Stand Against Racism pledge.  In so doing, the Senator will reaffirm her commitment to “a lifetime of promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all people in our community and our world.”  All members of the public are invited to participate with the Senator in this demonstration of unity, compassion and social justice. 

Said Senator Oppenheimer: “In standing up against racism, I am reminded of the words of the great civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who declared that ‘Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.’ I believe that the essential goodness of mankind makes a world without racism possible, but we are not there yet.  Please join me and the YWCA in this commitment to social justice and equality for all.”

In 2010, the Stand Against Racism had over 2,000 participating sites and collectively attracted more than a quarter or a million people at events nationwide.  The Stand Against Racism has received the endorsement of several U.S. Governors and has been widely featured by local ABC, CBS, and NBC stations, as well as hundreds of written and online publications.