Not In Our Town

Students Stand Up: Five new films + lesson ideas from Facing History and Ourselves

Working closely alongside Facing History and Ourselves, Not in Our School spent the past year documenting student efforts to address issues of concern in their schools. From posting positive messages on Facebook to taking on a social action project or simply speaking out against bullying, students across the nation have taken a step towards tolerance and acceptance with the guidance of their teachers.


How Communities Use Not In Our Town

In addition to our films, we would like to introduce you to the Not In Our Town community of leaders like you who are working for vibrant, diverse communities where hate crimes are not just responded to, but prevented; and where people work together to address the everyday issues of intolerance.

First time on the site? Here's how you can get started:

Three Stories of Courage

A woman attends the vigil honoring Marcelo Lucero.

Inspired by Documentaries, NY Painter Uses Art to Change Conversation on Immigrants

 “As I watched this documentary unfold I found myself riveted to the screen. It deals with social issues that I hold dear, specifically how central a community can be for making changes. It restored a feeling of optimism in me to see how a community coming together can turn a frightful act into a hopeful new beginning.” — Berenice Pliskin, Artist


Not In Our Town: Class Actions

Right before the Thanksgiving holiday, we shipped off our next film, Not In Our Town: Class Actions to PBS. Not In Our Town: Class Actions

Not in Our Town: Class Actions features three stories of students and their communities standing together to stop hate and bullying. Premieres on PBS stations in 2012. 


Q's Review of Light in the Darkness, 'Practical' Problem Solving

Mayors of neighboring communities, Sid Espinosa of Palo Alto and Jac Seigel of Mountain VIew, collaborated in hosting a screening of Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness in Los Altos Hills, Calif. Local lawyer and avid film critic James Quillinan shares his review of the film from a screening in which more than 50 supporters attended.


San Francisco Proclaims Sept. 21 Not In Our Town Day

On Sept. 21—the day our film, Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness premiered on PBS—San Francisco declared it Not In Our Town Day.
 
The proclamation, signed by San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee, was presented to Not In Our Town Executive Director Jonathan Bernstein at a special Human Rights Commission meeting last night.

Not In Our Town Remembers Philanthropist David Logan

David LoginNot In Our Town remembers philanthropist David Logan for his contributions to the arts and to journalism. Logan died on Jan. 22, 2011 at the age of 93.

Friends and family members attended a memorial service that was held in Logan's honor in Chicago this past weekend. 


Podcast: Communities Uniting Against Hate

The Not In Our Town movement has spanned more than 15 years and has included the grassroots efforts of communities fighting hate across the country. We've compiled this podcast—available to listen here or to download on your MP3 player—based on our Link TV special that chronicles our history from Billings, Mont. to the launch of NIOT.org in April 2010.


Jonathan Bernstein on CA Attorney General Transition Team, Leads Talk for state Human Relations Organizations

Jonathan Bernstein, Not In Our Town executive director, has been tapped for California Attorney General Kamala Harris’ Civil Rights Enforcement Transition Team. The transition team is one of 10 “Smart on Crime Work Groups” and is chaired by Bill Lann Lee, who served as the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Justice under President Clinton.