There’s been so many wonderful things happening in the Not In Our Town network, that we wanted to share them with all of you. Here’s a sampling from the past few months.
School Leaders Share LessonsLauri Massari, who spearheaded the Not In Our School campaign in Antelope Valley [1], penned this great article, “Teaching emotional intelligence, [2]” in the May/June issue of Leadership, the magazine of the Association of California School Administrators. In the article, she talks about emotional intelligence and her work with the Del Sur Middle School True Leaders [3] program.
Karen Murphy, Marty Sleeper and Margot Stern Strom mention Not In Our Town in an article in the April issue of the International Schools Journal. Their article, “Facing History and Ourselves in Post-Conflict Societies [4]” references how Facing History and Ourselves teachers in South Africa screened Not In Our Town after an outbreak of xenophobia and violence in the country.
Not In Our Town groups in New York, Montana, California, New Jersey, Colorado and Idaho
Not In Our Town-Rockland County responded to a May 15 article on LoHud.com [5], “Ramapo police search for man who knocked down Jewish teen. [6]” Read their opinion piece, “Coalition won’t tolerate hate,” here [7].
Not In Our Town Billings held its annual fundraising event. Watch the video [8] from KULR8.
Like Gunn High School [9], Palo Alto High School had its Not In Our Town week. Check out slideshows of the event from the student newspaper, the Paly Voice: Opening flag ceremony and Bhangra Club performance [10], lunchtime activities including the stereotype pool [11], and concluding with a dance performance from Grupo Folklorico Luna y Sol [12], a Mexican dance troop based at San Jose State University.Not In Our Town Princeton hosted another event in its “Continuing Conversations on Race” series. The June 6 topic was “Conversation about the relationships among diversity, privilege and power.” Representatives from Not in Our Town Princeton also distributed signs that read "We Are Standing Against Racism Today and Every Day" to local merchants who were observing Stand Against Racism day, sponsored by the Princeton YWCA. More than 120 merchants now have these signs in their windows. For more information visit the NIOT Princeton webpage [13].
The Fort Collins Not In Our Town Alliance member Lester Washington made a tribute to retiring NIOTA member Hal Mansfield in the NIOTA Soapbox Column in the [14]Colorada [14]n on June 1.
The Idaho Public Television special, “The Color of Conscience [15],” tells the story of the Aryan Nations in North Idaho and how a group of human rights leaders brought it down. The documentary features the courageous work of the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations [16] and member Tony Stewart, also a leader in the Not In Our Town community.
Inspired by Not In Our Town: Young Adult Fiction and Song
Former Billings resident Charlie Price won the Edgar Allan Poe Award [17] for the best young adult novel from the Mystery Writers of America. His novel The Interrogation of Gabriel James [18] was selected by the American Library Association as a Quick Pick for Young Adults, and was inspired by the Billings Not In Our Town campaign. On June 12, the Seattle Jewish Chorale’s third annual concert, “L’Chaim: Songs for Life [19],” included lullabies, love songs, and a dramatic composition, “Not In Our Town,” which told the story of how Billings, MT stood up for their Jewish neighbors amid violence and bigotry.