Affordable housing advocate Belmont Housing Resources for WNY has announced the activities it will present on Friday, April 30th, as an official participating site for the third annual Stand Against Racism.

 

The non-profit organization will be marking the event along with thousands of other participating individuals and organizations across the country as the YWCA-sponsored observance is celebrated nationwide for the first time.

 

Free and open to the public, the event will begin with a 10:00 a.m. presentation by noted educator and author Gary Earl Ross at its central office at 1195 Main Street at Dodge in Midtown Buffalo.

 

Together with Belmont's professional staff and guests, Ross will explore the daily opportunities each person has to help eliminate racism and share his personal experiences accepting that challenge. These have included contributing his talent to support the work of the Erie County Fair Housing Partnership, at whose request he wrote Dots: A Fair Housing Tale, a children's book promoting greater early awareness of the negative impact of housing discrimination.

 

Ross, a Professor with the University at Buffalo's Educational Opportunity Center, is a well-known literary figure, having authored numerous fiction and non-fiction books, stories and plays, including his newest novel, Blackbird Rising.

 

Coordinated by Belmont's Cultural Awareness Committee, the event will also feature other activities inspired by the observance, including plans for staff members to literally "stand" against racism in front of its 1195 Main Street Buffalo office, where throughout the day they will personally display a banner proudly declaring the commitment to fairness and inclusion shared by the organization's more than 100 employees.

 

Founded with the goal of bringing together like-minded organizations that share the vision of eliminating racism and celebrating the richness of diversity, the first Stand Against Racism was held in 2008 as a local event by YWCAs in Princeton and Trenton, New Jersey. In 2009, it expanded into a regional observance, attracting more than 30,000 people to take part in a wide range of activities offered at 323 participating sites.

 

More information is available by calling Belmont at 884-2358 Ext. 168/TDD 711.