This spring, when scores of people lined the streets across the country to protest the brutal killing of George Floyd, 26-year-old Diana Goldsmith was not surprised at the outrage and outpouring of activism. Over and over again, she had seen the results of police brutality … the untimely deaths of young black men and women who were killed.
Yet, last month, when talking to a group of Boomers, what did surprise her was their reaction to the recent events. Goldsmith felt that many, including those who lived through the Civil Rights movement, never seemed to realize the extent of racism in our country.
“In the arena of bigotry and racism, there are big gaps between Boomers and Millennials,” said Goldsmith. “Racial injustices have framed the outlook of many in my generation. Yet, the Boomers would say ‘we thought this was addressed during the civil rights era.’”
Goldsmith participated in the first session of “Connecting Generations: Difficult Conversations About Race.” The three-part virtual series, presented by the Baltimore Jewish Council (BJC) and the Jewish Museum of Maryland (JMM), both Associated agencies, was designed to deepen understanding about race as seen through the broader Jewish and American experience.
The first session engaged small cohorts of Millennials, Boomers, Gen X and community members from our Silent generation. Each cohort discussed a series of questions, inviting multiple generational perspectives and insights. It was based upon NPR’s Code Switch: A Decade of Watching Black People Die, which participants were asked to listen to prior to the session. The program continues in August and September.
Heidi Schloss is a Boomer, also who participated in the program. “I remember, when I was younger, talking to people who protested. My generation had the revolution, but we didn’t have the answers.”
Although the Boomers may have been surprised by the extent of racism in this country, Goldsmith noted that they were heartbroken that the issues they fought decades ago, continue today.
“We must come to terms with the realities of structural racism in our society if we are to move forward,” she says.
“We cannot be complacent,” adds Schloss. “We need to listen to one another, listen to different voices and speak out.”
Dialogue is a Step Toward Understanding
The “Connecting Generations” program is an outgrowth of The Associated’s commitment to take a more active role in addressing structural racism, as defined in the mission of the Baltimore City Partnerships Commission, launched last year.
Among the Commission’s goals is to leverage its existing work with its agencies and Baltimore City partners to deepen connections and build trust across communities and in ways that support community needs.
In its efforts to acknowledge and begin to confront implicit bias and structural racism, the Commission felt it was important to participate in an implicit bias training. Led by Dr. Leah Cox, Vice President of Inclusion and Equity at Towson University, the Commission members learned how human beings are triggered — both positively and negatively — when exposed to different kinds of people.
The work and training put forth by the Baltimore City Commission is the foundation for continued community conversations, advocacy and education.
Storytelling Through the Eyes of Baltimore City Schoolchildren
Personal Stories: Projected, a collaboration between the JMM, film students from Johns Hopkins University and several city schools has changed the lives of eighth-grade students. Now in its third year, the program teaches middle schoolers about the art of storytelling. The students then produced films about their lives that premiered at the JMM.
Simultaneously heartwarming and gutwrenching, these films run the gamut of emotions. In the first year, stories ranged from the challenges of having a father in jail to the joys of learning sign language in order to better communicate with a parent to a young girl who was sexually abused.
Not only did the students confront life challenges, they gained vital technology skills that prepared them for high school and developed trust with JMM professionals and other outsiders. In addition to Morrell Park, the program expanded to Graceland Park-O’Donnell Heights Elementary/Middle School in Baltimore City.
Dialogue and Volunteering
For the fifth year in a row, on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jewish Volunteer Connection (JVC), The Associated’s volunteer arm, brought individuals together to build community.
Together, volunteers from diverse communities worked side-by-side throughout Baltimore, in projects that included beautifying schools and neighborhoods, serving meals and creating care packages for people experiencing homelessness.
At JVC’s signature event at the Weinberg Park Heights JCC, volunteers also learned together in age-based cohorts about issues of housing equity, community building and the challenges facing veterans with PTSD (Post-traumatic stress disorder) as they re-integrate into society.
The JVC project was developed in conjunction with the BJC.
For more information, visit associated.org.
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