43
Panelists discuss racism and how to combat the issue
YOUNGSTOWN
When Rose Carter moved to the West Side in the 1980s, her house was burned down because she was black and unwanted in her neighborhood.
On Monday, Carter, now the executive director of the Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods – or ACTION – assembled politicians, faith leaders, activists and educators to discuss the nature of racism and how to combat the issue through community engagement.
The discussion – “Bridging the Gap – Black Meets White and White Meets Black,” took place at the DeYor Performing Arts Center and featured 15 panelists from a variety of backgrounds and races.
Youngstown City Council members Julius Oliver of the 1st Ward and Basia Adamczak of the 7th Ward moderated the discussion.
“I think we need to make an effort to get to know each other better,” Carter said, speaking of both white people and people of color.
The bulk of the evening revolved around panelists answering three questions: What keeps racism alive? Why is racism denied by both races? And what is the solution to the problem?
Each of the panelists had three minutes to answer the questions.
Pastor Todd Johnson of Second Baptist Church in Warren said the historical white-washing of history, particularly in regard to the European representations of religious figures such as Jesus and many of the Old Testament figures, has worked to reinforce racist ideas that history is centered around white people to the exclusion of people of color.
Michele Lepore-Hagan of Youngstown, D-58th, spoke to structural and institutional forms of racism, particularly within the Ohio Legislature.
“In the legislature I’ve fought against bills that promote institutional racism,” Lepore-Hagan said. “Within the Ohio Legislature, racism is alive and well.”
She later said that individuals within the Legislature have become emboldened to be more forward with agendas she believes are racist.
Ronald King, an activist, spoke to the power of words and said that people often “cloak” negative words in less offensive terms – such as “the n-word” – so they can use them without the discomfort of actually saying them. He later said he was opposed to all use of the word by anyone, regardless of race or context, because it only has negative meaning.
Adrienne Curry of Catholic Charities addressed why individuals deny racism’s existence.
“I don’t think people of color deny racism exists, they’re just tired of talking about it,” Curry said. “White people don’t know how to talk about race, and black people are tired of talking about it.”
She said racism is an affront to God because – in the Catholic faith – all individuals are said to have been created in the image of God, regardless of skin color.
One consistent theme throughout the discussion involved the solutions offered by the panelists.
Education, engagement and compassion made up the bulk of the solutions offered.
Several of the panelists, including community organizer Joseph Napier, encouraged audience members to get out of their comfort zones and engage with members of different races more frequently and to have uncomfortable discussions about race. Johnson suggested that religious white people looking for a diverse congregation should consider joining a black church.
Other panelists were: Vindicator reporter Bruce Walton; Pastor Gayle Catinella of St. John Episcopal Church; community activists Eliza Hosey, Leigh Greene, Lisette Encarnacion and Darian Rushton; Father Ed Brienz of Cafe Augustine and the Catholic diocese; Jacob Harver, the owner of the Knox Building in downtown Youngstown; community organizer Gary Davenport; and retired Youngstown State University professor Anne York-Romanoff.