The YWCA’s Stand Against Racism is committed to building a stronger Rochester community. The Stand is an annual community-wide event to build awareness about racism. The YWCA reaches out to businesses, schools, houses of worship, organizations, and government agencies to create greater awareness and to encourage conversations about race.

For this year’s Stand, the YWCA is hosting a special breakfast event featuring YWCA USA CEO, Dara Richardson-Heron, MD, as the keynote speaker. The theme of Dr. Richardson-Heron’s talk is “Leadership Challenges in Achieving Racial Equity.” Following Dr. Richardson-Heron’s presentation, Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren and another prominent community leader, to be announced, will participate in a panel discussion on this topic. The breakfast will be held at the Rochester Plaza Hotel and Conference Center.

In addition to the breakfast, hundreds of organizations will be hosting their own “Stand” events. Previous Stand events include such diverse activities as:

• A “Poetry Slam”
• Facilitated discussions about race
• Musical performances
• A Racial Justice workshop
• A dance performance at a local mall

For more information about the Stand and to buy tickets for the breakfast on April 25, click.