44 Forum on Tolerance | North Shore Community College

44th Forum on Tolerance
Black Lives Matter: The U.S. Journey Towards Justice and Healing.
PART 1

Virtual Event from October 19th-22nd, 2020.

WITH OUR CONDEMNATION of the senseless murder of George Floyd as our catalyst, our first part of this virtual series focused on the history of the harassment, profiling, and brutalization of our black citizens by the hands of community policing and the criminal justice system. Our speakers, nationally recognized Michael Eric Dyson, Ricky Grant Jr., Rev. Andre Bennet, and Valerie Stephens explored steps that might be taken to reverse this systemic racism, help those who have been victimized by it, and heal as a nation and a community.

This forum was presented in collaboration North Shore Community College, Office of Student Engagement and with Salem State University

Videos from Forum

Michael Eric Dyson

Keynote speaker.
Introductions by Dr. Nate Bryant and Dr. Sean Bennett.

Michael Eric Dyson is a Georgetown University Professor of Sociology and minister, michaelericdyson.com. Dr. Dyson is a New York Times contributing opinion writer, a contributing editor of The New Republic, and of ESPN's The Undefeated website. Some of his recent books are The Black Presidency: Barack Obama and the Politics of Race in America (2016), Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America (2017), What Truth Sounds Like (2018), and JAY-Z: Made in America (2019).

Ricky Grant Jr.

Chief of Community Engagement, Office of Suffolk County D.A. Rachael Rollins

Implicit Bias Training

Dr. Maria Vasquez and Dr. Jennifer Harris.

Reverend Andre Bennett

NSCC Alumnus/Youth Minister at Zion Baptist Church

Rev. Andre Bennett is the Youth Pastor at the Zion Baptist Church here in Lynn. He is a graduate of U Mass, Endicott college, and Atlantic Coast Theological Seminary. And Rev. Bennett has a certificate and Associates Degree in Developmental Disabilities right here from North Shore Communities College. He is an inspirational leader with the Essex County Community Organization or ECCO, which is a diverse network of congregations and organizations across the North Shore working on building relationships and putting power to human dignity at the center of public life. Andre is a passionate social activist working with a number of local colleges and community organizations to improve the lives of immigrant communities.

Valerie Stephens

Performance Artist/Creator of Princess Day

Valerie Stephens a native Bostonian has both national and international performance and production credits. She is an award winning, performing artist with a passion for history. Valerie has received a 2019 Bro. Thomas Fellowship, 2019 Bridge Award in Arts, 2018 Boston City Council Resolution for creating the annual event PRINCESS DAY: Celebrating Little Girls of Color and her commitment to Nina Simone’s legacy, 2017 New England Foundation for the Arts Creative City, the 2016 Get Konnected! Boston Legends & Pioneers Award, the 2011 NAACP Image Award, the 2007 Urban Music Award in Blues and was a nominee for the 2011 Urban Music Award in Jazz as well as Citations of Appreciation from the Cities of Boston, New Bedford and Springfield.

See the videos of the 45 Forum on Tolerance Black Lives Matter Part 2 >

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44th Forum on ToleranceBlack Lives Matter: The U.S. Journey Towards Justice and Healing. PART 1