United Against Racism

Stand Against Racism 2021

In 2021, we held our second virtual campaign. In order to expand our reach, we  we teamed up teamed up with the Alliance of YWCAs of Massachusetts, including YWCA Cambridge, YWCA Central Massachusetts, YWCA Malden, YWCA Greater Newburyport, YWCA Northeastern Massachusetts, and YWCA Southeastern Massachusetts. 240 registrants, and over 13,000 participants, connected virtually to commit to anti-racism. Learn more in our wrap up blog post, "Thousands take a Stand Against Racism in Massachusetts."

Our 2021 Content Curators included:

• Laurel Berryman, Activist, Former Racial & Gender Equity Program Coordinator, YWCA Southeastern Massachusetts
• Dr. Matilde Castiel, City of Worcester’s Commissioner of Health and Human Services
• Damon Hart, Executive Vice President, Deputy Chief Legal Officer at Liberty Mutual Insurance
• Jennifer Hedrington, 2021 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year
• Irene Li, Co-Founder of Mei Mei Restaurant Group
• Devin and Jason McCourty, Professional Football Players and members of the New England Patriots
• Eva Millona, President and CEO of the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition (MIRA)
• Wendy Mota, Program Manager with the Children’s Team, Futures Without Violence
• Dr. Kenvi Phillips, Johanna-Marie Fraenkel Curator for Race and Ethnicity, Harvard Radcliffe’s Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
• Ketshaly Philome, Lead Organizer, Curriculum Reform Committee, Malden High’s Students for Racial Equity committee
• Dr. Julia Rodriguez, Professor of History, University of New Hampshire
• Billy Zeng, Youth Board Member, Greater Malden Asian American Community Coalition

Stand Against Racism 2020

In 2020, we moved our campaign fully virtual to encourage participation during COVID-19 physical distancing. We were proud to be able to pivot our efforts and offer digital pledge boards, as well as tips for how to lead a virtual conversation. 130 registrants, and over 5,000 participants, connected virtually to commit to anti-racism. During the month, two of our curators engaged our audience through virtual conversations, with Pariss Chandler leading a Twitter takeover and Michelle Wu curating a conversation about racism as a public health crisis. Learn more about our 2020 successes by reading our wrap-up blog post, "This April, thousands of Bostonians took a Stand Against Racism, virtually."

Our 2020 Content Curators included:

• Bobbie Carlton, Innovation Women
• Stephen Chan, The Boston Foundation
• Beth Chandler, YW Boston
• Pariss Chandler, #BlackTechTwitter
• Beverly Daniel Tatum, Spelman College
• Bernadine Desanges, Know Your Truths. Speak Your Truths.
• Songbawera Issa, Acton Boxborough High School
• Marty Martinez, City of Boston Mayor's Office
• Ashley Mitchell, Barry's and The Courage Campaign
• Naomie Raymong, Miss Black Massachusetts USA 2018
• Eneida Roman, Amplify Latinx
• Michelle Wu, Boston City Councilor At-Large

Stand Against Racism 2019

In 2019, we grew our campaign to engage 171 sites who either hosted pledge boards, hosted conversations based on curated content, or both. This was the first year we encouraged supporters to fundraise to support the campaign, ultimately raising almost $3,000 to cover the cost of the Stand Against Racism campaign. Learn more about our 2019 successes by reading our 2019 wrap-up blog post, "Hundreds across Boston took a Stand Against Racism this April". 

Our 2019 Content Curators included:

• David Delmar, Resilient Coders
• Tania Del Rio, Mayor's Office of Women's Advancement
• Betty Francisco, Amplify Latinx and Latina Circle
• Sandro Galea, Boston University School of Public Health
• Renée Graham, The Boston Globe
• Melodie Knowlton, Vertex
• Chrislerne Jean-Louis, YW Boston's Youth InIt program
• Ivan Madrigal Espinoza, Lawyers for Civil Rights
• Jessicah Pierre, Queens Company
• Bob Rivers, Eastern Bank
• Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins
• Janson Wu, GLAD

Stand Against Racism 2018

In 2018, we engaged 168 sites in our campaign to raise awareness about systemic racial inequity. 2018 marked the first year that YW Boston introduced curated content as option for participation in the campaign, and our second year distributing pledge boards to sign.

Our 2018 Content Curators included:

• Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey
• Vernā Myers, Inclusion Strategist at The Vernā Myers Company
• Justin Kang, The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce
• Adam Grossman, the Boston Red Sox
• High school advocates Saphire Broxton, Habiba Elfass, James Le, and Sumaiya Zama

Stand Against Racism 2017

Stand Against Racism 2017 marked the first year we joined with over 100 partner organizations to blanket the city with pledge boards, asking Bostonians everywhere to write what they will do to advance racial equity. We estimate that a minimum of 1,500 people made a personal pledge. See our takeaway blog post for common pledge themes, and what they tell us about how to advance racial equity in Boston.