Tag Archives: Race

In 1,800-Mile Road Trip, Delegate Visits Rural Communities

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This year marked the final road trip Dan Geiger undertook to deliver his report as delegate to the Bahá’i National Convention, the annual gathering that elects the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States. After serving on and off for 30 years, Geiger is retiring. 

For most of his life, Geiger has lived in Billings, Montana. Montana and northern Idaho belong to a single electoral unit, which currently encompasses eight Local Spiritual Assemblies and 16 registered groups. “It’s actually bigger than California land wise,” Geiger says. 

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“Spiritual Triplets” Organize Center for Community Building among Birmingham’s Black Population

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Birmingham, Alabama, has long been a center of Black activism. Today, a program to bring more Black people into the community-advancing work of the Baha’i Faith is taking shape in this historic city. The Pupil of the Eye Cultural, Learning and Visitors Center serves as a home base for efforts to empower residents to build thriving neighborhoods. Its name refers to the teaching of Baha’u’llah likening Black people to the pupil of an eye, through which “the light of the spirit shineth forth.”

Sixteen people at a gathering.
Aliyah Aziza Ogbue’ (left), Arnicia Tucker (seated, center right), and Angela Murray (seated, above right) joined Birmingham-area friends recently at a Bessemer, Alabama, house being dedicated as the Pupil Place.
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Professor prepares future educators by ‘entering the space with love’

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A woman speaks to a class of young adults.
Ashley Patterson (right, standing) conducts an education class at Pennsylvania State University. Photo courtesy of Penn State News.

Recently in a class at Pennsylvania State University, the instructor, Ashley Patterson, asked the class of 25 students: How many had ever been into the house of someone of a different race? One raised a hand.

Then: How many ever had a meal with someone of a different race? Two.

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South Dakota Scholars Discuss Race Issues with Aid of Baha’i Principles

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Webcam images of four women on a video call.
Study group participants in Brookings, South Dakota. Screenshot courtesy of Dianne Nagy.

Though it’s 200 miles from Minneapolis, the college town of Brookings, South Dakota, keenly felt the repercussions of George Floyd’s killing in May 2020, and the national turmoil surrounding race. 

Dianne Nagy, a Baha’i with considerable experience in local human rights activities, immediately got to work bringing Baha’i-inspired perspectives into the conversation. 

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Indianans “Light Up the Night” for racial justice

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Three women hold candles at dusk. They wear face masks.
A few of the 100 or so people who attended the “Light up the Night” event in Fort Wayne. Photo courtesy of the Harrison Hill Neighborhood Association.

Harrison Hill is a historic residential neighborhood in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It is home to people of diverse ancestries — and for many that’s a cause for celebration. The decades-long marriage of two of the neighborhood’s residents, Gayle and Akinlana (“Akin”) Bevill-DaDa, exemplifies the possibilities for interracial relationships. Gayle is white and Akin is Black.

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Midwest Youth Conference Participants Seek Solutions to Racism

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Summer 2020 will long be remembered for protests against racial injustice that filled the streets of many U.S. cities. Young people have been at the forefront of this movement, impatient with the nation’s status quo — a feeling no doubt shared by many young Baha’is. 

The Midwest Youth Conference, July 18–19, sought to develop a response to this social reality. Held via online videoconference, it attracted 75 participants from Indiana, Michigan and Ohio.

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