Monday, January 23, 2017

LAUNCHING A HATE FREE ZONE IN KENSINGTON


  
UPDATE: The Muslim Observer reported on this event at "Brooklyn Neighborhood Responds to Immigration Ban with 'Hate Free Zone'."

UPDATE: This event will end at 6:45 p.m., not at 8:00 p.m.

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Launching a Hate Free Zone in Kensington
Wednesday, January 25th, 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Kensington will be declared a hate free zone at a press conference and rally at Avenue C Plaza on Wednesday. DRUM (Desis Rising Up & Moving) issued this statement and request for support and involvement from all members of the Kensington community:
Join us in the launch of a HATE FREE ZONE in Kensington, Brooklyn.

DRUM members will hold a press conference and rally to organize and defend their communities against policies and forces that will endanger the well being of Muslim, undocumented, LGBTQ, workers and women.

We will partner and unite with local community-based institutions to declare Kensington, Brooklyn a Hate Free Zone and line of defense against the Trump administration's coming policies.

Our communities are looking for ways to come together to defend themselves and gain mutual support for the days to come, and start to build different visions of what "community" means.
In the words of Poonam Das, a DRUM youth leader who spoke at the Hate Free Zone launch in Queens:
"A Hate-Free Zone is not just a declaration, but the practice of building a community defense system that will allow us to defend our communities from workplace raids, deportations, mass criminalization, violence and systemic violation of our rights and dignity.

A Hate-Free Zone does not happen without the people in this crowd, in this neighborhood, in this city. The times we are living in now demand we work as communities to love and protect each other"
The press conference and rally will be in Avenue C Plaza, at the intersection of McDonald Avenue and Avenue C (map), on Wednesday, January 25th, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.