18th Annual Race Unity Rally

The 18th Annual Race Unity Rally will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 13, 2009 at the La Grange Village Hall. The Race Unity Rally is an annual reminder to our community that we all need to work together to appreciate our differences while recognizing our similarities. The CommUNITY Diversity Group of La Grange initiated the Annual Race Unity Rally in response to the Rodney King riots in LA. Our hope was and is that by our tradition of valuing and respecting each other’s differences, we can appreciate our similar values, and make our community a better place for all.

Our theme for the Rally this year is “Quality Education for All Our Children.” We believe, as President Obama said in Philadelphia last year, that “…we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together - unless we perfect our union by understanding that we may have different stories, but we hold common hopes; that we may not look the same and we may not have come from the same place, but we all want to move in the same direction - towards a better future for our children and our grandchildren.”

This year’s Annual Race Unity Rally will feature as keynote speaker Henri Boyd Banks, formerly of La Grange, currently with Johns Hopkins University. In addition, Lyons Township High School’s new Superintendent, Dr. Timothy Kilrea, will introduce himself. The CommUNITY Diversity Group will present its annual achievement award to Joyce and Gaylon Lightner in recognition of their active contributions to the La Grange community. The CEP youth leadership performance group “Watch My Feet” will perform skits and dances to get their message across, and the Village of La Grange will present its annual Proclamation declaring the second Sunday in September to be Race Unity Day in La Grange.

FREE MOVIE AND DISCUSSION -
On the Friday before the Rally, September 11, at 6:30 p.m., there will be a movie night and discussion at the LaGrange Public Library, 10 W. Cossitt, La Grange, of the movie “Breaking the Huddle: The Integration of College Football.” This HBO Special explores the history of segregated football in the Southeastern, Southwest and Atlantic Coast Conferences. Some of those interviewed are: Thom Gossom, Darryl Hill, Jerry LeVias, Willie Lanier, John Mitchell, Bubba Smith, Wilbur Hackett, Jr., Jimmy Jones and Sam Cunningham; journalists Jeff Prugh, Howell Raines, Ed Krzemienski and Keith Dunnavant; and George Wallace, Jr.

Event co-chair Marian Honel-Wilson stated, “We like to sponsor a movie and discussion in connection with our Race Unity Rally because it’s a fun, entertaining way to consider some serious issues. The movie Breaking the Huddle presents some of our American history in an engrossing way. It’s important to understand and acknowledge our shared history, painful as it might be to remember times when African Americans were not welcome in certain settings.

The agenda for the evening is 6:30-7:00 p.m.- networking and pizza; 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.-movie; 8:00-8:30 p.m. discussion. Hope you can join us for an entertaining and interesting evening.

With all of its programs, the CommUNITY Diversity Group asks you to consider where you stand on issues of race and diversity – if you believe in equality and justice, what are you doing to make our community a better place? We look forward to seeing you at the Diversity Days of La Grange.