Bahá’í Community of Indianapolis

Bahá’í Community of Indianapolis

The Earth is But One Country and Mankind its Citizens — Bahá’u’lláh

Youth Summer of Service

Location

Indianapolis, IN

Dear Youth,

We are writing again to invite you to the upcoming Midwest Youth Conference, focused on race unity and justice, which will be held on the weekend of the 18th and 19th of July, Saturday and Sunday. Each day it will be held on Zoom from 1pm to 7pm. Youth ages 15-30, across Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, are all invited.

You can register for the conference here:
https://bit.ly/midwestyouthconf

At this conference, we will talk about the issues of racism, prejudice, and anti-blackness afflicting our country in order to build our understanding of these deep-rooted ills. We will also talk about how we can apply the Teachings of the Faith to combat them, and plan how to work together to contribute our share of eradicating prejudice. We have much to learn about racism and how to constructively respond to it, and we also have to act systematically in applying what we already know.

There can be no doubt that we must act with urgency. Our National Spiritual Assembly has written about the recent acts of violence:

These heartbreaking violations against fellow human beings, due only to the color of their skin, have deepened the dismay caused by a pandemic whose consequences to the health and livelihoods of people of color have been disproportionately severe. This has come to pass against a backdrop of longstanding racial injustice in virtually every aspect of American life. It is clear that racial prejudice is the most vital and challenging issue we face as a country.

We earnestly call on you to respond to our invitation to join this conference, which is only a potential starting point in the much longer road to the oneness of mankind -- a future that we have been promised to reach through our efforts by Baha'u'llah. Please invite your friends to join as well, many of whom are passionate in their own efforts to fight racism.

We are also encouraging those who are able to dedicate a portion of their summer to a period of service. From July 22 to August 16, there will be several opportunities for individuals to participate in study of institute courses and efforts to help their local communities. For more details and registration go to:
https://bit.ly/midwestsummer

With love and appreciation,
Midwest Summer 2020 Collaborative Group