Westfield virtual MLK commemoration highlights local anti-racism actions, HRAC and community dialogue

Elizabeth Wolf, president of the Martin Luther King Jr. Association of Westfield, opened the 34th annual interfaith commemoration in a Jan. 2021 virtual program and framed the event around the final six minutes of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1967 speech "Where Do We Go From Here? — Chaos or Community?" Wolf said the past year had been "profoundly difficult" because of the COVID-19 pandemic and called the summer 2020 protests after the killings of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd a widening of public consciousness about racial inequity.

The program included a recorded excerpt of Dr. King’s speech emphasizing what speakers repeatedly called a ‘‘holy dissatisfaction’’ with persistent racial and economic inequities. The service also featured local presentations tying that national history to Westfield: a walking tour and historical research, a community anti-racism collaborative that runs Dialogue Circles, and an update on the town’s Human Relations Advisory Commission (HRAC).

Elisa Saneman of the Westfield Martin Luther King Association and the African American History Committee described findings from the Westfield 300 historical project, saying late-1700s records indicate about 14 houses in town and roughly 25 people recorded as enslaved in that period. She noted a walking-tour stop at Fairview Cemetery that includes the grave of a woman identified in records as Jude, who the presenter said died at 42 and is listed as a servant for 39 years. Saneman also said her committee located a likely site of a colonial-era slave-auction block near the PNC bank in downtown Westfield and recounted reports, drawn from local historical records cited by her, that some African Americans were burned at the Elizabeth Courthouse; she added that the names of those victims were not recorded in the sources she described.

Claudia Cohen, convener of the Anti Racism Community Collaborative (ARC), outlined Dialogue Circles on race — small groups that meet roughly two hours a week for five weeks, led by trained facilitators and using curated readings — which she described as a ‘‘safe and welcoming space for talking about race and racism.’’ Amy Root, a member of the Westfield Board of Education, said the Dialogue Circles helped her confront personal blind spots and prepare to better serve students.

Dr. Alexis Jamal, identified in the program as chairperson of the Human Relations Advisory Commission, said HRAC originated from a proposal presented to Mayor Brindle in November 2019 and "by February 2020 HRAC was born via ordinance." Jamal said HRAC has 11 appointed commissioners and seven liaisons; it is organized into subcommittees focused on (1) information gathering and dissemination, (2) community education and engagement, and (3) community practices, policies and culture. Jamal emphasized that HRAC is not an investigatory body and said the commission will support and coordinate with the Westfield Police Department and other agencies on criminal investigations and community response.

Speakers also described recent local incidents they said reflect the need for these efforts, including racist and anti-Semitic vandalism reported in Brightwood and Tamaquist parks and in Westfield public schools. Pamela Brook, vice president of the MLK Association of Westfield, closed by asking listeners to support the association’s scholarship for graduating African American seniors at Westfield High School and to engage with HRAC’s planned activities.

The program concluded with a benediction by Reverend Joy Mountz of First Congregational Church and an invitation for attendees to stand and sing "We Shall Overcome." Presenters encouraged residents to access the walking-tour brochure (available at R's Coffee House and via the town website), participate in Dialogue Circles and contact HRAC for input; the transcript includes on-screen contact details and URLs but some email text appeared garbled in the recording.