The Diversity Council will launch a new initiative to bring people together and promote tolerance during its annual celebration Thursday.
For the Purple Ribbon Campaign, people will be asked to sign a pledge and wear a purple ribbon as a signal that they stand up for tolerance, respect and unity.
The annual celebration also will feature the award-winning theater ensemble Breaking Ice. A program of the Minneapolis' Pillsbury House Theatre, Breaking Ice provides customized interactive dramatic performances designed to spark change on difficult issues. The innovative group won the 2008 Nonprofit Mission Award for Anti-Racism Initiative.
Local blues crossover band, the Nodding Wild Onions, also will perform. County Commissioner Stephanie Podulke, who is a Diversity Council board member, is a member of the band.
Amuna Kenyi, a Sudanese immigrant studying at St. Mary's University, will speak at the event about the effect the Diversity Council's Spark! anti-bias workshops had on her when she was a student in Rochester Public Schools.
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The Diversity Council Annual Celebration will be held Thursday at the Rochester Art Center. Reception begins at 5:30 p.m., and the program starts at 6 p.m.
Admission is free, but reservations are required. Send an email to info@diversitycouncil.org today to reserve a spot. Free-will donations will be accepted.
