Jamestown YWCA‘s Alize Scott and Chautauqua Institution‘s Amit Taneja talk about the “Book Read” happening across the county.

The book “Caste: The Origins of our Discontent” by Isabel Wilkerson has been chosen for the community read.

Chautauqua Institution’s Senior Vice President & Chief Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility Officer Amit Taneja said community groups have been working on how to engage more people in Chautauqua County in creating a more inclusive and just society.

He said YWCA Executive Director Amanda Gesing reached out to the Institution after she learned that they would be hosting author Isabel Wilkerson this summer, “And so she reached out to me and said, ‘Hey, can we collaborate on this?’ and I said, ‘Great!’ because I had been thinking about how do we get everybody in Chautauqua involved and so that was sort of the birth of that program idea that everybody in Chautauqua County is reading the same book, focused on issues of justice and inclusion. And hopefully it sparks a lot of good conversation in the community.”

Taneja said the book touches on a lot of topics that society is struggling with and the hope is that the book discussions would give space to talk about things that are difficult, “Cause a lot of times I think fear of disagreement or opposition keeps us from talking about difficult things when really if we want to move the needle forward we need to come together in the spirit of mutual understanding even if we disagree on a few things so that’s kind of the hope out of this and this book gives us the tools to do that.”

Taneja said the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System has copies of Wilkerson’s book available for those interested in taking part. People who are interested in participating in a group discussion, whether in person or online, can register at https://www.ywcajamestown.com/chqbookread. The discussions will be scheduled for May 16 through 27.

Also, Chautauqua Institution is holding a “Chautauqua County Day” on Thursday, July 21 where county residents are eligible for free admission and parking in order to attend the live lecture by author Isabel Wilkerson. That lecture will take place at 10:45 a.m. at the Amphitheater on the Chautauqua Institution grounds. Tickets for this day will be available beginning June 1 by calling the Chautauqua Institution Ticket Office at 716-357-6250. Free parking is only available with ticket orders made by July 11.

Funding for Community Conversation: Marginalized and Underserved Groups in Jamestown is made possible through a Humanities NY Action Grant, along with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The event is also supported, in part, by Reg Lenna Center for the Arts and The Labyrinth Press Co.

Funding for Community Conversation: Marginalized and Underserved Groups in Jamestown is made possible through a Humanities NY Action Grant, along with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The event is also supported, in part, by Reg Lenna Center for the Arts and The Labyrinth Press Co.

Funding for Community Conversation: Marginalized and Underserved Groups in Jamestown is made possible through a Humanities NY Action Grant, along with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The event is also supported, in part, by Reg Lenna Center for the Arts and The Labyrinth Press Co.

Community Conversation: Marginalized and Underserved Groups in Jamestown is intended to raise public awareness of specific groups in Jamestown and the challenges they face, both past and present. It will also work to identify solutions to overcome these challenges in order to bring more inclusiveness, diversity, equity, and accessibility in the community. Each panel discussion will feature representatives from five community groups, including the local African-American Community, the Hispanic Community, LGBTQ+ Community, those affected by Chemical Dependency, and those impacted by Generational Poverty.

WEEK 1 of the panel discussion took place on Thursday, Sept. 23 at 6 p.m. and focused on the past history of the groups, with a goal of educating the community on how long these groups have been in the community and some of the challenges they’ve faced in the past.

WEEK 1 – FULL VIDEO

All three panel conversations were broadcast live on WRFA LP 107.9 FM and also streamed on WRFA’s Facebook page and Youtube Channel.

The Community Conversation was co-moderated by Julia Ciesla-Hanley, WRFA Public Affairs Director, and Amit Taneja, Senior VP & Chief IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility) Officer at Chautauqua Institution. Over a dozen community members also appeared during the three-week program, including representatives from the Chautauqua County Hispanic Community Council, Chautauqua Opportunities, Evergreen Health, Jamestown Justice Coalition, Jamestown Pride, Mental Health Association of Chautauqua County, and The Resource Center.

“We hope this program will serve as an opportunity for the broader community to learn more about these groups and any barriers or obstacles they’ve faced in the past, as well as those they may still currently face,” explained WRFA station manager Jason Sample. “We also hope community leaders will take note of these challenges and work to address them, in order to provide more inclusiveness and accessibility for the individuals who are part of these community groups.”

Sample also noted that this program will serve as a springboard for additional conversations next year.

“Our project team identified nearly a dozen different groups that could be represented in the panel discussion. But due to time constraints, we felt it best to focus on five groups at this time. However, we plan to continue the panel discussions next year and focus on other groups that were not included in this program, including the physically disabled, the mentally disabled, and the homeless community, among others,” Sample said.

Funding for Community Conversation: Marginalized and Underserved Groups in Jamestown is made possible through a Humanities NY Action Grant, along with funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The event is also supported, in part, by Reg Lenna Center for the Arts and The Labyrinth Press Co.

PANEL SCHEDULE

 WEEK 1 – SEPTEMBER 23 – Past History of Groups and Challenges/Barriers faced

• Justin Hubbard (Jamestown Justice Coalition – African American Community)
• Gregory Rabb (JCC/Former City Council President/BPU Chair – LGBTQ+ Community)
• Max Martin (Chautauqua County Hispanic Community Council – Hispanic Community)
• Steve Cobb (Chautauqua County Mental Health Association – Chemical Dependency)
• Josiah Lamp (Chautauqua Opportunities – Generational Poverty)

WEEK 2 – SEPTEMBER 30 – Present State of Groups and current existing Challenges/Barriers, including any connected to COVID

• Rev. Chloe Smith (Community Activist – African American Community)
• Mickale Gilliam (JCC Student – LGBTQ+ Community)
• Milie Torres – Ruiz, (Jamestown Resident/Parent/Teacher – Hispanic Community)
• Sean Jones, (Chautauqua County Mental Health Association – Chemical Dependency)
• Terri Johnson (The Resource Center Generational Poverty)

WEEK 3 – OCTOBER 7 – Looking Toward Future and Discussing/Identifying Changes that Need to Take Place to remove Challenges/Barriers

• Tamu Graham Reinhardt (Jamestown City Council – African American Community)
• Emily Van Wey (Jamestown Pride/Prevention Works – LGTBQ+ Community)
• Solimar Vazquez (Jamestown Resident/Confidential Secretary to County Executive – Hispanic Community)
• Emma Fabian (Evergreen Health Services) (tentative)
• Josiah Lamp (Chautauqua Opportunities – Generational Poverty)

ABOUT: WRFA is a noncommercial, listener supported, low power FM radio station licensed to the Reg Lenna Center for the Arts.  As a radio station licensed to a 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit organization, all financial donations/contributions made to WRFA are 100% tax deductible. Businesses and organizations can also provide corporate underwriting for WRFA by making a tax-deductible contribution of $100 or more.

JAMESTOWN – WRFA is pleased to present a three-part series of Community Conversations, connecting the broader Jamestown community with its marginalized/under-served groups to increase public awareness of their challenges and also identify workable solutions to overcome these challenges.

Each discussion will feature a panel of representatives from various groups, including the local African-American Community, the Hispanic Community, LGBTQ+ Community, those affected by Chemical Dependency, as well as Generational Poverty.

Week 1 (Sept. 23) will focus on the past history of the groups, with a goal of educating the community on how long these groups have been in the community and some of the challenges they faced in the past, along with whether or not those past challenges exist today.
Week 2 (Sept. 30) will focus on the present challenges and barriers facing the groups.
Week 3 (Oct. 7) will involve identifying solutions for the community in order to bring more equity, inclusion, and accessibility for the groups.

All three panel conversations will be broadcast live, starting at 6 p.m.

The event conversation will be co-moderated by WRFA Public Affairs Director Julia Ciesla-Hanley and Amit Taneja, Senior VP & Chief IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility) Officer at Chautauqua Institution, with over a dozen community members serving on the panel during the three-week program.

Each panel discussion will be broadcast live on WRFA radio (and streaming on our website), with video streaming available on both WRFA’s Facebook Page and Youtube Channel.

A virtual Q&A will be available for audience members.

Funding for the Community Conversation is made available by Humanities NY and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.