WESPAC Foundation supports the work of the Anti-Racist Alliance which is the lead group in Westchester that explores the ongoing harm of institutionalized and systemic racism in our country today. We have honest discussions in a mixed group of how white privilege impacts both people of color and white folk in Westchester County in the form of excessive police force, access to quality education, employment and housing and many other areas. We listen to the range of experience that people of color have to endure in a society that continues to disproportionately benefit white people . For more information, visit antiracistalliance.com
WESPAC Community Self Reliance
Video clip from WESPAC’s Food Justice Community Self Reliance celebration:
We’re all feeling good & gathered at our community self reliance celebration with delicious food from Giovanni “Chef D’Amour” with Break Bread not Hearts pic.twitter.com/5XBTr1TCTs
— WESPAC Foundation (@WESPAC_NY) February 26, 2016
WESPAC Intern Attends Local Conference
Imani McCalla is a Journalism Major at SUNY Purchase and has been interning this semester at WESPAC. She recently attended the Westchester MLK Institute's annual conference on Ending Violence, Building Hope and took the time to write an article about her experience....
Celebrating Our Community Self-Reliance
Evening of Political Prisoner and Trans Prisoner Support at WESPAC
A group gathered the evening of Tuesday, January 26, 2016, focused on supporting parole for Herman Bell as well as for the First International Day of Action in Solidarity with Trans Prisoners. We wrote birthday cards to former Black Panther Herman Bell...
NY Wants to Tell You What You Can and Cannot Boycott
It is very disappointing that our local NYS Assembly Member David Buchwald is a co-sponsor of A8220. I am trying to set up a meeting with him. If you are in his district and would be willing to attend this meeting, please let me know. In the meantime, please do be in touch with your state representatives on this free speech matter. The NY State Senate passed a bill last week that will create a blacklist of individuals and institutions that are engaged in a boycott of a U.S. ally. 55 NY state senators voted in favor and 6 senators voted against
These six NYS Senators who voted against are all African American and Latino.
WESPAC 2015 Annual Report
Refugees: A Call to Action by the Westchester, Rockland and the Hudson Valley Community
As the tides of refugees from war in the Middle East literally wash ashore in Europe, we are witness to human tragedy of unfathomable proportions. In a world where governments wage wars that result in the displacement of tens of millions of people, we as human beings face a responsibility and a real opportunity to do the right thing. We welcome the tired, the poor the hungry and endangered to our country and community. We cannot be witness and not take action. All around the country, municipalities and local communities are calling for the United States of America to open wide the doors to the refugees, and are ready to welcome refugee families into their communities. We in the Westchester, Rockland and Hudson Valley Community join in the call for action to save and welcome refugees as follows:
Would you like to sit with WESPAC members at MLK Breakfast?
Please let the WESPAC office know if you would like to attend this breakfast and sit at the WESPAC table: Greetings Friends of Slater Center: On Monday, January 18th we will commemorate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King at our annual unity breakfast. Come hear...
Free Speech/Hate Speech: Where Do We Draw the Line?
The Westchester Coalition Against Islamophobia invites you to this important conversation: Thursday, November 5, from 7 to 9 p.m. Ethical Culture Society of Westchester 7 Saxon Wood Rd. White Plains, NY 10605 (Ample, free parking available – bus #60 stops on ...
Watch the Sea-Change, My Friends; Witness the Sea-Change
Reflections on the Community Forum at Greenburgh Town Hall The immediate observations Not a single member of the organizing committee lost their cool; all of us were frustrated and offended, but not a single person acted out of order. It is admirable. As the...
WESPAC on Facebook
Friday, October 9th at 6pm at the Barn at Vassar College! RSVPs required at [email protected]. Contributions for the farm collective can be made ahead of time. We can also arrange car pools.The WEBATUCK VALLEY FARM COLLABORATIVE (WVFC), established in 2023, is a regional food sovereignty and farm cooperative development initiative rooted in a larger movement for cultural reclamation, economic & racial justice, and community healing. Rock Steady Farm, Sweet Freedom Farm, and WILDSEED Community Farm & Healing Village leveraged a ten-year partnership to transform local farming, economic opportunity, and food access. They aim to remove barriers to entry for Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) and LGBTQ+ beginning farmers in ways that support the prosperity of our communities and the future of our planet.The current food system is built on exploited labor and land, leaving many hungry and malnourished despite excess and waste. WVFC works with communities within, against, and beyond this broken system to build resilient local economies. Their organizations collaboratively support New York State farmers through land access, training and apprenticeships, shared infrastructure, equipment and product aggregation, advocacy, community events, and employment. They advance land-based liberation by training young land stewards, supporting beginning farmers with land access, growing nutrient-dense and culturally relevant food and medicine, and distributing their harvests to families impacted by food scarcity or state violence.This year, that vision takes physical form. They are renovating two barns—one at Rock Steady which will winterize the barns, expand the cold storage three fold for aggregation, build much larger wash-pack space with new equipment, a retail store and new CSA pick-up, Rock Steady staff space and workplace kitchen, short term housing for all the trainees and facilitators and so much more. The barn at Wildseed will be home to a gorgeous event space, and an added value commercial kitchen. Sweet Freedom Farm will be stewarding grain processes equipment and grain processing space that has been a significant need of small to mid-sized grain producers in the area.This shared processing infrastructure will expand the capacity of over a dozen BIPOC- and LGBTQ+-led farms to wash, store, and process food year-round. It's an investment in a more resilient future where farmers across the region can enter a food system designed for their success.The Elias Foundation is kindly subsidizing the cost of the dinner so that more of the proceeds can support the farmers' fund! @followers
Friday, October 9th at 6pm at the Barn at Vassar College! RSVPs required at [email protected]. Contributions for the farm collective can be made ahead of time. We can also arrange car pools.The WEBATUCK VALLEY FARM COLLABORATIVE (WVFC), established in 2023, is a regional food sovereignty and farm cooperative development initiative rooted in a larger movement for cultural reclamation, economic & racial justice, and community healing. Rock Steady Farm, Sweet Freedom Farm, and WILDSEED Community Farm & Healing Village leveraged a ten-year partnership to transform local farming, economic opportunity, and food access. They aim to remove barriers to entry for Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) and LGBTQ+ beginning farmers in ways that support the prosperity of our communities and the future of our planet.The current food system is built on exploited labor and land, leaving many hungry and malnourished despite excess and waste. WVFC works with communities within, against, and beyond this broken system to build resilient local economies. Their organizations collaboratively support New York State farmers through land access, training and apprenticeships, shared infrastructure, equipment and product aggregation, advocacy, community events, and employment. They advance land-based liberation by training young land stewards, supporting beginning farmers with land access, growing nutrient-dense and culturally relevant food and medicine, and distributing their harvests to families impacted by food scarcity or state violence.
All are welcome and please share widely. We have several new people to WESPAC this summer. This gathering on September 16th would be a lovely introduction to the broader social justice community: @followers