It is with pain in my heart that I announce the passing of Baba Surya. He passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday at the age of 91 years. He was a fixture at the WESPAC office for many years when we were located at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. location in...
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
Building Community at the Lower Hudson Valley Social Forum
A wonderful short documentary film from Wilder Nicholson that captures the essence of the 2025 Lower Hudson Valley Social Forum. This footage gives us hope and joy in these dark and challenging times. We need to continue building community as we navigate our way to...
Tribute to WESPAC
Hello everyone! Here is Andrew's fabulous tribute to WESPAC with a couple of graphic tweaks! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrEb3fBmniY Thank you so much, and we look forward to celebrating with you at Red Hat on the River on June 10th! All details can be...
Veterans Fast for Gaza
This event starts on May 22, 2025: Name: "Veterans & Allies Fast for Gaza" Organized by Veterans For PeaceDuration: Core fasters will fast for 40 days. 250 calories/day to approximate what people in Gaza have. Who: Anyone who agrees with the two...
OPEN LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF WESTCHESTER, THE JEWISH COMMUNITY AND THE ADL
OPEN LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF WESTCHESTER, THE JEWISH COMMUNITY AND THE ADL Dear All, In a recent issue of its “Anti-Semitism Briefing” on WESPAC, the ADL describes WESPAC as an organization that does good in the world, serving to support equity and social justice and...
Raising Our Voices – From Nancy Kricorian
As many of you know, my spouse James teaches at Columbia University, which has again been much in the news. Things have been moving so fast that it’s hard to keep up with a situation that grows ever more dire. On Friday, March 7 when the Horsemen of the...
Feb. 19th is Day of Remembrance for Japanese American Community
From UMass Office of the President: February 19th is a significant date for the Japanese American community. On this day in 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which gave the U.S. Army the authority to remove civilians from the military...
Puppet making for the Social Forum Opening March!
The LHV Social Forum planning team is delighted to be working with the @boxcutter_collective to make large puppets for the social forum scheduled for Sunday, April 27th in White Plains! Boxcutter Collective is a New York City based puppet troupe made up of 6...
CFOW Newsletter!
From Frank Brodhead: Hello All - In less than a month, Donald Trump and Elon Musk have grabbed power and created chaos. We call this a “coup,” meaning an unconstitutional overturn of our government. They must be stopped. But how? Tens of thousands of people have lost...
NOON Newsletter 2025
Welcome to the NOON e-newsletter for February 2025. Enjoy, and please share widely! This poem was written for the candlelight vigil preceding the Onondaga Nation’s Land Rights hearing in Federal District Court, October 18, 2007. For Onondaga By Robin Wall Kimmerer...
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