Power of One Event
We are less than a month away from our annual Power of One event, held this year on May 22, 2022, at the California Museum! Its Unity Exhibit is a permanent exhibit, a multi-dimensional, interactive exhibit, that explores our commonalities and our differences.
One interactive exhibit that really touches my heart is 3 boards on the wall that has chips in holders below. The titles ask, “Have you been discriminated against because of your religion?” “Have you been discriminated against because of …..”. If you have, you are to put a chip into a slot up above. As the day progresses, people pass by, read the titles and many times will add chips. At the end of the day, the slots are usually filled up by people throughout the day. After the museum closes, all the chips are taken down to start fresh the next day.
I have thought about this specific exhibit, the purpose of it, and what it shows us. Whether we are Asian or black, middle eastern or Latinx, 15 years old or 85 years old, a lot of us feel discriminated against, maybe on a regular basis. But what it shows is that we are not alone in those feelings. We may pass by late in the afternoon, and chips have completely filled up the spaces. WOW. How powerful is that? What does it say about our society that in one day, all those chips are used? And most importantly, what can we do as a society to reduce discrimination in our society? It is a persistent and soul-crushing reality that affects our health, that limits our educational aspirations, that puts us in dead-end jobs, that limits our safety in our neighborhoods, as well as so many more aspects of our lives.
Please join us in honoring Gabby Trejo from SacACT, Jon Fish, past President of the Interfaith Council, and Liz Igra, Central Valley Holocaust Educators’ Network.
Learn more and get your tickets here.
Serene Erby
President, Interfaith Council