In celebration of Black History Month, the Fordham Arts and Sciences Deans’ Anti-Racism Advisory (FASARA) in collaboration with the Chief Diversity Officer hosted the first Beloved Community Celebration on Jan. 31 at both Rose Hill and Lincoln Center. Martin Luther King Jr. described the “Beloved Community” as a society where “caring and compassion drive political policies that support the worldwide elimination of poverty and hunger and all forms of bigotry and violence.” The open house invited faculty, staff and students to engage with the question: What would a “Beloved Community” look like at Fordham University?
“It seemed fit to reflect on the idea in January, as a bridge between King’s day, a day of engagement and service and Black History Month, when we spend a month learning about, reflecting and diving deep into Black history,” said Alessia Valfredini, a FASARA co-chair.
Both Rose Hill and Lincoln Center’s Beloved Community Celebration were organized by FASARA under the patronage of Dean Robert J. Hume and the support of Interim Chief Diversity Officer Kamille Dean, Esq. At the celebration, two FASARA co-chairs were present — Michele Prettyman at Lincoln Center and Valfredini at Rose Hill. Under the guidance of Abby Goldstein, clinical professor of graphic design at Lincoln Center, students Noel Bernard, FCRH ’24, and Jasmin Smalling, FCLC ’24, designed poster proposals to promote the event.
“FASARA organized both [celebrations]… it came together with the generous work of a community of engaged people, many of whom are faculty and staff from FASARA; visual art students designed the flyers and social media images,” reflected Valfredini. “The idea to reflect on and envision the ‘Beloved Community’ at Fordham was first developed by Michele Prettyman.”
Attendees were encouraged to reflect on prompts such as “When I hear Beloved Community, I think…” and “When I hear Beloved Community, I see” and to write their thoughts down on post-it notes. The sticky notes were displayed on a large sheet of paper on the wall, allowing attendees to read others’ reflections on the prompts.
Responses to the prompt “When I hear Beloved Community I think…” included phrases such as, “people coming together across racial, religious and cultural differences,” “trusting in everyone’s goodness” and “a community that lives in harmony and helps each other however they can.”
The celebration also encouraged attendees to engage in thoughtful conversation with one another. Valfredini noted that two recurring themes from conversations stuck with her: time to be together and nourish community, and the superficiality of interactions on social media and social media’s hindrance on productive public discourse.
“In the conversations I observed, I have seen people lifting each other, creating connections, encouraging each other,” said Valfredini.
The event’s attendees were also given the opportunity to respond to a poll to share their thoughts on nourishing a beloved community at Fordham; collaborations range from working on specific projects or volunteering for events to express interest in becoming a member of FASARA. FASARA membership is open to undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff. Those interested in contributing to the cause had the chance to leave their contact information.
Although this was the first year of the Beloved Community Celebration, Valfredini hopes that the event will continue in the future.
“We not only hope to establish a tradition; we also envision next year’s event coming together as the culmination of a sustained collaboration with various entities on campus, emerging from the very community it celebrates, while creating such a community in the doing. FASARA is establishing a committee to plan next year’s event,” said Valfredini.
Those wishing to stay updated on FASARA’s upcoming events and opportunities to get involved can follow the organization on Instagram @fordham_asara.
