Hudson Valley360

Brothers at Bard (BAB) cofounder and Executive Director Dariel Vasquez ’17 will speak March 21 at the Peace One Day’s Anti-Racism Live Global Digital Experience, a live broadcast to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Presented by Peace One Day in association with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the live broadcast gathers internationally acclaimed artists, actors, and prominent speakers to raise awareness of Anti-Racism Day, facilitate conversations that lead to a more diverse and inclusive world, set out action points to help individuals and organizations engage with anti-racism, and establish the link between the March 21 Anti-Racism Day and September 21 Peace Day, demonstrating that anti-racism is an essential requirement for peace.

“It is incumbent upon educational institutions, particularly historically exclusive and predominately white institutions, to shift their priorities from simply increasing their diversity to doing the anti-racist work of actually becoming inclusive,” says Vasquez. “Everything from their curriculum and pedagogy, to the spaces their students must traverse at the institution—racial justice must be at the center of re-designing the institution itself. And people of color within these education institutions shouldn’t simply have a seat at the table, but instead should be leading and creating the change within these institutions.”