Berkshires Four Freedoms March & Rally
Join us on Saturday, January 7th, the 76th anniversary of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s inspiring Four Freedoms speech, as our Berkshires community comes together united against hate and bigotry in all its forms. All are welcome.
We plan to gather in downtown Pittsfield, march, and then rally together to re-inspire and reconnect ourselves with our highest values and commitment to our neighbors.
If you are attending and will be posting on social media, please use the hashtag #4freedoms. Details on the day’s activities follow below.
Downtown Pittsfield Parking Information: http://www.downtownpittsfield.com/downtown-parking/
– Note that parking is free everywhere downtown on Saturdays. The northbound lanes of North Street between Park Square and Maplewood Street will be closed beginning at approximately 12:30pm to accommodate the march, so plan accordingly.
SCHEDULE
12:30pm: Gather in front of St. Joseph’s Church at 414 North Street, Pittsfield.
Coffee will be available in front of St. Joseph’s Church, and the church will be open if you need to be in a warm place. Food is not provided as part of the march and rally, so we encourage you to enjoy a bite before or after at one of downtown Pittsfield’s many local restaurants: http://www.downtownpittsfield.com/eat/
Dress warmly! Attendees are encouraged to bring signs, or create them on the spot (paper and pens will be provided) but are asked to keep them non-partisan in nature. Also, Pittsfield law forbids sticks on signs, so plan on either holding them in your hand or you may bring string and wear them around your neck. Four Freedoms Coalition partners are encouraged to bring and carry their organizational banners in the march.
1:00pm: March steps off heading south. A half mile long, it concludes at First Church of Christ at Park Square, located at 27 East Street (on Park Square). The speaking program will be held there indoors beginning at approximately 1:40pm. Each speaker is scheduled to speak for 3 minutes.
If you are unable to or do not wish to march, you may go directly to the church for the rally program. The church seats approximately 900 people.
1:40pm:
RALLY PROGRAM
– Reverend James Lumsden | Welcome
– Reverend Sheila Sholes-Ross | Mistress of Ceremonies
– Mayor Linda Tyer | Welcome from the City of Pittsfield
– U.S. Senator Ed Markey
– Ethan Zuckerman | Director of the MIT Center on Civic Media
– Ayla Wallace & Asiana Cothran | Miss Hall’s School students
– Attorney Tahirah Amatul-Wadud | Board member, Massachusetts chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations
– Attorney James Roosevelt | Grandson of Franklin Delano Roosevelt
– Crescendo Chorus and Berkshire Children’s Chorus ensemble selection
– Eleanore Velez | Berkshire Community College Multicultural Center Director
– Peter Marchetti | Pittsfield City Council President
– Elizabeth Recko Morrison | 2015 Berkshire Labor Person of the Year
– Dennis Powell | President, Berkshire County Branch of the NAACP
Afterwards, from 2:30pm-3:30pm:
It’s action time! Join us in the First Church community room where approximately 40 Four Freedoms Coalition partners will have action tables where you can sign up to volunteer with the issue you are most passionate about. We ask that each attendee commit to one concrete action in our community after the rally.
THANK YOU for standing up with us for true American values! And special thanks to the City of Pittsfield, St. Joseph’s Church, and First Church of Christ at Park Square for hosting us, and to the many volunteers who made this event possible.
The Four Freedoms Coalition is a new, non-partisan, diverse coalition of community organizations and individuals working together to unite the community and reaffirm our true American values, as outlined in President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s landmark Four Freedoms speech. They are:
Freedom from fear
Freedom from want
Freedom of speech
Freedom of religion
If you would like to volunteer, or if your organization would like to be listed as a partner, please contact us via Facebook or via email: 4freedomscoalition@gmail.com
Please share widely.
