Partnerships for Parks - Panel Discussion, #PeopleSpeakSundays, Juneteenth Grove

As the city begins to re-open; communities are still reeling from the devastation of COVID-19, rising up to demand justice after the killing of George Floyd, and doing significant work on the ground in both areas. Join us for a discussion with community leaders about their work during these critical times, check out SummerStage Anywhere — The People Speak, and read about what NYC Parks is doing in solidarity with the struggle for racial justice. Photo by Justin Mashia of Bronx Sole COMMUNITY WORK DURING CRITICAL TIMES New Yorkers have been rocked by crisis — facing COVID-19 and the resulting economic fallout on a local level; and rampant, racially motivated violence on a national level, sparking protests and demonstrations in the streets and parks across our city, country, and world. In New York City, community groups normally working in parks have shifted gears to address these critical issues, engaging in direct COVID-19 relief and racial justice work in their respective neighborhoods. Join us for a discussion with community leaders from Bronx Sole, Clean Bushwick Initiative, and Friends of Harlem Art Park about the role their groups are playing in community health and social justice during these turbulent times. Thursday, July 9 from 6:00 pm - 6:30 pm on Facebook Live MORE INFO #PeopleSpeakSundays SummerStage Anywhere recently debuted a digital episode titled “The People Speak,” in collaboration with VOICES, a nonprofit arts, education, and social justice organization centered around Howard Zinn’s book Voices of a People’s History of the United States, which brings to life the extraordinary history of ordinary people who built the social movements that made the United States what it is today. Readings performed during "The People Speak" give expression to rebels, dissenters, and visionaries from our past—and present—and educate and inspire a new generation working for social justice now. You can watch the archived performance now on the SummerStage YouTube page. This summer, every Sunday at 2:00pm, #PeopleSpeakSundays will take over the SummerStage Instagram channel with guest curators from a wide variety of backgrounds who will showcase artists and highlight crowdsourced performers who submit #PeopleSpeakSundays entries on Instagram. The series begins on July 12 with guest curator VP Records, an independent reggae, dancehall, and soca record label based in Queens. Want your voice to be heard? Use #PeopleSpeakSundays and #SummerStageAnywhere when posting to social media this July and August for a chance to be featured on #PeopleSpeakSundays. LEARN MORE Photo by Daniel Avila, NYC Parks JUNETEENTH GROVE On June 19 — also known as Juneteenth — NYC Parks Commissioner Mitchell J. Silver, FAICP, announced that the agency stands in solidarity with the Black community and the fight to end systemic racism, and is demonstrating this commitment by addressing issues within the park system, renaming a park in each borough for Black Americans, and creating the Juneteenth Grove. Seated in Cadman Plaza, Brooklyn, the Juneteenth Grove celebrates both Juneteenth and the homegoing of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and countless others with 19 new flowering trees to symbolize the fortification of life and 19 existing benches newly painted in the colors of the Pan-African flag (red, black, and green). The steward of nearly three million trees, NYC Parks recognizes the Black community’s complicated relationship with trees as their branches represent thousands lynched and their roots symbolize a deep connection to this Nation. LEARN MORE Partnerships for Parks is a joint program of City Parks Foundation and NYC Parks that supports and champions a growing network of leaders caring and advocating for neighborhood parks and green spaces. We equip people and organizations with the skills and tools needed to transform these spaces into dynamic community assets.