Anti-Racism Efforts in Carlisle

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Brief History of Racism in Carlisle

Carlisle Indian Industrial School: The Carlisle Indian Industrial School was founded in 1879 by U.S. Army Officer Richard Henry Pratt, with the goal of educating young American Indians about the white culture in America. Many of the students were taken against their will and brought to Carlisle, miles away from anything they new. The students would be forced to change their names and to reject their culture, far away from their homes and families. Read about it in Central PA Magazine, at The Carlisle Indian Industrial School Research Project, or at The Historical Society Web Page.

Ku Klux Klan: A Venango County-based branch of the KKK planned a "white rights rally" to be held in Carlisle in September 2000. Read President Durden's Statement about the events.

Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas: This hate group is "dedicated to preaching the Gospel truth about the soul-damning, nation-destroying notion that 'It is OK to be gay.'" Under the leadership of Pastor Fred Phelps, Westboro threatened to hold a rally in Carlisle in 2005 to protest Carlisle High School's Gay-Straight Alliance.

• At the Penn State Dickinson School of Law, students often tend to feel a lack of connection with the community. Recently, when students felt that they were victims of racism, they were unaware of the resources available in the community. On February 2, 2005, the Law School called a town meeting to discuss the issues at hand.

Community Response

• Unity Celebration
• http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2006/01/22/news/news06.txt

"The Carlisle community responds when there is an outside threat, but the next big step is being proactive."

--Shalom Staub, Ph.D., Academic Affairs Fellow, Dickinson College

The Carlisle community has come a long way since September 2000, when members of the Ku Klux Klan demonstrated on the Cumberland County Courthouse steps. The Unity Celebration held at Dickinson College drew about 3,000 people and from there the local NAACP chapter was born. Read about it in the Sentinel.

In December 2004, the community was again faced with the threat of intolerance when a homophobic hate group led by Fred Phelps planned to visit Carlisle to protest the Gay-Straight Alliance at Carlisle Regional High School. Dickinson College hosted a rally much like the Unity Celebration to show its support for the club and for LGBT individuals and their allies in the community. Read about it on the Dickinson College website.

Following Penn State Dickinson School of Law’s Town Meeting on February 2, 2005, YWCA Carlisle created a community event to “Continue the Commitment to Eliminate Racism.”

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