Anti-Bias Coalition of Delray Beach

St. Paul’s is proud to be a founding member of the Anti-Bias Coalition of Delray Beach (ABC) and to support actively the mission of the organization to promote social justice and human understanding in our diverse community. Our Rector Father Paul Kane and Rabbi Steve Moss from Temple Sinai took the lead for us in convening representatives from law enforcement, legal, educational, religious, business, governmental, and nonprofit organizations who share our commitment to the creation of a community where everyone is treated with respect and dignity. ABC members have been exploring the truth that we all have biases of some kind that must be recognized in order to create community, and they have been building partnerships with important advocacy resources for victims of bias and prejudice. One of our first public programs was last year’s Interfaith Thanksgiving Service at Temple Sinai, “Using Community to Bring Peace into the World.” It was a moving service that included music, prayers, and presentations from different houses of worship about how they promote human understanding. Commissioner Adam Frankel read a supportive proclamation from the City of Delray Beach, and Russ Mager, Chief of the Delray Beach Police Department, who was not on the program, asked to speak and came to the podium with a warm and enthusiastic expression of gratitude for the formation of the ABC and the role it could play in our community. Attendees at the service read in unison this Pledge of Anti-Bias Solidarity:

I pledge to do my best to acknowledge and examine my own personal biases, to treat all people with respect and understanding, and to actively monitor incidents of bias in my family, workplace, house of worship, and community. There are ways to both proactively and reactively address bias, and I pledge to educate myself on the work my community is doing and to volunteer my time and energy to reduce prejudice in Delray Beach.

The Anti-Bias Coalition of Delray Beach will have their Interfaith Thanksgiving Service this fall on Tuesday, November 19th at 7:00 pm at St. Paul’s. Join us!