It has been a terrible week in America. On top of the immense grief and pain that COVID-19 has already caused in my beloved City of New York, we, like nearly every other city in the country, are now grappling with the anger and heartbreak of more state-sanctioned killings of Black people, and taking to the streets.
The government’s reaction was to impose a curfew. The last time an official curfew was imposed was in 1943, when then New York mayor Fiorello LaGuardia put a curfew in place to halt Harlem protests after police shot and injured an African American soldier.
This email was going to merely encourage you to register for our Pride event coming up this Sunday. We will surely carry on with this event, but will do so with even heavier hearts and a deeper commitment to love our neighbors who bear the brunt of these abuses.
Our conversation with Bishop-elect Deon Johnson will still cover multiple areas of identity, theology, and the politics of belonging. But our conversation will also be textured by recent events, taking place against the backdrop of the murders of our sisters and brothers of African descent, and the public reaction to these injustices.
Please join us on June 7th, and register at this link:
http://www.dioceseli.org/Pride2020
Be blessed and stay safe.
Pursuing justice and peace,
The Rev. Marie Tatro
Vicar for Community Justice Ministry
Episcopal Diocese of Long Island