Two New Jersey LGBT organizations will host an inaugural one-day conference to encourage activism and community organizing.
United 2017: Community Activism & Organizing in an Age of AltReason will gather aspiring and longtime activists for a day of workshops, speakers and resources at the Asbury Hotel in Asbury Park, N.J.
Jersey Pride, Inc., partnered with Garden State Equality to produce the April 30 event.
“This conference is being organized specifically as a response to what is going on politically, following the election of the new administration as well as the direction Congress is going,” said Jersey Pride President Laura Pople. “There seems to be — because of all of that — this groundswell of concern, frustration and need in the community, specifically for the LGBT community, but also allies and others who really want to be able to do something and in many cases aren’t [doing so] either [through lack] of experience or having a hard time focusing on what exactly they can do.”
Pople noted that, in addition to activists, local and state officials will participate in the workshops.
“The idea of this conference is to get some instruction based on the experiences of people who have been doing social justice, political activism and organizing for a long time as well as give access to elected officials who are willing to help people understand how to be most effective when they’re trying to get their points across,” Pople said.
Pople said United 2017 attendees will be able to identify the issues that are most important to them at the conference.
“They’ll have the ability to make a difference in those areas and [see] that there are other people out there who want to do the same,” she said. “What we will be able to do with this conference is help people connect with others who want to make a difference and provide the resources to help them be effective at that. In this age, when there is the possibility for so many missteps — because of what’s going on and what’s being enabled by the government — this is the opportunity for people to feel like they can make a difference and to let them know how to.”
United 2017 will be held 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. April 30 at The Asbury Hotel, 210 Fifth Ave., Asbury Park, N.J. Visit united.jerseypride.org for more information and to register.