DIARY

Quaker Walk 2025

On May 4, 2025, POC Quakers joined the Quaker Walk 2025 for the first leg of their journey to Washington DC in protest of the current Trump administrations policies towards immigrants and democratic freedoms. The ten mile march originated at Flushing Meeting House and culminated at Brooklyn Meeting House. See linked APNews article below:

https://apnews.com/article/quakers-protest-march-trump-immigration-crackdown-af1ae4a3a608e59f97c96c8b7cf660a2

Flushing Interfaith Unity Walk – March 23, 2025

People of Color Retreat at Powell House – 10/31/24 to 11/14/24

“We’ve got to face the fact that some people say you fight fire best with fire, but we say you put fire out best with water. We say you don’t fight racism with racism. We’re gonna fight racism with solidarity. We say you don’t fight racism with solidarity. We say you don’t fight capitalism with no black capitalism; you fight capitalism with socialism.” Fred Hampton, deputy chairman of the Black Panther Party and founder of the Rainbow Coalition, 1969.

On July 22, 2024, John Choe conducted a New York Yearly Meeting Virtual Interest Group Session entitled “Towards a Multicultural Society”. John had attended the Friends General Conference. Members from all over New York Yearly Meeting attended a lively and fruitful discussion on what Quakers are doing to create a more diverse Religious Society of Friends. As part of our “Each One Teach One” curriculum funded by a grant from the New York Quarter’s Witness Fund, John has participated in a number of POC trainings, including retreats with the Coalition of Quakers Uprooting Racism (QCUR) and workshops at the FGC Gathering in 2024 and has brought back to POC insightful observations and meaningful new friendships.

Flushing Meeting hosted an amazing community cleanup and beautification event at Flushing Meeting House on July 20, 2024, organized by Maureen Regan and Green Earth Urban Gardens, with more than 75 local youth, parents and members of the Alliance of Youth Leaders. For those of you who missed it, the event was covered by the Queens Chronicle:  https://www.qchron.com/editions/north/cleanup-at-meeting-house/article_ddaca964-85f7-5497-85cb-061bda24c339.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=user-share. There are also more photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/grTsrcGpnNXtm8Vo7 

Thank you to Flushing Meeting for agreeing to host this wonderful event (especially those members who showed up to support us). We are also very grateful to Maureen Regan for her leadership, love, and commitment to serving our community.