Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging



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The City of Beverly welcomes individuals with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you would like to request accommodations or have questions about the physical access provided, please contact the Office for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging at wfahari@beverlyma.gov in advance of your participation.

HAPPENING IN BEVERLY

We’ve all been through a lot this year. And one issue that continues to make headlines? Our mental health. Specifically, the effect of COVID-19 and all that comes with it – vaccinations, quarantining, working from home, disrupted schedules, lack of social interaction, and more.

Now is a good time to pause and reflect. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so we want to make sure we recognize a difficult truth: Nearly one in five Americans lives with a mental health condition, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.

Beverly Celebrates Jewish American Heritage Month 


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May is Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM). A federally proclaimed period. President George W. Bush first proclaimed the month of May as Jewish American Heritage Month in 2006. In Beverly we value JAHM as an important period because it recognizes the over 350 years of Jewish life in the United States—350 years where the Jewish community has become an intrinsic part of the mosaic that makes up our nation. JAHM ensures that the Jewish community and the non-Jewish community recognize the crucial role that Jews have played from Colonial times through to the present day.

Beverly Celebrates Asian, Asian American & Pacific Islander Month

The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants. The Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month – a celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States. Asian/Pacific encompasses all of the Asian continent and the Pacific islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands), Micronesia (Marianas, Guam, Wake Island, Palau, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia) and Polynesia (New Zealand, Hawaiian Islands, Rotuma, Midway Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Cook Islands, French Polynesia and Easter Island). Like most commemorative months, Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month originated with Congress. In 1977 Reps. Frank Horton of New York introduced House Joint Resolution 540 to proclaim the first ten days in May as Pacific/Asian American Heritage Week.

Beverly Celebrates Older Americans Month

In May, we recognize Older Americans Month, and celebrate the vast contributions older residents make to our community and culture. Join Beverly's Human Rights Committee and Beverly's new Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Director, Wangari Fahari, at the Council on Aging on Wednesday, May 10th at 10:30 am for a community coffee and discussion about the meaning of DEIB and its relevance to older Americans. We want to hear your voices!

UPCOMING IN JUNE


Pride Month - FINAL (Instagram Story) (4)

Across the country, states are legislating discrimination, dehumanization terrorism and erasure of millions of queer, gender-expansive, and transgender youth. The City of Beverly is calling all our community members to say, ‘not in Beverly!' In Beverly we raise the pride and transgender flag and call for equality.

JUNETEENTH

Studying the blueprints of liberation, one can map out the ways we as The Global African Diaspora have continued to resist and exist under regimes of anti-Black terror. Since the development of racial capitalism, the use of African peoples as capital, our ancestors have always fought for freedom. Our history doesn’t begin with slavery, but our future depends on us ending the mechanisms of it. Juneteenth is an extension of that abolitionist spirit where we march forth in reflection of the struggle. — Brandon Gonzalez

UPCOMING IN JULY


Disability Pride Month

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People with disabilities have a right to equal access under the law – but too often, policies and practices that affect our everyday lives do not honor our fundamental rights. That’s why we at the The City of Beverly are fighting for disability rights.


Submit your diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging event to wfahari@beverlyma.gov

Past Events

The Office of DEI and Beverly’s Race Equity Task Force presented a community conversation regarding symbolism. Symbols (history and perceptions) and their impact on individuals and society. We discussed how and why some symbols can generate pride and hope, while others can hurt, threaten, and harm—and why context matters. Our panel had an open and honest conversation and field questions from community members. Watch video below.