Announcements

On Equality and Justice

by

By Gretchen Collard, Bar 717 Camp Director

We stand with Black people within our community, across our country, and around the world against systemic racism. Black Lives Matter. The current outcry against injustices in our country highlights how much work we have to do to create an equitable society where all people’s rights and bodies are respected and treated with dignity.

Perhaps the best thing about camp is that it is a place where kids are free to be themselves—to be accepted, included, and embraced by a community of supportive peers and adults.  We believe in this vision deeply, and we work hard to create an inclusive and respectful environment. But we also know that we are always learning, and can always do better.

The camping industry, our own program included, historically hasn’t reflected the diversity of our state, nor our country. The broader conversations we’re having about history, equity and race now are relevant in talking about why experiences like sleepaway camp haven’t always been equally accessible to all young people. We are aware of this and as we work to address injustice in the camping community, we also realize we have a long way to go. We are listening to leaders in the Black community about what actions we can take as an organization to push forward in the fight for equality and justice. We are also grateful to be part of a community of camping professionals that has shared many great resources over the last few weeks. We are using these resources, and others, as we step up to learn and educate ourselves.

We’re also proud of the youth in our community—our campers, staff, and alumni—who have attended protests, raised funds for worthy organizations, donated their own resources, and been vocal on social media to call attention to systemic racism. We often say at camp that “many hands make light work.” This is true for building projects and manual tasks, and we believe it is also true for situations like these.  This work is not easy, but we learn more and have a more powerful collective voice, when we’re working together. To that end, we’ve included a few articles/resources below that stood out to us this week. We would also love to hear from any and all of you if you have resources to share that will help us do the work of continuing to build on our vision for the kind of community we want camp to be.

As a mom, a social worker, and a camp director, I am humbled daily by the people in my life who push me to think and to work harder to be a better human. I hope all of us can harness this moment of activism and use it to drive positive change.

Resources: