More than 60 people came out on Monday evening, Jan. 19 for “The State of the Dream: A Community Conversation about Diversity,” a powerful program co-sponsored by SSDS and West Hartford Public Schools. Held at SSDS in

West Hartford, the Marin Luther King Day program featured a panel of three community leaders who engaged in a thoughtful conversation about where we stand as a nation vis a vis civil rights. Moderated by Prof. Avinoam Patt of the Maurice Greenberg Center for Judaic Studies at the University of Hartford, the panel included Deacon Art Miller, director of the Office for Black Catholic Ministries for the Archdiocese of Hartford; Cheryl A. Sharp, deputy director of the State of Connecticut, Commission on Human Rights; and, Marji Lipshez-Shapiro, education director for the Connecticut Office of the Anti-Defamation League.

“The evening’s conversation was a testament to the power of collaboration and community, a testament to shared vision and a shared imperative,” said SSDS Head of School

Andrea Kasper. “The esteemed panel offered inspiration and suggestions for action so that we may each answer the call to work for social justice, to be shaken out of complacency and use our voices, as we work to both accept and act in accordance with b’tzelem elohim.”

CAP: (l to r) Prof. Avinoam Patt, Deacon Art Miller, Cheryl A. Sharp, Andrea Kasper, Thomas Moore (West Hartford Public Schools Superintendent), and Marji Lipshez-Shapiro.