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Seven Days to Fight Hate and Unite Diversity

byArchana Sundar
April 13, 2016

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Exactly two years ago on April 13, 2014 tragedy struck at the Jewish Community Campus and Village Shalom in Overland Park, Kansas. A lone gunman, 73 year old Frazier Glenn Miller, Jr., who was a Neo-Nazi, shot and killed a total of three people. One of those three happened to be Reat Underwood, a student from Blue Valley High School.

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I personally never knew him, although I live in the general vicinity of where this occurred. I do know people who were affected by the tragedy, whose friendships were lost that day, and have been in mourning since. To know that an intentional hate crime happened so close to where I reside, is shocking and alarming to me. Natural disaster can be chalked up to Mother Earth. This was an intentional act of human hate, and it will not go forgotten.

 

After the tragedy, the community pulled together to support one another. Though the support blossomed Seven Days, a week long event to spread moral values, each day of the week. The first of which, was love, on April 12. On April 13, we will celebrate discovery. Dedication to others will be highlighted on April 14. The fourth day will be one to connect, the fifth one to go and take action, and the sixth to focus on you in your community. On the last day, April 18, we will focus on going onward, and moving past tragedy.

 

Anyone can show your support for the movement by using social media and the hashtag #SevenDays, and by following @GiveSevenDays on Twitter. Each day, tweet something relating to the moral of the day to spread awareness. For those who live in the Overland Park area, there will be a walk to unite diversity and band against hate on April 18, 2016. You can find additional information on their website, www.sevendays.org .

 

https://twitter.com/archanasundar15/status/720062286736465920

 

 

Author
Archana Sundar
Archana Sundar is a 15 year old queer WoC who hopes to spread awareness about environmental and social issues, especially those concerning the LGBT community and politics. When she's not writing for Affinity or creating lesson plans for Empower: Educate & Inspire, Inc. ( A nonprofit organization based on educating youth), she swims for her high school team and plays in her school orchestra. Archana enjoys anatomy as well as other life sciences, and hopes to pursue a future in the medical or bioscience fields.

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