Welcome to the conversation!

Welcome to the conversation!

Harriet Beecher Stowe's (1811-1896) best-selling anti-slavery novel Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852), made her the most famous American woman of the 19th century and galvanized the abolition movement before the Civil War.

The Stowe Center is a 21st-century museum and program center using Stowe's story to inspire social justice and positive change.

The Salons at Stowe programs are a forum to connect the challenging issues (race, gender and class) that impelled Stowe to write and act with the contemporary face of those same issues. The Salon format is based on a robust level of audience participation, with the explicit goal of promoting civic engagement. Recent topics included: Teaching Acceptance; Is Prison the New Slavery; Traces of the Trade: A Story from the Deep North; Creativity and Change; Race, Gender and Politics Today; How to be an Advocate

This blog will expand the reach of these community conversations to the online audience. Add your posts and comments to keep the conversation going! Commit to action by clicking HERE to stay up to date on Salon and social justice news.

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Monday, December 16, 2013

Thank you, Charlotte

This past weekend, the nation remembered the lives of those students and teachers lost in the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT last December. We share the following from Newtown Kindness' December newsletter. The organization, which honors Charlotte Bacon who lost her life in the tragedy, promote[s] kindness as a guiding principle of humanity. Newtown Kindness is committed to fostering compassion in children and inspiring life-long contributors to society. The organization aims to facilitate acts of kindness within communities as well as raise awareness of kindness through education, sharing and recognition.

Thank you, Charlotte.

For weeks I have been trying to find words that appropriately express the magnitude of this day; the sorrow, the grief, the unimaginable pain that must envelop the lives of so many families of Newtown. But the truth is, there just are no words. As a mother, my heart bleeds and my eyes weep at the thought of what happened on 12.14.12. There simply are no words.

But there is Charlotte. Charlotte. The beauty and perfection that is Charlotte Bacon is still here and it floods this world with light and laughter and kindness. Charlotte was a friend, a cousin, a niece, a granddaughter, a beloved sister and daughter, and today she is a magnificent inspiration for goodness in this universe. Thank you for teaching us, Charlotte, and for guiding us on this journey to better our world. We are so very grateful for your generous spirit and infectious love that will forever be the light of so many lives.

So, while there may never be words adequate to describe the profound impact of this day, there willalways be the beautiful gift that is Charlotte Helen Bacon.

In remembering Charlotte and others, Newtown Kindness encourages the spread of kindness and compassion. They offer resources like Kindness Cards, a Kindness Pledge, the Kindness Bucket, and the opportunity to become a Partner in Kindness, and stories about young people making a difference. Visit www.newtownkindness.org to learn more about the organization's work and how you, too, can honor the lives of those lost in Newtown through small acts of kindness.

1 comment:

Liz said...: Robbie and Alissa Parker, the parents of Emilie who was also killed at Sandy Hook, took similar action with The Emilie Parker Fund. They also made a video called "Evil Did Not Win." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/11/evil-did-not-win-sandy-hook_n_4428030.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003; December 19, 2013 at 4:52 PM