Citizens for Racial Justice to host craft event at library

Citizens for Racial Justice and Reform of Tuscarawas County will present Crafty Activism at the Dover Public Library Saturday, April 8 from 2-4 p.m. The group will provide DIY demonstrations for making yard signs and other items to show support for justice in the community.

“Citizens for Racial Justice and Reform is a group that formed in 2020 in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd,” said Hannah Hartman of the organization. “If you recall, there was a fairly large peaceful protest in downtown New Philadelphia the weekend after that happened. The founder of the group, Jenna Grimes, along with many of us coming together then, realized there was a pretty big group of people who we did not know who took issue with these kinds of things. We wanted to harness the energy of that group of people and continue with anti-racist work. That includes educational efforts, sometime protests if that becomes necessary, and keeping our eyes peeled for issues in our own community.”

The small foundational group meets biweekly via Zoom, Hartman said, while the organization’s social media presence has attracted hundreds more. “There are definitely people in the area who keep an eye on what we are trying to do.”

One of those people was Sherrell Reiger at the Dover Public Library. “Sherrell reached out to us when she became aware of our group and offered some space for us to talk about what we do,” said Hartman. “We have created an educational event there, just to talk very briefly about how we came about and what we do. In the past, we have sort of pursued activism through art. We’ve created peace poles which people can place in their yard, and some yard signs and things like that. Now, we are doing this event to help people create their own statement through art. It doesn’t have to be anything political, of course, just any cause that they care about. We’ll have a button maker to help people make buttons as well.”

Hartman said she is hoping the Crafty Activism event at the library is attractive to people who might not attend more formal events. “Not everybody wants to go to a protest,” she said. “Not everybody wants to participate in a book club, so we’re trying to find different ways to reach people and we thought art would be a good way to do that.”

Crafty Activism follows another awareness raising event, Game Day at Magic Mugs, which gathered people to play “Disparity Trap: The Racially Conscious Board Game” in late March.

Crafty Activism is a free event sponsored by Citizens for Racial Justice and Reform of Tuscarawas County, and free light snacks and door prizes will be available.“We are a nonpartisan organization,” said Hartman. “We firmly believe that issues of racial justice aren’t political. These are human rights issues that we’re discussing. So we invite anyone who is concerned with racial justice and reform to be a part of our group. We don’t care what anyone’s political beliefs might be. We are brought together by a belief in universal human rights.”

Learn more about Citizens for Racial Justice and Reform at their website, c4rjr.org. Crafty Activism will be held in the Community Room at Dover Public Library, 525 N. Walnut St., Dover.