The Amplifying Voices virtual series is an opportunity to explore the intersectional relationship between the Black and Jewish communities, presented by the Tucson Jewish Community Center and a group of community partners. It will continue Sunday, Dec. 6 at 10:30 a.m. (MST) with a panel discussion, “Stories of Exclusion, Stories of Change: Jews of Color Speak about Moving from Welcoming to Belonging.” Candace Manriquez Wrenn will moderate a discussion with panelists April Baskin, Gamal Palmer, and Evan Traylor about their experiences as Jews of Color and strategies to combat racism and anti-Semitism.
Candace Manriquez Wrenn is currently the director and an associate producer for American Public Media’s Marketplace Morning Report, which has an audience of more than 10 million listeners, according to Nielsen Audio. She previously worked at Marketplace as an associate producer. There, she produced interviews, wrote and edited copy, and edited audio for the national daily broadcast. She has also worked in reality TV and late-night entertainment TV, with the Jimmy Kimmel Live Show. Candace joined the California State University, Long Beach department of journalism and public relations in 2018. Prior to that, she taught at the University of Arizona School of Information and in the Maricopa County Community College District, specializing in interpersonal and intercultural communication, collaborating in online communities, and small group communication.
April N. Baskin is the principal of Joyous Justice Consulting, where she provides life coaching and diversity consulting and also serves as the racial justice director of the Jewish Social Justice Roundtable. She is the Union for Reform Judaism’s immediate past vice president of audacious hospitality and conceived of and is currently hosting the first season of its latest podcast, “Wholly Jewish.” Prior to her work at URJ, she served as the national director of resources and training at InterfaithFamily. Dedicated to building a stronger, more inclusive Jewish community committed to social justice, April has spent over 15 years advocating for Jewish diversity inclusion throughout North America in a variety of ways, including facilitating LGBTQ educational trainings through Keshet and writing a thesis about the experiences and identities of Jews of Color in American Judaism.
Gamal J. Palmer grew up in West Mt. Airy, Philadelphia, a neighborhood characterized by a racial and religious diversity that was uncommon in the ’90s. Gamal is the senior vice president of leadership development at the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, where he is responsible for several leadership programs that include the Community Leadership Institute (CLI), which trains young adults ages 20-40 to be effective board and committee members of Jewish non-profits, and other social initiatives throughout Los Angeles. In 2016 Gamal’s life experiences helping others fused with his love of theater led him to start Global Eye Entrepreneurs, a non-profit creating pipelines to power for male innovators and business men of color. Gamal facilitates workshops and presents keynotes on a myriad of topics that cover leadership, diversity, and entrepreneurship.
Evan Traylor, originally from Oklahoma City, serves as the associate director for college engagement at the Union for Reform Judaism, after spending two years as the inaugural URJ presidential fellow for millennial engagement. Evan graduated from the University of Kansas studying political science, Jewish studies, and leadership studies. He is a past NFTY president, Kansas Hillel intern, student member of the Hillel International Board of Directors, and co-founder of the Hillel International Student Cabinet.
To register for the program, visit https://tucsonjcc.org/amplifying-voices-series/. A sliding price scale is available. The Zoom webinar link will be emailed 36 hours in advance of the event.
The Dec. 6 discussion is part four of the six-part series, which is presented in partnership between the Tucson J, Safety Respect and Equity Network, Arizona Center for Judaic Studies at University of Arizona, UA Hillel Foundation, Dunbar Pavilion, Jewish Community Foundation of Southern Arizona, Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona, and the Sam Levite JCC in Birmingham. Participants may sign up for the entire series, or the sessions that most interest them.
For more information, contact Jennifer Selco, director of Jewish Life + Learning at the J, at jselco@tucsonjcc.org
