At 10:00 pm on September 21st (check your local listings), PBS will air “Not in Our Town,” a documentary that tells the story of how the people of Patchogue, NY have worked together to combat hatred in their community. The film focuses on a hate crime committed against an immigrant in the community, Marcelo Lucero, in 2008; though Mr. Lucero was killed because he was an immigrant, the crime could have been driven by religion, race, gender, or sexual orientation, as, sadly, so many hate crimes are. With many years of work against hate crimes, Interfaith Alliance has endorsed “Not in Our Town” and Interfaith Alliance President and State of Belief Host Rev. Welton Gaddy also wrote an op-ed about the documentary and the responsibility we all have to combat hatred.
Patchogue’s story triggered the development of the larger discussion in communities around the U.S. By sharing success stories about addressing all different types of hate, NIOT creates an inter-group network so that all groups targeted by hate can share ideas. The film is a great opportunity for community groups to come together to view and discuss how we all can work to prevent hate crimes.
Rev. Gaddy’s interview with the documentary’s producer, Patrice O’Neill, on State of Belief is available here.
