Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Follow Us:
Top Stories

One community at a time: A pledge for hope and unity

Close up of people holding hands
Maki Nakamura/Getty Images

Becvar and Nevins are co-publishers of The Fulcrum. Becvar is executive director of the Bridge Alliance Education Fund, and Nevins is the the organization’s co-founder and board chairman.

In this time of division, the rise of hatred based on race, religion and ethnicity casts long shadows across our communities. Inspiring movements like the Central Florida Pledge highlight the paths we can take toward unity and acceptance.

Central Florida is renowned for its spirit of inclusivity, welcoming people from diverse backgrounds. The pledge is a community-led initiative that looks to uphold and strengthen this tradition by creating a safe and welcoming environment for everyone who calls Central Florida home.


It is crafting a future filled with hope and unity by asking residents to sign the pledge and become involved in creating a community where respect and shared goals are at the forefront.

It envisions a community where everyone, without exception, feels safe and respected, regardless of faith, race, gender, ethnicity, culture, beliefs or identity. They believe that our diversity is not just a buzzword but a true strength, and they are committed to creating a community where everyone can thrive.

The pledge’s values can be an inspiration to us all.

Inclusion: We believe that everyone belongs in Central Florida, and we are committed to creating a community where everyone feels welcome.
Respect: We believe that everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless of their background.
Education: We believe that education is essential to combating hate and discrimination. We are committed to educating ourselves and others about the dangers of prejudice and bigotry.
Action: We believe that words are not enough. We are committed to taking action to create a more just and equitable community.

How wonderful would it be if citizens from across the country asked residents from their town, city or region to step forward and join this transformative movement by signing a pledge advocating for a community that values understanding and mutual respect.

Check out the video to learn more about how they are doing this in Central Florida. It’s time to build a harmonious future together!

Tired of Toxic Dialogue? Ready to Be Part of Something Bigger? Join Central Florida’s Call to Unity!www.youtube.com


Read More

Two individuals Skiing in the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games.

Oksana Masters of Team United States celebrates after winning gold in the Para Cross Country Skiing Sprint Sitting Final on day four of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games at Tesero Cross-Country Skiing Stadium on March 10, 2026 in Val di Fiemme, Italy.

Getty Images, Buda Mendes

The Paralympics Challenge Everything We Think We Know About Sports

If you’re a sports fan, you likely watched coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina. But will you watch the Paralympics when approximately 665 athletes are expected in Italy to compete in the Para sports of alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, ice hockey, snowboarding, and wheelchair curling?

The Paralympics, so-called because they are “parallel” to the Olympics, stand alone as the globe’s premier sporting event for elite athletes with disabilities. According to the International Paralympic Committee, 4,400 disabled athletes competed in the 2024 Paris Summer Games in track and field, swimming, and twenty other sports.

Keep ReadingShow less
How Fairness, Stability and Freedom Can Help Us Build Demand for Transformative, Structural Change

Claiming Contested Values

FrameWorks Institute

How Fairness, Stability and Freedom Can Help Us Build Demand for Transformative, Structural Change

Claiming Contested Values: How Fairness, Stability and Freedom Can Help Us Build Demand for Transformative, Structural Change, produced by the FrameWorks Institute, explores how widely shared yet politically contested values can be used to strengthen public support for systemic reform. Values are central to how advocates communicate the importance of their work, and they can motivate collective action toward big, structural changes. This has become especially urgent in a climate where executive orders are targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, and some nonprofits are being labeled as threats based on their stated missions. Many civil society organizations are now grappling with how to communicate their values effectively and safely.

The report focuses on Fairness, Stability, and Freedom because they resonate across the U.S. public and are used by communicators across the political spectrum. Unlike values more closely associated with one ideological camp — such as Tradition on the right or Solidarity on the left — these three values are broadly recognizable but highly contested. Each contains multiple variants, and their impact depends on how clearly advocates define them and how they are paired with specific issues.

Keep ReadingShow less
Barbershops Are Helping Black Boys See Themselves as Readers

One of the barbershops participating in the Barbershop Books program.

Photo courtesy of Alvin Irby

Barbershops Are Helping Black Boys See Themselves as Readers

Barbershop Books, an organization whose award‑winning literacy programs celebrate, amplify, and affirm the interests of Black boys while inspiring kids to read for fun, has spent more than a decade transforming everyday community spaces into joyful reading hubs. That mission was on full display this Martin Luther King Jr. Day, when the organization partnered with a neighborhood barbershop in the Bronx—Flava In Ya Hair—to offer free haircuts and free children’s books to local families.

As families examined stacks of Dog Man, Fly Guy, Captain Underpants, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid, barbershop owner Patrick shared that growing up, reading was associated with negative school experiences and used as a punishment at home. “Go in your room and read!” he said.

Keep ReadingShow less