In the wake of Tony Robinson’s death, the community will come together Sunday in efforts to support and educate each other.
The Boys and Girls Club of Dane County in collaboration with several sponsors will host a Summit Youth and Unity event at Memorial High School.
With the help of sponsors, which include the Urban League, United Way, the NAACP and more, the event has taken on another “spirit” in hopes to educate, encourage and empower young people in the community, Project Manager John Suggs said.
The “three E’s,” as Suggs refers to them, will be instilled in young people throughout the event in interactive workshops, discussions and a concert, he said.
“It’s a chance to educate people, to show what it looks like to respect one another and to encourage them that things are going to be okay no matter what,” Suggs said. “[Y]oung people will feel empowered by the variety of workshops we have available including college ready workshops.”
In addition, special guests Bow Wow, Tristan Wilds, Trevor Jackson, comedian David William, Martin Gregory and several others will be in attendance to support the young people in the community.
Currently over 800 people are registered to sign up for the event, but Suggs estimated that 1,200 people will in attendance on Sunday.
Similarly, Suggs helped coordinate an event held several months ago in Ferguson, Missouri following the officer-involved shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown. Sugg said the Ferguson event attracted the same amount of people in pursuit of the same purpose.
Having organized the event in Ferguson, Suggs explained that although the events are similar, the event in Madison has an opportunity to unite in the community in a way Ferguson could not.
“The people here in Madison have a strong sense of resolve and community, they want things to be right and open,” Suggs said. “I have traveled to many different places for youth conferences all over the country…This city is really a community that has the chance to show how to respond to great adversity and tragedy just because of the heart and resolve it possesses.”
Suggs said with the determination and the resolve of the city and its community, Madison could be an example to not only the country, but to the world of overcoming adversity.
The event is set to take place Sunday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Memorial High School.