Baha’i Communities of Scottsdale, PV and Fountain Hills host celebration
Staff Reports | Digital Free Press
The Baha’i Communities of Scottsdale, Town of Paradise Valley and Town of Fountain Hills is observing Race Amity Day at 2 p.m. Saturday. June 8, at 2 at the Baha’i Faith Community Center, 6910 E. Shea Blvd. in Scottsdale.
The theme for this year’s observance is Unity through Music, Baha’i officials tell the Digital Free Press.
This year the program focuses on the healing and unifying power of music, with beautiful performances from several cultural traditions, from Native American, Middle Eastern, Classic American Jazz, African American gospel and classical music of Beethoven, Debussy, and Gershwin.
Race Amity Day was established in 1957 by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States. Today it is observed around the world by people from many different backgrounds working together to promote racial harmony.
Each year in June, this special day is celebrated in diverse ways—with discussions of vital issues, through service projects, and by enjoyment of the arts.
The oneness of humanity is the pivot round which revolve all the teachings of the Bahá’í Faith. It is at once a statement of principle and an assertion of the ultimate goal of human experience on the planet.
More than a century ago Bahá’u’lláh, the Prophet-Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, wrote: “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established.” It is a principle that issues naturally from the genesis and purpose of human existence.
The Baha’i community of Scottsdale has been observing Race Amity Day since 2013 and organizes workshops, seminars, dialogues every year as it regards racism as a major barrier to peace, which cannot be achieved without the recognition of the fundamental oneness of all peoples and the establishment of justice.
