Clinton declares: “Hate has no home here”

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The Sisters of St. Francis are bringing a new campaign to Clinton to encourage a just and inclusive community and a safe place where everyone is welcome and valued.

Yard signs bearing the message “Hate Has No Home Here” in six languages — English, Urdu, Korean, Hebrew, Arabic and Spanish — are being made available to Clinton-area residents. The campaign’s simple slogan was coined by a third-grader in the Chicago area to counter the divisive nature of many of today’s conversations and divisive rhetoric. Today the signs are popping up all over the U.S. — and have even landed on other continents.

Sr. William McCue, OSF, holds one of the Sisters of St. Francis’ “Hate has no home here” signs.

The Franciscan Peace Center, created by the Sisters of St. Francis, is distributing the yard signs with the positive message of hope. The Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce has joined in the effort as it provides another reason to “Celebrate Clinton.” Ads on city buses and a billboard will promote campaign awareness. Posters for businesses that cannot display yard signs are also available.
The “Hate Has No Home Here” campaign coincides with the International Day of Peace, the Stop the Hate/Show the Love Walk in Clinton, and Campaign Nonviolence — all of which take place this month.

The International Day of Peace was established in 1981 by the United Nations as an annual day of nonviolence and cease-fire and is celebrated in more than 200 nations worldwide. Campaign Nonviolence is a week-long movement organized by the organization Pace e Bene to explore, study and unleash the principles and methods of nonviolence in people’s lives, communities and societies.

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Lori Freudenberg, outreach director for the Franciscan Peace Center says, “It can be easy to hate people we don’t know. We see this campaign as a powerful, positive message that is the basis for relationship-building, dialogue, and communal action. When we move past our differences, we start moving towards eliminating racism and intolerance and pave the way for a better future for our community.”

Maureen Miller of the Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce said she hopes the signs will help remind people that everybody in our community is important. “Stopping hate and prejudice from making a home here promotes a positive attitude and creates another reason for us to Celebrate Clinton.”

Area residents can obtain a yard sign or poster by visiting the Sisters of St. Francis Administrative Office at 843 13th Ave. N., Clinton, between 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Free-will donations for the signs can be made to the Sisters of St. Francis Franciscan Peace Center.

For more information, or to purchase signs, go to www.hatehasnohomehere.org.


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