GREENFIELD — Eleven-year-old Khalifa Seck traveled from Great Falls Middle School with his sixth-grade class to the front lawn of the courthouse Thursday to see what Cultural Appreciation Day was all about.
“It’s pretty important to celebrate all of our differences,” Khalifa said. “If we didn’t have differences, it would be pretty boring.”
Diversity was the theme of the day as the sun shone between thick white clouds over the Franklin County Justice Center, where dozens had gathered by 10 a.m. to attend the four-hour event filled with music, speakers and activities. A free lunch was served to all in attendance.
Cultural Appreciation Day got its start throughout the state in July 2016, thanks to more than 120 probation staff volunteers called cultural proficiency champions. Over the past few years, the event has grown to include more than 30 courts across the state, including in Greenfield.
The courts, guests and public celebrated cultural, racial, ethnic and gender diversity of court users, staff and the communities where they live throughout the day, uniting everyone, including court employees, around the issues of diversity and inclusiveness.
Cultural Appreciation Committee Chair Elisha East said the Trial Court finds it important to bring people together to make sure everyone in the community knows the courthouse can be used by all as a resource, not just for court-related activities.
“It’s a nice celebration of diversity,” East said. “It’s a way for all of us to embrace our differences.”
This was the third time Greenfield courts have held the event.
Greenfield Community College President Yves Salomon-Fernandez spoke to the crowd, saying she is thankful for a community that values differences and diversity. She said she wouldn’t want her family to live anywhere else.
Salomon-Fernandez, who last spring became GCC’s 10th president, said statistics show that by 2045, the United States will be a “minority majority country.” She said her family reflects what many other families do today — two or more races.
“Our students are the most diverse I’ve ever seen,” she said. “They reflect the tapestry we are.”
Salomon-Fernandez said current students seem to value diversity more than ever in history.
“I see in young people a strong sense of what they want their world to be,” she said. “They celebrate diversity.”
Opioid Task Force of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region Co-Chair and Register of Probate John Merrigan said he was pleased to see such diversity at the event.
“And, before this, you never would have seen so many social services tables participating on the courthouse’s front lawn,” he said. “We’re all working together to make this a better place, now.”
The RECOVER Project, Community Action Pioneer Valley, Clinical Support Options, the Opioid Task Force and Community Health Center of Franklin County all had tables and handed out information to students and others about their services.
Greenfield District Court Judge William Mazanec III said he sees diversity more like a stew than a melting pot, like he was taught when he was a child.
Mazanec said everyone should appreciate the likenesses everyone shares at the same time they celebrate individual differences.
“That’s what makes a stew so delightful,” he said. “I have a unique perch that allows me to see the true cross-section of this community, and it’s beautiful and should be celebrated.”
Mario Pareja, 11, a classmate of Seck’s, said he wanted to see what the celebration was about.
“I don’t want to live a lie and not know what’s happening around me,” he said. “We may look different, but we’re all the same inside. We are all human.”
Other classmates Rojelio Galvez, Emma Little, Brody Girard and Allysia Corbin, all 11, said they were excited to be at the celebration and hoped that they would learn something about diversity that they could share with their friends, classmates and families.
“I want to hear everyone’s opinions,” Allysia said.