by Ileana Martinez | Jan 31, 2023 | News & Updates
February is National Black History Month in the United States, a month set aside to honor the lives of those African Americans who have fought the struggle for the right to enjoy the privileges of citizenship fully as guaranteed by our U.S. Constitution.
Ignacio Salazar, SER National President and Chief Executive Officer, states, “At this time, we recommit to our mission of lifting the lives of African Americans, along with all the other men and women we serve daily. Black History Month reminds us that the struggle for just and equal opportunity is generational. Each of us is dedicated to lending our voice, skills, and resources daily to move our communities forward through job training and services. Also, this is a chance to be intentional about learning and sharing the achievements of African American men and women. Doing so empowers us all and strengthens our appreciation for America’s beauty.”
Black History Month’s roots date back to 1925, and an African American historian, educated at Harvard. Carter G. Woodson wanted to create a way to teach others about Black men and women’s contributions and dispel discrimination. The first observance was known as Negro History Week and was celebrated the last week of February. This date coincided with the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglas, a man who escaped slavery in Maryland and became a renowned social reformer and abolitionist. President Gerald Ford expanded the celebration in 1976 to a month-long observance.
“This year, the theme of Black History Month is Black Resistance,” says Salazar. “This teaching reminds us of our collective duty as a society to be in solidarity with African Americans. They continue to seek full acceptance, which they have earned since their forced arrival in America as enslaved people. Today, they seek the nation’s respect and acknowledgment, not as victims, but as triumphant Americans who have overcome historical adversity, injustice, and exclusion. SER Jobs for Progress National and our Network of Affiliates, join with them in this quest and applaud their many important victories,” said Salazar.
by Ileana Martinez | Jan 13, 2023 | News & Updates
SER Jobs for Progress National, Inc. (SER National) marks the observance of MLK Day 2023 and issued the following statement on this historic occasion:
“Dr. King reminded Americans that as persons of spiritual faith, we are instructed to love others as ourselves and to do so without reservation,” says Ignacio Salazar, President and Chief Executive Officer of SER National. “The message is powerful because, in its simplicity, we are called upon to confront one of the greatest challenges in our daily lives, the beloved community mindset, or love of all. This is the theme that the King Foundation celebrates this year. Indeed, Dr. King personified a life of love activated through actions and did so with all he met, even his opposers. Today, fifty-five years following his death, our nation pauses to remember and honor that legacy of love through service to the community of which we are all a part. SER National, together with the SER Network of Affiliates, is proud of living the beloved community mindset through our array of services, programs, and resources to more than a million people every year across the United States and Puerto Rico,” said Salazar.
Events in observance of MLK Day 2023 are scheduled to be held in communities large and small across the country. The shared themes include diversity, equality, and opportunity for all men, women, and children, regardless of race, color, or creed. Millions of Americans will spend the day as one of service in their local communities. Many residents in the Greater Washington, DC region and leaders from throughout the United States will travel to the nation’s capital. They will participate in a celebratory MLK Peace Walk and Parade, which organizers describe as an event to “recapture the dream and lift every voice ’til victory is won.” Still others will observe MLK Day alone in their homes, in quiet, somber reflection, mindful that the day Dr. King foresaw from the mountaintop has not yet arrived when all people are judged, not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
“SER National is proud to report that many of our team members, program participants, corporate sponsors, and community allies are among the nearly 80 million Americans practicing service through volunteerism in the philosophy of Dr. King,” said Salazar. “We are engaged in social transformation daily through what the King Center calls Nonviolence365, and we are touching lives as did Dr. King, through peaceful educational outreach, teaching job skills, repurposing talent into new careers, trades, and professions. Yes, one person at a time, one neighborhood, city, and state at a time, we are still on the journey towards that promised land when all Americans shall see themselves in the fulfillment of the civil rights movement Dr. King began and which continues even today. Happy MLK Day!” he added.
