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Community Dialogue in a Time of COVID

Presenters for the Oct. 16, 2020, FOCUS Forum on Community Dialogue in a Time of COVID
Presenters clockwise from top left are Geraldine Linares Esq., Asean Malik Bey, JahQuan Bey-Wright, and Peter Willner.

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Brief Biographies of Presenters

Geraldine Linares Esq. is a Syracuse native who recently returned to practice law within the community. She focuses on Social Security and Disabilities appeal cases for clients that have been denied approval.  In addition to her profession Geraldine volunteers her time to multiple programs that provide services and assistance to the Syracuse community such as Syracuse Peacemaking Project, Spanish Action League and lead peer mentor for youth groups at the Renovation Church.  

Asean Malik Bey is the Coordinator of Restorative Justice at the Center for Court Innovation’s Syracuse Peacemaking Project. He has been involved in social justice campaigns and initiatives since 2002. He is a trained Youth Gang Advocate and has been part of peace initiatives and round tables between various street organizations. Through this work, he has been involved in community outreach and conferences in New York City, California, Baltimore, and Puerto Rico addressing street violence. He is the founder of the SLG Prison Program, which organizes around environmental justice, social justice, prisoner rights and alternative to incarceration campaigns in various cities in the United States geared toward youth. He is also the co-founder of the “It takes a Village” discussion series which focuses on bridging the gap between at-risk youth and service providers working and living in Rochester and Syracuse, New York. 

JahQuan Bey-Wright has an extensive human services background, managing staff and working with diverse clients throughout upstate New York. He has worked for the past three months as Dialogue Coordinator in the El-Hindi Center for Dialogue. He is passionate about Syracuse and its residents. 

Peter Willner has worked for the past six years with Interfaith Works as its Director of the El-Hindi Center for Dialogue, through which 1,500-2,000 people annually participate in dialogue programming to address racism. He moved back to Central New York after 17 years working on justice reform issues in Washington, DC. 

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