“Today, I’m proud to be hosting at the White House the United We Stand Summit to counter hate-fueled violence, reaffirming that we all have a role to play in fostering a safe, inclusive, and democratic society,” said U.S. President Joe Biden Thursday.
According to a White House fact sheet, the summit honored “the resilience of communities who are healing from hateful attacks, including mass shootings, from Oak Creek to Orlando, Charleston, Pittsburgh, El Paso, Atlanta, Buffalo, and beyond.”
Data from the Gun Violence Archive updated Thursday showed that there have been 485 mass shootings in the U.S. this year. Earlier this year, the Brookings Institute reported that a hate crime occurs every hour in the U.S. and that the number of hate groups in the U.S. has increased by 100% in the past two decades.
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“The Summit will put forward a shared vision for a more united America, demonstrating that the vast majority of Americans agree that there is no place for hate-fueled violence in our country, and that when Americans stand united to renew civic bonds and heal divides, we can help prevent acts of hate and violence,” the White House said Thursday. It also said the summit is “just the beginning.”
This beginning step includes a “historic package of new actions,” announced by the White House. Package items include:
· Agency actions to strengthen the federal government’s coordination and community engagement to prevent, respond to, and recover from hate-fueled violence.
· New steps to strengthen the resources available to local schools, law enforcement agencies, and cultural institutions like museums and libraries to prevent and respond to hate-fueled violence.
· The bipartisan launch of Dignity.us, a Citizens’ Initiative to Address Hate-Fueled Violence in America, to foster dialogue in communities across the country and identify solutions to address hate-fueled violence.
· New Pluralists, a cross-partisan group of philanthropic and field leaders, mobilizing $1 billion in new investments to increase support for programs that build bridges among Americans of different backgrounds.
· The Compact to Combat Hate and Extremism, a commitment to stand up against hate-fueled violence and increase their support for local initiatives that heal divides.
· Service organizations – led by Interfaith America, the YMCA, and Habitat for Humanity – launching the A Nation of Bridge Builders partnership to train 10,000 Americans to be bridge builders in their neighborhoods. It “will host over 1,000 bridge building events in over 300 communities,” said the White House.
· New actions from tech companies such as YouTube, Twitch, Microsoft, and Meta actions to prevent hate-fueled violence.
During the summit, 16 people identified as “uniters” in the U.S. were also honored and survivors of hate-motivated violence were featured.
“Participants include bipartisan and nonpartisan federal, state, local, and Tribal officials, civil rights groups, faith and community leaders, business leaders, law enforcement officials, former members of violent hate groups who now work to prevent violence, and gun violence prevention leaders,” said the White House.
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