As part of a national walkout from schools, offices, and commercial establishments scheduled for Tuesday, the meetinghouse of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of the South Fork in Bridgehampton will host music and poetry throughout the day, along with other creative and healing arts such as reiki, tai chi, and meditation.
The Women’s March feminist movement, which began with a huge protest one day after President Trump’s inauguration in January 2017, is organizing Tuesday’s Free America Walkout, which will include a Walk for Democracy in Patchogue, where, at 2 p.m., participants will walk from Republican Representative Andrew Garbarino’s Second District office to Shorefront Park. “We walk away from fascism. We walk toward a Free America,” according to messaging on the Women’s March website.
At the Unitarian Universalist meetinghouse, “We decided to do an open house, to open our space for people participating in the walkout, but also for anybody during the day,” the Rev. Kimberly Quinn Johnson said. While the focus of the walkout is resisting fascism, she said, “we want to be building community, and relationships within our community.”
“So much is happening so quickly in this moment,” Ms. Johnson said. “One reason we want to have a space for healing arts like tai chi, meditation, and reiki is to help us re-regulate our nervous systems. But we also want to lean into the power in creating art. We have so many talented people in our community to lead us in those things.” Tuesday’s open house, she said, is “a way for people with these skills and gifts to offer them.”
The open house is free and open to the public.
