New Yorkers to Celebrate Diversity with Interfaith Unity Walk

People of all faiths will gather to walk together in the most religiously diverse neighborhood in America during the Annual Queens Interfaith Unity Walk on Saturday, October 19, 1-4pm, to visit the many different houses of worship in Queens and learn about the faith of their neighbors. The Unity Walk will start 1:00pm at historic Saint George's Church, located at 135-32 38th Avenue in downtown Flushing, Queens.

“The relevance and importance of our Unity Walk stems from the rising number of hate crimes in our society. In a divided world of 'us' vs. 'them,' the very notion of 'other' needs to be shattered if we are to prevent future acts of bigotry,” stated Harpreet Singh Wahan of the Sikh Center of New York. “Our Unity Walk recognizes all humanity as one – ‘Let there be no strangers’ – through respect and mutual coexistence, we can ensure a better and safer world for all of us.”

The Queens Interfaith Unity Walk arose in response to post-9/11 challenges and developed from a model in Brooklyn called "Children of Abraham Peace Walk," which has been bringing churches, mosques, and synagogues together for more than a decade. The Queens event includes non-Abrahamic religious groups as well as a number of faiths reflecting the incredibly diverse cultures of Flushing.

"Though I look forward to this event every year, it is not only a 'feel good' event. Queens is highly diverse and has experienced some tensions and violence targeting that diversity," stated Adem Carroll of the Muslim Progressive Traditionalist Alliance. "We all need to show our solidarity and I hope the people of Queens will come and walk the Walk with us."

In addition to St. George's Church, participants will visit the Sikh Center of New York at 38-17 Parsons Boulevard, the Muslim Center of New York at 13764 Geranium Ave, and Temple Gates of Prayer at 3820 Parsons Blvd. The Unity Walk will conclude at the Hindu Temple Society at 45-57 Bowne Street with light refreshments. At each stop, members of the respective faith will highlight important religious beliefs and traditions.

The Queens Interfaith Unity Walk is sponsored by the Flushing Interfaith Council, which includes the Flushing Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, the Bahá'í Community of Queens, the Free Synagogue of Flushing, the Hindu Temple Society of North America, the Muslim Progressive Traditionalist Alliance, Pax Christi Queens, the Sikh Center of New York, the Eckankar Community of Queens, and the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Queens. For more information about the Flushing Interfaith Council, please visit flushinginterfaithcouncil.wordpress.com.