 |
Rubens Pamies, M.D., and Peg Harriott stand beneath a Face Forward poster. |
The poster, which was unveiled at a news conference at the Gallup Organization campus, is a photo mural with a face of a woman, headlined “together we can make a difference” toward eliminating racism and empowering women.
The poster features more than 4,000 local photos of individuals from across the Omaha community and is being displayed by organizations throughout the city. It is part of the YWCA’s goal to raise awareness of the YWCA’s mission to promote diversity and provide key support particularly to women and families.
“In January of this year, we challenged our community to take a stand for racial justice and women’s empowerment,” said Peg Harriott, executive director of the YWCA. “We literally asked community members to put their face forward and publicly share their photo if they supported the importance of eliminating racism and empowering women in greater Omaha.”
As one of the project sponsors, UNMC worked with Channel 3 to produce a TV spot featuring Dr. Pamies and UNMC researchers and highlighting the need for diversity in health careers.
The sponsorship of this YWCA initiative was a natural one for UNMC, Dr. Pamies said. “We have a variety of programs that bring both individuals and groups of people, particularly people of color, onto the UNMC campus and into our labs and clinics to learn about and experience health care careers,” he said. “These experiences are helping students realize that a career in the health professions is within their grasp. They also are finding that UNMC provides a welcoming environment for them.”
Harriott said Omaha is the first city in the nation to do a local project such as this. Other cities and YWCA USA may replicate the project, which was developed in Omaha by Bozell and Jacobs. The 4,000 photos were used to create 30,000 tiles that make up the poster.
The YWCA Face Forward Poster is on display across campus including outside the Nebraska Cafe and by the information desk in the Durham Outpatient Center.
People will be able to find their own picture throughout the poster, which is available for $15 through www.ywcaomaha.org. Posters can be ordered online, or a form can be downloaded. Anyone who lacks Internet access can pick up a poster at YWCA Omaha, 222 S. 29 St., or phone (402) 345-6555 to have an order form mailed. The $15 includes shipping and handling. Posters picked up at the YWCA will be $10. The poster is 24 by 36 inches, which fits a standard poster frame.