Close to 500 people gathered at The Robbins House with masks, signs, and an open mind to listen, learn, and add their thoughts to a difficult and painful dialogue happening across the country around inequity and the quest for social justice for people of color. The peaceful gathering of solidarity was organized in less than 24 hours and moderated by Nikki Turpin, Robbins House Programming Chair.  

Held on June 1st, the talks ranged from the pioneering work of Ellen Garrison who advocated for civil rights in the 1800’s, to the 1921 “Black Wall Street” massacre outside of Tulsa, to the recent nationwide protests triggered by the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor.

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Maria Madison


In the tradition of the Quakers, the gathering ended in a moment of silence, after which anyone who felt moved to speak was invited to do so. Speakers ranged from a very young girl who talked about feeling compelled to draw people of color in her coloring book because they are beautiful and because ‘the books seem too white to me’…to Concord Police Chief Joseph O’Connor who came up to the microphone unexpectedly to give an emotional speech of solidarity with the community, and to condemn the actions of the police officers in Minneapolis.

Many events have taken place around Concord since then, including a June 14th webinar featuring Jan Turnquist of Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House interviewing Maria Madison of The Robbins House, and Sandra Petrulionis, author of To Set This World Right: The Antislavery Movement In Thoreau’s Concord.

For more information, please visit robbinshouse.org.