Since 1957, the second Sunday of June has been designated by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States to be Race Unity Day for the American Baha'i Community. This year, Race Unity Day will be Sunday, June 13, where throughout the United States events will be held to bring peoples of the diverse races and cultures together in fellowship and harmony. Here on Long Island, the Baha'i Race Unity Committee of Long Island will be holding its annual Race Unity Day Picnic at Belmont Lake State Park in North Babylon.

The reason why Baha'is holds events to bring diversities of people together in fellowship stems from the fundamental belief that whatever race, religion, nationality, culture and ethnicity one may come from, we are all members of the same human family. The oneness of the human family is a scientific truth. There is after all only one species of man - Homo sapiens. While a scientific truth, the oneness of the human family is equally, if not more importantly, a spiritual truth. Spiritually we all belong to the same human family.

Since we all belong to the same human family, we should be united in fellowship and harmony. The reasons that we are not united are because of the various barriers that man has erected that have served to keep the peoples apart - these being the barriers of prejudice, racism, fear, hatred and bigotry. Baha'is are busily working to tear down these walls of separation and to replace them with bridges of unity.

It is the spiritual recognition of the oneness of the human family that will lead to a love of all the diverse races, religions and cultures found within this family. This love, in turn, will lead to a desire and yearning to want to be in fellowship with the entire human family.

While Baha'is work busily toward bringing the diverse peoples of our human family together, here in the United States, particular emphasis is placed on the uniting of those of the black and white races. Baha'is consider this to be America's most challenging and vital issue. It is challenging for various reasons. To begin with, the greatest hostility and animosity, historically, and still today, exist between the members of these two races. There is a great deal of mistrust between many blacks and whites in our society. While there has been significant progress made over the years, particularly in the latter part of this century, there is still much room for improvement.

It is also challenging because in many ways there is no longer as great a desire to come together in unity, as had existed during the 1960s. Many are more interested in preserving their racial and cultural heritage. They fear that mingling, no less integrating with those of other races, will lead to a dilution, if not to a complete disintegration of their heritage and identity. Thus they steer away from uniting with those who are different from themselves. While these feelings exist amongst people of all races, religions and cultures, here in the United States it is most pronounced between those of the black and white races. Also, many people of these two races simply do not live near one another, and if they do, tend to keep amongst themselves.

While Baha'is believe that the uniting of the black and white races in America is our country's most challenging issue, we also believe it is the most vital issue facing our American nation as well. The coming together in fellowship between the blacks and the whites will lead to the uniting in fellowship and harmony of all the diverse races, religions, and cultures and will be a prelude not only to peace being established here in the United States, but also throughout the world - so great are its implications. Until the races and cultures unite, and not just learn to tolerate one another, the tension and hostility amongst them will remain and we will continue to be plagued with the problems, too numerous to mention, currently besetting humanity.

Coming together in fellowship and harmony does not have to equate to the dilution, nor the disintegration of one's racial, religious and/or cultural heritage. The type of unity we should be striving for is not a unity in uniformity but rather a unity in diversity, where one does not surrender one's culture but rather shares one's culture with others in fellowship. This sharing of the different cultures does not lead to a dilution of one's heritage and identity. Quite the contrary, sharing is what enhances and enriches our human family.

Of course working toward racial unity is not limited to just one day out of the year. It is something we must work toward every day. The spirit of love and unity that will be generated by the many events held during Race Unity Day, does not end come the close of the day. Rather, it should be the impetus for continuing to work toward uniting with the many races, religions and cultures that comprise and beautify our one human family. The ultimate coming together of all the diverse members of our human family in loving fellowship and harmony, Baha'is believe, is not only possible, but inevitable. Indeed, it is humanity's glorious destiny.

If you would like more information about the Baha'i Race Unity Committee of Long Island's Race Unity Day Picnic, please call the committee at 979-9162.

Marc L. Hensen