Keep Speaking Up and Speaking Out

The Rural Assembly is a movement of people and organizations working to build a more just and more inclusive nation that values all the people in all the places. 

The events of the last 24 hours revealed in stark terms that this work is more important than ever. 

We are a nation in turmoil and strife, in need of tending and healing, courage and goodness. 

We know rural leaders are up to the challenge.

We’ve seen you in action and heard you “speak up and speak out,” as the late Rep. John Lewis exhorted us. You are making “good trouble” in your hometowns and communities. 

Today we turn to you with hope and gratitude, and to say, we go with you.

And for some inspiration today, we celebrate the work of one of our partners, Ashley Hanson, who was a 2018 Rural Assembly FireStarter. Hanson was featured in the Washington Post Magazine this week for her work staging plays in rural Minnesota. Read about her work here. 

Photo from the U.S. Capitol during the 2015 Rural Assembly held in Washington, D.C.

Drawing Resilience: Caryl Hale

Caryl Hale is the executive director of the Norton Regional Health Foundation and amember of the Norton Arts Council in Norton, Kansas. Hale brings her experience in farming and foodsystems with her to both roles, helping to create rural health policies that center art and food production.

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Everywhere Workshops

Extend your Everywhere experience by registering for one or more of three workshops hosted with partners Aug. 6- 8th, the week following our mainstage programming on Aug. 1. 

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