​ Celebrating Joy, Unity, and Friendship at Race Amity Day

On Sunday, June 8, from 2 to 4:30 p.m., the Clearwater Baha’i Center will host the 2025 National Race Amity Day Celebration, a vibrant and inclusive gathering designed to elevate friendship, celebrate cultural diversity, and create space for meaningful dialogue. Organized by Advocates for Race Amity in Pinellas County (AFRA), the event is part of a national movement promoting unity through cross-cultural and interracial friendship.

Race Amity Day in Pinellas County is more than a celebration—it's a call to action. It seeks to build bridges by honoring diverse histories and encouraging intentional relationships across cultural lines. This year’s event brings together an inspiring lineup of speakers, performers, and community members, all united by a shared belief in the transformative power of friendship.

Among the day’s highlights: live music from acclaimed jazz vocalist Fred Johnson, the Voices of Unity choir, saxophonist Matthew Weihmuller, and the local band Crimson Ark. The event also features a global photo exhibit by local photographer Susan Jeffers, storytelling and activities for children, and a community dinner. ABC Action News reporter Jada Williams will co-emcee alongside Danny White, founder of Race Without Ism, Inc.

For local artist and choir member Jaime Jalel, Race Amity Day represents a necessary and uplifting shift in how we approach the topic of unity.

“I feel strongly that we need a fresh approach to the establishment of unity in this country,” Jalel says. “The framework of Race Amity allows for the acknowledgment of difficult realities in conversation while centering examples of historical and current diverse friendships.”

Jalel performs with Voices and Unity: A Glorious Noise, a community choir formed out of friendship—and a desire to harmonize more than just music.

“The choir itself is a model of diversity,” Jalel explains. “Latin, gospel, folk—we represent it all and sing it all. We have different religions, different races, different ages. The friendships that have formed are definitely the glue that keeps the choir together. We have a lot of fun. Most of us don’t have musical backgrounds, but we’ve learned so much. Being part of this choir has made me a better singer and a better human.”

For Jalel, music is more than a performance—it’s a shared language that dissolves barriers. “Art makes us vulnerable, and performing makes us vulnerable, and when we’re all vulnerable, it’s hard to hate one another. Sometimes the answer is to get out of our heads and see with our hearts.”

The joy of collaborating with a diverse group of performers and speakers has been personally transformative. “Singing with diverse people is like a healthy escape from the mundane,” Jalel says. “There’s no fear of needing to blend in because no one does. Suddenly, it’s absolutely OK to be completely who I am because no one else is like me.”

And that, Jalel notes, is at the heart of what Race Amity Day seeks to accomplish. “It’s no longer about what ‘I can do’ or ‘what I do,’ the conversation shifts to ‘what can we do together?’ Race Amity specifically draws on historic models of friendship that have made real change. We need to model the solution. The solution is friendship. Amity.”

If there's one emotion Jalel hopes the audience carries with them after the celebration, it’s joy. “Joy attracts hearts,” Jalel says. “If we can all find joy together, it will get us through the dark times, through the hard conversations. Create memories with one another—laugh with joy. If I can leave the audience with one feeling from this event, it would be that they find joy in the company of one another.”

The 2025 National Race Amity Day Celebration is free and open to all. Whether you come for the music, the stories, the food, or the community, you'll leave with more than just memories—you’ll leave with hope.