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    Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission

    PHRC Events

    The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (PHRC) offers free conferences, webinars, and in-person events throughout the year to educate on different topics related to civil rights.

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    Social justice initiatives

    • Advisory Councils Summit

    The Advisory Councils Summit is held four times a year allowing the councils to share their work and to provide authentic input to the PHRC Executive Director and staff. The Advisory Councils play a critical role in helping the PHRC build deeper connections across communities throughout the state.

    • Civil Rights Mentoring

    The Civil Rights Mentoring Program is a youth-centric Saturday program designed to nurture the curiosity and intelligence of our youth. It helps youth connect the lessons of the past to understand the events of today. Mentors encourage participants to formulate plans to take action which will improve tomorrow. This mentoring program is housed out of the Philadelphia Regional Office.

    • Disability Conference

    This one-day conference aims to bring together individuals with disabilities, advocates, human resource managers, supervisors, disability related organizations, or anyone looking to get more information on how individuals with disabilities can use programs and services to thrive in the employment setting.

    • Diversity Speaks Series

    The Diversity Speaks Series was developed for a general audience to provide a variety of perspectives on the most pressing human rights issues of the day.

    • Fair Housing Empower Hour

    Monthly fair housing training on different topics to provide a broad look on some of the subject matter that relate to fair housing. The topics are designed to promote conversations and questions. All sessions are free and held from 12-1 p.m. Anyone with questions should contact Brittany Mellinger.

    • Housing Equality Conference

    This free conference aims to bring together leaders, housing professionals, and housing advocates throughout Pennsylvania, breaking down housing barriers, connecting change-makers, and equipping participants with the knowledge they need for advance housing justice.

    • Human Relations Summit

    The Human Relations Summit is held quarterly for a general audience to facilitate dialog on the need of human relations practices that align with social justice goals around diversity, equity, and inclusion.

    • Law & Race Series

    The Law & Race Series discusses the legal and legislative tools necessary to dismantle white supremacy and its concomitant violence.

    • PHRC on the Road: Building Pennsylvania's Beloved Community

    PHRC created the Beloved Community framework to assist communities of the commonwealth to intentionally build a culture of peace, understanding and tolerance despite our differences within the context of an increasingly diverse and interconnected world. Each listening session includes a presentation on the Beloved Community framework and an overview of the services and programs offered by the PHRC. The session then opens up for questions from the community. PHRC is still looking for locations to host upcoming sessions, anyone interested in partnering with the PHRC should contact Stacey Waters.  

    • ​PHRC Speaks: Fair Housing in the 21st Century

    Airing on PCNTV.com on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month, PHRC Director of Enforcement Adrian Garcia and an expert guest explore topics relating to the diminishing access to housing for some Commonwealth residents. As the civil rights enforcement agency in Pennsylvania, we see systemic problems with the way discrimination and bias limit the fulfillment of the basic need of housing, and we work diligently towards affirmatively furthering fair housing for all.

    • Sexual Harassment Symposium

    This free, one-day, in-person conference will bring together practitioners, investigators, attorneys, policy makers, activists, and advocates invested in ending sexual harassment in all spaces.

    • School-to-Prison Pipeline Conference

    This one-day conference aims to bring together community leaders, people with lived experience, and inspiring speakers to create engaging discussions. This conference explores ways we can correct the pipeline and address the ongloing barriers. 

    • Social Justice Lecture Series

    The Social Justice Lecture Series examines the promise of the United States as a country that values equity. While reality has included a long history of oppression, this series examines the work that remains to ensure we create a society that neither diminishes nor marginalizes any of its residents.

    • Social Justice Lunch & Learn Series

    The Social Justice Lunch and Learns is a brown bag series developed to offer convenient, engaging, and practical competency development sessions for the PHRC staff, civil rights and human rights stakeholders and people of the Commonwealth. It is essential that all of us who are committed to justice, work to ensure that we are addressing those harmful systems that impact people on a macro, mezzo and micro level.​

    • Women’s History Month

    Each year, the PHRC celebrates Women’s History Month with several virtual events featuring women.

    Past events

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