Photo of Kamirah Hamlett-Brown (right) and Jumaanah Salaam provided by Dawn Cundiff Salaam
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By Clyde Hughes | AC JosepH Media
ATLANTIC CITY – Differences in religion has caused strife among families, friends and coworkers for years but it was something that brought together Atlantic City's Kamirah Hamlett-Brown and Jumaanah Salaam.
The women, one Christian and one Muslim, saw the differences as a way to bring people together and learn from each other. On Saturday, May 28, Hamlett-Brown and Salaam will host their third annual YOUnite Women's Empowerment Event at the All Wars Memorial Building, 1510 Adriatic Avenue in Atlantic City.
The nonprofit YOUnite is their creation, using it to run a mentorship program along with the annual conference, which had been postponed for the past two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"They are ready to get started again," said Dawn Cundiff Salaam, the mother of Jumaanah Salaam, who is assisting with the event. "They do women's empowerment not just for locals but for women all over. They did their first two in 2018 and 2019 and then the pandemic hit, so they didn't have it for the past two years."
Cundiff Salaam said her daughter, 26, and Hamlett-Brown, 28, immediately envisioned various ways they could bring women together, strengthening and boosting them in the process. The event is meant as a networking vehicle, designed to serve them with relationships and lessons long after the May 28 event is over.
Their first event in 2018 brought women from all walks of life together while the second in 2019 sought to unite women from different generations.
"It brought together teenagers, women in their 20s and 30s and women my age in their 50s and 60s," Cundiff Salaam said. "They did games and compared ideas and businesses."
This year's event will examine the divide between men and women, with speakers from both genders talking about their experiences while being served by 11 local vendors.
"They have a catered chef coming in from Atlanta," Cundiff Salaam said. "They have five men speakers, five women speakers from all over as far as New Orleans and North Jersey, just sharing their ideas and the differences as being entrepreneurs in the world today as a man and as a woman.
"We're asking everyone to dress up in black, semi formal. We want people to come and dress up because people haven't dressed up in a long time to go to an event."
In a statement about YOUnite, the women said they want to create a positive environment where women can come together and network.
"YOUnite is here to make a change and promote the joining forces of women from different religions, races, ages and businesses," the statement said. "We strongly believe in empowering women and supporting one another."
The YOUnite mentoring program engages girls ages 12-18 in hopes to make them comfortable enough to share their passion and future goals. The nonprofit also provides school supplies and help "them find their inner girl power."
QUESTION: How can conferences like this help African American and Latino women find their voice? Answer in the Discussion section below.
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