The fourth annual Ask Me Fair was held at the Sargent Memorial Library in Boxborough on Saturday, July 19th. The “living library” event was founded by Sam Gould, Open Door Theater president and Think Outside the Vox co-founder, president, and ADA coordinator as “an antidote to ‘othering’ and ‘isms’ and how we learn to grow minds.” The Ask Me Fair’s aim is to promote empathy, acceptance, and tolerance while dispelling stereotypes and fear of those who are different. Gould relates, “We hope that the unfamiliar can become known and understood through thoughtful questions and answers.”
Following a check-in where attendees completed a unique name tag that included their pronouns and the phrase, “I am…” completed with “a safe person to talk to,” “excited,” “a learner,” and other personal identities, Gould welcomed the attendees, gathered in a circle in the library’s meeting room. She related that she usually opens the event by professing that the only good “ism” is a prism. This year, however, her daughter Zoe asked to share the story of the experience she had in school that led to the family’s creation of the Ask Me Fair.
Zoe recounted an experience from fourth grade, when a classmate had “heil Hitler’d” her, the first time she had been directly attacked by such egregious antisemitism, and that it had “hit her to the core.” She now attends the Acton Boxborough Regional High School, and acknowledges that students today experience antisemitism and racism, and this fair is meant to combat that.
This year’s event was marketed as a “disability joy” event, given that July is Disability Pride Month. The five presenters, Via, Jae, Evvy, Kwaku and Mona, were invited, and compensated, to participate. Gould asked each to offer a brief self-introduction, and then they made their way to meeting rooms around the library. The attendees were divided into small groups, and each joined a presenter to have a conversation and get to know them better. Each small group rotated around the building to meet the five presenters in turn. The biggest challenge? Getting each group to end the conversation and move on to the next.
Most presenters invited the participants to briefly introduce themselves before sharing more about their life, interests, work, disabilities, and other aspects of their identities that have shaped their lived experiences. Then the floor was opened to questions. Some of the participants had disabilities themselves and were supported by technology or interpreters. The questions and answers were candid, thoughtful, and respectful. The groups discussed school, bullying and discrimination, access and the barriers to it, sexuality and sexual orientation, art, music, and theater, race, ethnicity, and advocacy. Attendees expressed their gratitude to the presenters for sharing.
After the fair, one attendee shared that Jae had helped him understand that you can be part of a community and there will be people in that community whom you don’t necessarily agree with.
Support for the Ask Me Fair was provided by the Mass Cultural Council and Acton Boxborough Community Compass.
Alissa Nicol is a member of Acton’s Select Board, and writes about community events for the Acton Exchange.