Worcester State University recently hosted a powerful community event titled “Breaking Bread: Building Solidarity Across Cultural Community Meal for Mutual Aid and Collective Action.” The gathering, organized by the Urban Studies Department’s Urban Action Institute, brought together students, faculty, and local community organizations to foster connections and drive action around pressing social issues.
The gathering used a shared, multicultural potluck meal as a bridge to nourish dialogue on equity, collective care, and immigrant justice while modeling collaborative, solution-focused participation.
Russ Pottle, dean of the School of Social Science and Humanities at Worcester State, gave opening remarks. “Worcester State University is a hub for strategic thinking and collective action,” he said. “By hosting these dialogues, we are bridging the gap between academic inquiry and real-world immigrant justice, ensuring that our university serves as a place of belonging and a catalyst for mutual aid throughout the Worcester community.”
Rukie Hoyt-Rouse, staff associate at the Urban Action Institute, set the tone for the evening, emphasizing the importance of collaboration for addressing the urgent needs of these times. “By centering our dialogue around a communal table, we are transforming shared learning into collective action and building the foundational networks of mutual aid and friendship our community needs,” she said.
Adam Saltsman, associate professor of Urban Studies and executive director of the Urban Action Institute, echoed that sentiment. “By bringing students and community members together to learn from one another, we are building the solidarity and mutual aid required to create systemic change and tackle the social challenges of our time.”
Event partners included Worcester State’s Binienda Center for Civic Engagement, the Probus Club of Worcester, Woo Fridge, Friendly House, and the African Community Education (ACE).
The evening featured a panel of four community leaders, each sharing their unique perspectives and experiences. Jonathan Goldman, executive director of the Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice, described student-led immigration legal support and organizing that link individual asylum cases to broader campaigns through base-building, political education, and strategic pressure on decision-makers.
Kaska Yawo, executive director of ACE, spoke about the organization’s history of supporting students and families through wraparound services, including afterschool programs, family outreach, and English and citizenship classes.
Worcester State University sophomore Sara Godoy Meneguel, who moved to the U.S. from Brazil at age 10, shared her personal connection to immigration issues and her work as a student advocate with the university’s Clinic for Immigrant Justice. “Having family and friends directly impacted by immigration policy deeply shaped my personal connection to these issues and my commitment to advocacy,” she said.
Dalida Rocha, executive director of Neighbor to Neighbor Massachusetts, noted that supporting immigrant communities is stressful, with high stakes and a fast pace.
“To keep that fire going, we have to move beyond ’emergency’ self-care and commit to a consistent practice of grounding ourselves,” she said. “For me, that means finding quiet moments through meditation and nature to drown out the noise of the world. It’s in that stillness that we find the innovative solutions and the mental clarity needed to keep showing up for one another.”
The event’s core intention was to foster real relationships grounded in mutual aid, cross-cultural connection, and collective action. As Hoyt-Rouse said, “Our ultimate goal for the evening is to transform learning into action.”