The Help Unite Greenbelt (HUG) walk returned to Greenbelt on October 10. Kicking off in Greenbelt West on a cloudy Sunday afternoon, the walk spanned miles across all of Greenbelt, with multiple locations for residents to join or drop out. The event drew about 100 participants around the city.
“This is our home. Let’s make it warm and welcoming,” said founder Robert Goldberg-Strassler.
A Greenbelt resident since 1977, Goldberg-Strassler has been active in creating a unified community in Greenbelt through Random Unselfish Acts of Kindness (RUAK) and now HUG. After attending Greenbelt’s National Night Out in 2018, Goldberg-Strassler was inspired to create a unifying event after witnessing division at community events.
“I was distributing for [RUAK] at the six National Night Out sites,” said Goldberg-Strassler. “Imagine this little city had six places, because they were so divided. I heard these isms of people saying ‘this neighborhood’ against ‘that neighborhood.’ I’m going ‘cʼmon.’ Let’s embrace Greenbelt.”
Now in its third year, the HUG walk has grown to 57 sponsorships from local organizations and community initiatives. At a no-cost commitment, HUG sponsors are responsible for helping spread the word about the walk.
HUG walk sponsor and leader of Greenbelt Climate Action Network, Lore Rosenthal, emphasized the walk’s ability to connect Greenbelt residents.
“This is a visible way to pull people together,” said Rosenthal. “People are all visiting places [in Greenbelt] they haven’t been to before.”
Donning hand-written signs and purple HUG T-shirts, residents, police officers and candidates for city council hit the streets on Sunday afternoon to connect with one another and their home.
“During this pandemic we have seen us become separated,” said walk participant and State Delegate Alonzo Washington. “I think this is a great opportunity for us to come together and be able to connect with one another and understand each other’s issues in different neighborhoods. We are separated so many different times, but we are all one Greenbelt.”
In the wake of conversations about racial inequality across the United States, Goldberg-Strassler noted the HUG walk has served as a “simple antidote” to embracing the differences of our neighbors.
“It doesn’t make a difference at the HUG walk what your politics are, or your race, or your ethnicity,” said Goldberg-Strassler. “We all want a warm and welcoming place, because it makes the city richer.”
As a HUG walk sponsor, Dr. Lois Rosado, chair of the Greenbelt Black History and Culture Committee, noted the walk serves as an unconventional outlet for unification.
“The walk serves as a proponent of community. It is a creative outlet for greater understanding,” said Rosado.
In addition to promoting community, this year’s HUG participants picked up litter while on the route, as the walk was committed to being a zero-waste event.
As the HUG walk plans to continue annually, Goldberg-Strassler remains steadfast on keeping a mindset of “there’s no way it fails.”
“People ask me ‘So, what are your expectations?’ Whoever shows up, that’s it,” said Goldberg-Strassler, “It’s about one person meeting another person, and they have a moment to share a smile. That’s an act of affirmation, that kindness. And that’s wonderful.”
Shannon Clark is a University of Maryland graduate student in journalism writing for the News Review.
