Early Voting! Michigan voters can vote early and in person for the August 6th primary! Proposal 2, passed in 2022, guarantees 9 days of early, in-person voting for all state or federal elections. Any Kalamazoo County registered voter (except residents of Pavilion Township) may vote early from Saturday, July 27th until Sunday, August 4th […]
Practicing connection, conflict and coordination: A series of three in-person workshops and monthly virtual practice sessions to support white people in embodied anti-racism practice. Each workshop will be focused on the themes of connection,conflict and coordination. In our time together will explore why connection, conflict and coordination are vital in our organizing work, how white supremacy culture disrupts our ability to […]
In 2022 ISAAC, EL CONCILLIO, METROPOLITAN NAACP, LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS, DOUGLASS COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION, PARENTS UNITED, HOPE THRU NAVIGATION, BLOCKS CLUB, TRHT KALAMAZOO, GVI and Partners came together to work collectively on Vote August 2 and Vote November 8! This committee worked hard to bring awareness, and deepen engagement in non-partisan elections work. ISAAC and […]
Listen as ISAAC Family Members and Leaders share their ISAAC Story!
This is amazing! ISAAC donors gave over $14,000 to our Endowment Fund in 2022! A huge thank you to the Endowment Fund donors who put so much trust in our work together to build the Beloved Community. Your commitment and generosity have increased our fund value to more than $176,000 even after the stock market’s […]
October 25th was our 2022 Public Meeting and the 20th Anniversary of the ISAAC Covenant Celebration held by our founding congregations in the fall of 2002. You can watch the entire video below or you can choose specific sections–each part is inspiring! Please note some respondents may have used on-screen emojis to commit to an […]
Hello and thank you to all who are present. My name’s Irving Quintero, the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force intern. I would like to begin by stating that 58% of the population in the US has experienced gun violence directly or indirectly. So there’s a huge chance that you and/or your loved ones have been […]
Good evening my name Al Dixon and I am the Co-Chair of the ISAAC Anti-Racism Task Force. The Task Force was elected by community members years ago, to help stop racism and other social injustices that have impacted our community. housing, gun violence, employment, health, and mass incarceration. We are currently working to address […]
I’m Tobi Hanna-Davies, Housing Task Force member since it began – At the very first ISAAC Public Meeting in the fall of 2003, the brand new ISAAC Housing Task Force quoted the scripture of Ezekiel about the dry bones coming to life, the next day our photo was at the top of the front page […]
As this team of dedicated heroes continue their work, it has become clear that they too need support and renewal. The work is taxing and meaningful. When the stakes are high, so must the support be. One of those supports is a retreat that centers wellness, learning and exposure as core outcomes. A special thank […]
We Are The Light Google: The Definition of Black Results: adjective; of the very darkest color owing to the absence of or complete absorption of light; the opposite of white Google: The Definition of History Results: noun; 1. the study of past events, particularly in human affairs. 2. the whole series of past events connected […]
Ed Genesis is an artist, poet, musician, organizer, entrepreneur, and community leader. Born and raised in Gary, Indiana and moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan permanently in his early 20’s, his love of art/music, his passion for his people and community, and his gift of creativity are evident in all areas of his work. In October 2018 Ed Genesis released a song to accompany the campaign he was working on around school push out, entitled Junior High, which was distributed nationwide including on his own iHeart radio station, Spotify, and iTunes.
In 2017 Ed Genesis created Poetic Justice, a monthly open-mic that was hosted/led by 5 local poets. He has performed as well as hosted several events such as the Black Arts Festival, the Kalamazoo Poetry Festival, and the National Day of Racial Healing.
Ed Genesis is Lead Mentor and head of community relations at Speak It Forward where he teaches youth at Lakeside Academy, Starr-Commonwealth, and the Kalamazoo County Juvenile home healing through music and art. In 2017, he started WE ACTIVE! a community organization aimed at fighting against mass incarceration and the school to prison pipeline. The organization was recognized by the State of Michigan and presented with a Special Tribute by Representative Jon Hoadley for its work on Criminal Justice Reform and Mass Incarceration in the Kalamazoo Community. Ed Genesis has been a panelist and featured speaker in Washington D.C., Chicago, and Milwaukee. He has and continues to collaborate with artists local to Kalamazoo, youth included, to create music to address social justice issues. In 2018 Ed Genesis joined Truth Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT). He leads the Racial Healing design team with a focus on healing justice and is also part of the Law Design Team.
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