Youth Violence Task Force Report The Youth Violence Task force met and began what promises to be an exciting and purposeful action related to Youth Violence in Kalamazoo. The task force members shared their personal reason for joining the task force. The experiences and motivations were compelling. Co-chair Vanessa Collins-Smith and with Wendy Flora, shared […]
News from Early Childhood & Education (EC&E) Task Force A group of 15 wonderful people attended the first meeting of our new task force. New members are welcome! Our next meeting is Monday November 23rd at 5:30 at St. Luke’s. Please join us Tuesday November 17th at 4 PM for a community discussion about early […]
Co-chairs: Andrew Alm & Teleshia Parker The Solution to Racism in America is Taking a Stand for “Anti-Racism!” “The Anti-Racism Task Force met for the first time on Tuesday October 27th at St. Luke’s downtown, thank you to all who attended. Joining us for our first meeting were Dr. Mundy and Aliisa Lahti from ERACCE, […]
Dr. Charlae Davis 15 Years of Making a Difference in Kalamazoo! We are excited to announce that next year is our15th anniversary. It’s been 15 years since, our vision statement was adopted; congregations and organizations first contributed membership dues; and members attended national leadership training November 2015 is now here and it is time for our End-of the-Year Campaign!!!! There continues to be a compelling need and urgency […]
Rev. Matt Weiler Is it Winnable? Is it winnable? This is a fundamental question that any good to community organizing effort asks before cutting an issue. Thanks be to the housing task force for answering with a confident yes for the “vote yes for kids” which passed this month! Additionally thanks be to the Kalamazoo […]
Hundreds of homeless kids in Kalamazoo County will get housing and help for their families over the next six years! About 1200 kids! Well done, everybody! ISAAC played a key role. Thank you for “putting feet to your faith.” The detailed results of the election are stunning. More voters said YES than No in every […]
Get the facts before you vote Nov. 3 on the $5/year proposal re homeless schoolchildren Over 1200 school children were homeless in the 9 school districts of Kalamazoo County last year (KRESA data.) Research shows that stable housing is essential to children’s educational achievement, as well as their emotional development and physical health (Kids Count […]
Acclaimed author Mr. Ta-Nehisi Coates will speak on “Race in America” at the Kalamazoo Community Foundation’s Annual Community meeting on Tuesday, November 3, 8:00pm, at Miller Auditorium. Free admission. Free parking in the Miller structure. Doors open at 7:30. Registration requested. Kazoo Books will have Mr. Coates’ books there for sale. Come see why Mr. Coates’ books and his […]
Fernando Ospina and Lillie Wolff Why do we need to talk about racism? First off, when we talk about racism, we are not just talking about how we are as individuals. We’re talking about something bigger than just you and I or us in this room. We’re talking about systemic racism. It’s pervasive. It’s everywhere. […]
Dr. Charlae Davis As a community, we showed up, we reflected, we voted and now it’s time to ACT! In February 2015, ISAAC decided to embark upon becoming a more intentional anti-racist institution. We greatly appreciate our partnership with ERACCE (Rev. Dr. Mundy, Lillie, Fernando and Aliisa). On October 1, 2015 Racism was chosen at our Issues […]
Wendy Flora “Abandoned at birth by a father who didn’t want me. Visions of my mother being beaten still haunt me. But I broke my mother’s heart. I was delinquent. It was frequent,” recited Michael Wilder, telling his story and calling for action against youth violence at the Issues Convention. Venessa Collins-Smith also shared her story […]
Tobi Hanna-Davies, Mary Lewis & Ann Perry, Steering Comm. Members Election day is our big chance to change the story for 1200 schoolchildren who are likely to be homeless in Kalamazoo County this school year! Research shows that stable housing is essential to children’s educational achievement, emotional development and physical health. You can make a […]
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.
ISAAC
