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 […]
Rochelle Habeck The need for strengthening early childhood and education was strongly supported at the 2015 ISAAC Issues Convention and is one of three going forward! If you missed it, you can see the video we showed. Join us at our first meeting, Monday night October 26, 7:00 to 8:30 pm at St. Luke’s Church […]
Steve Barber The importance of “Jobs” in our world was presented. “Who you are” is often defined by what you do. Jobs are connected to a persons self-esteem, self-concept, etc. Unfortunately there are barriers that prevent good people, good workers from getting jobs. These barriers are misleading, prejudicial and related to assumptions regarding education, commitment, […]
Matt Weiler The energy in the room at this year’s Issues Convention was impressive to say the least. I was particularly delighted to see the positive manner in which the body responded to our adjustment with the voting process. One vote per person and one swift movement with no membership requirements attached only served to […]
Andrew Alm The film clip we showed talks about a line that many families struggle to keep themselves above. This line is the poverty line. In Kalamazoo County 17% of households fall below this line. But the poverty line alone does not tell the whole story. To better understand poverty, the United Way developed the ALICE […]
Rev. Linda MacDonald While public transit is no longer at the center of ISAAC work, the necessity for robust public transportation never lets up. Whether your issue is job creation, addressing poverty, ending racism’s terrible hold on the hearts and minds of you and your neighbors, access to public transit will create significant long term good for everyone in […]
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
