How do we begin to change the cultural narrative of hate, anxiety and fear towards people of different faiths? For these three congregations in Grand Rapids, the answer starts with sharing food and creating new friendships together on Burton Street.
Rebeca Velazques-Publes, a resident of the southeast neighborhood, shares how making Grand Rapids a welcoming city has, for her, involved building an intentional community and raising awareness of the ways people of color are excluded in the area.
In Grand Rapids, black women are being diagnosed with breast cancer at higher rates than white women. Their diagnoses are coming at later stages of the cancer due to a lack of access to preventative screenings and ability to afford treatment. Educators, residents and advocates in the southeast neighborhood of Grand Rapids are taking charge to address these disparities and bring about systemic change in healthcare for black residents.
As families in the southeast side of Grand Rapids face difficulty accessing housing, meeting basic needs, and even fears of potential deportation, community leaders in the schools are working hard to provide them with resources and support.
Residents in the city's' southeast neighborhood are facing displacement from communities they have long been a part of due to the increasing costs of housing. Here, residents, grassroots organizers, and city leaders are working together to find solutions to the housing crisis happening in Grand Rapids.
Herman Lee moved to Grand Rapids in search of new opportunities and a chance to start again. After being faced with challenging barriers to affordable and stable housing, Lee shares his journey of finding a place to belong in the southeast community.
After a conversion to Islam, Faheem Nichols began selling oils and scents from his minivan parked on the corner of Eastern and Sherman. Now, 20 years later, what began as Nichols' side business has become West Michigan's first oils and fragrance café.
In Michigan, close to 41,000 people are in prison. Sharae Anderson, a resident of the Madison Square neighborhood, shares how her experience of inhumane treatment at a correctional facility has inspired her to advocate for others.
Racist policies and biases continue to impede neighbors in the Madison Square community who are trying to gain equitable access to economic opportunities and health care. In spite of this, residents are empowering one another to fight the systemic oppression they are faced with every day.
Paula Collier, a resident of the Madison Square neighborhood and host of the Southtown Sustainable Women's Group at Seeds of Promise, is addressing racism by empowering women in her community.
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