The story actually begins in 1863. It was on January 1st of that year that the Emancipation Proclamation to abolish slavery was enacted by President Abraham Lincoln. It wasn’t as easy as flipping a switch. It would be one of many incidents in America where dragging the feet of justice would become a dance move as popular as the Cha Cha Slide. One example is the desegregation of American schools. While the 1954 Supreme Court ruled to eliminate segregated schools, actions to make it happen would “slide” into practice across the nation. In Kalamazoo, Michigan (not Birmingham, Alabama) it wasn’t until May 6, 1971, that Kalamazoo’s Board of Education officially desegregated its schools. That’s almost 20 years AFTER the ruling by the highest court of the land!
What is Juneteenth and why is the celebration significant? READ MORE!
Tag: #BlackLivesMatter
City Manager Outlines Action Steps for KDPS
At the June 15 City Commission meeting, Kalamazoo City Manager Jim Ritsema discussed a series of action steps that the City Administration and the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety will begin immediately in response to the events which occurred in Kalamazoo May 30 through June 2. SEE COMPLETE ACTION PLAN HERE!
LIVE Community Conversation Planned on Racial Unrest
The Lewis Walker Institute will host a series of Zoom discussions with leaders in our community and nation to address the current events surrounding George Floyd’s death and its aftermath. READ MORE!
I Am Done Running
I would sprint 30 minutes nonstop from there to Kings Plaza Shopping Center dodging bottles, garbage cans, baseball bats, and a torrential downfall of “Nigger this and Nigger that” just to make it home safely. And then, I would immediately worry about having to navigate those same streets again the next day. This was a year or two before Yusuf Hawkins, a 16-year-old black teen, who had gone to inquire about a used car, was chased and murdered by a white mob in Bensonhurst. Already, my mother had warned me about going alone into Canarsie, Brighton Beach, Bay Ridge, and Sheepshead Bay, but somehow, she forgot to mention Ralph and K. READ MORE!