Detroit

Racial Equity, Community Engagement and Leadership Development

Grassroots community organizers – often the people most directly affected by racism and injustice – are leading innovative and necessary solutions to Detroit’s problems. We ground our grantmaking approach in ensuring organizations led by people of color have what they need to address structural racism as it intersects with other systems of inequality. 

Changing the Detroit narrative: Detroit’s people are the city’s best assets

Improving systemic social issues involves shifting perceptions and beliefs by changing the narrative. Detroit’s story needs to be told using asset-based, empowering narratives highlighting the people who have always loved the city and kept going through every challenge. This is the story of the real Detroit moving into an equitable future.

To change the Detroit narrative, we invest in:

• Developing leaders who bring together people and organizations addressing issues of structural racism across the arts and media, community development, education, environment, food security, health care and housing.
• Building communications, advocacy and storytelling capacity among organizations.
• Approaches to training and discussion where participants identify long-standing impediments caused by structural racism.
• Building an understanding of racial equity to promote change