Each year, a delegation of Veatch Governors leads a site visit to a location around the country to learn about the work of Veatch grantees there. These in-person site visits are an enriching opportunity to learn firsthand about the powerful work that our Veatch grantees are doing around the country.
This year, we were excited to visit our grantees in the Detroit area from Monday, May 20, to Wednesday, May 22. Our delegation included:
• Diane Lombardy, Vice Chair, and Governors Janet Bendowitz and Rebecca Smith
• Rev. Dr. Natalie Fenimore (Ministerial Leadership)
• Joan Minieri, Executive Director; Eileen Jamison, Program Director; and Susan Ahn, Program Associate
Over the course of three days, we immersed ourselves in the Motor City’s rich history and the many organizing efforts in the community and in the labor movement, over time, to build a united future. We were inspired by tales of community empowerment born of decades of economic collapse and money-driven politics controlled by a small circle of wealthy families. Read on for more details on our impactful time spent with Veatch grantees in Detroit.
Taking Back Our Power
During our visit to Detroit, we met with three Veatch grantees who work together to advance community change in Michigan: We The People Michigan, Michigan United, and Detroit Action. The three groups work closely together to empower their communities to fight for systemic change, and they all shared stories of enduring optimism for a brighter future. Art Reyes, Executive Director of We The People, drew from his own experiences of having deep family roots in the labor movement, particularly in the auto industry, to assert that when working-class people organize for power, they can successfully have an impact. He shared examples from his return to his hometown of Flint to organize residents to address the water crisis with long-term solutions. Ken Whittaker, Executive Director of Michigan United, emphasized the significance of transforming private shame into public power, sharing his own story of losing his home and connecting it to his organization’s public fight against home foreclosures long plaguing thousands of Detroiters. Similarly, Detroit Action is building a future for all Detroiters, many of whom remain left behind by the redevelopment of downtown and the forces of gentrification.
Breaking Bread
On our second evening in Detroit, we hosted a dinner in Downtown Detroit with representatives from the three organizations. They engaged in spirited conversation with us on the significance of Michigan and the needs and aspirations of its residents, as well as the civic engagement landscape. It was a testament to their closeknit relationships with each other that the conversation flowed seamlessly and dynamically. They also expressed gratitude for Veatch’s support of their organizations’ deep, long-term, relational community organizing as opposed to short-term project funding for voter mobilization, which is a more common funding strategy for philanthropy.
Radical Connection in a Time of Isolation
A common theme that our grantee partners emphasized was the importance of community, specifically in the form of a political home. Never has this been more important than now, when people are feeling isolated and powerless in the face of moneyed politics designed to exploit and extract. To combat this, organizations such as our Michigan grantees are building community, not just among Michiganders but with other organizations around the country. In particular, we learned that Detroit Action’s vision of a hopeful future has been directly informed by collaborations with Veatch grantees in New York. They spoke to learning about climate change organizing from Long Island-based grantee New York Communities Organizing Fund; sending staff to train with VOCAL-NY in Brooklyn; and drawing statewide policy campaign support from Community Voices Heard.
The Labor Movement as Seen through Art
The site visit included a cultural experience: a visit to the renowned Detroit Institute of Arts, where we took in the majesty of artist Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry Murals, which capture the essence of Detroit as a hub for the automobile industry and the intense, often brutal, experience of workers as they built cars in factories under the watchful eyes of assembly line managers and company owners. The experience alluded also to Michigan’s rich labor history, one that includes the founding of the United Auto Workers and the Flint Sit Down Strike. These incidents cemented Detroit as a formidable hub for the labor movement. The Veatch Program continues to play an important role in supporting this movement, not just in Michigan but nationwide, as it has become ever more important as workers across industries step up their campaigns for good wages and safe working conditions.
Part of the North Wall of Rivera’s Detroit Industry Murals. The fresco depicts the laborious production of the V-8 engine of the 1932 Ford on the assembly line.
Veatch: The Pied Piper of Organizing
We met with Kevin Ryan, a Senior Program Officer at the Ford Foundation. Formerly a longtime partner of Veatch based at the New York Foundation, Kevin now leads the Ford Foundation’s grantmaking in Detroit, focusing on housing and community development, civic engagement, and youth opportunities. He helped us understand the historical and political context that informs the work of the community organizations that both Ford and the Veatch Program fund in Detroit and statewide. Kevin also shared with us that Veatch is considered “the pied piper of organizing,” a steadfast advocate for the power of organizing in achieving systemic changes that better the lives of everyone. Veatch leadership in grantmaking for social justice organizing led by people who are most impacted by inequity was one theme that we were able to see and reflect on during our time in Detroit.
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UU Values in Action
As we concluded the site visit, we reflected on the power of spending time with grantees and partners on the ground and the joy of being and learning with one another. Every year the Veatch Governors’ site visit shows us how Veatch is putting UU values into action through its grantmaking and building a better future for us all. It was a powerful reminder of why this work matters in the world, and we are excited to share our learnings with the congregation.