Dearest Detroit Justice Center Community,
Nationally, 2024 was an unpredictable year with a number of unprecedented turns. The year at DJC was not nearly so chaotic, though we did experience highs and lows. We celebrated our single largest donation to date in the Yield Giving Award, which granted us $2 million in unrestricted funds. This funding afforded us the ability to continue operating at pace while we determined a sustainable rate for future growth. In the spirit of transitional leadership, we said goodbye to a number of our beloved staff, many of whom had been at DJC since its earliest days, as they moved on to new and powerful pursuits. We also added some new faces to our team, and we’ve been thrilled by their creativity and enthusiasm.
I was heartbroken by the police killing of Ryan Gainer, an autistic Black teenager in California in March 2024. The tragedy reminded me so much of the dangers my own brother has faced that I did something vulnerable and wrote an op-ed about my brother and how autistic people deserve better than being met with armed law enforcement when they are in crisis. The essay was published in Teen Vogue, and the response has been remarkable. When I took on the role of Executive Director, I didn’t anticipate that it would mean sharing something so personal with millions of readers, but one of the things 2024 brought into focus is the inseparability of the personal and the political.
As we moved through our sixth year in operation, I was not the only member of DJC on a national stage. Our Economic Equity team attended the Midwest Community Land Trust Conference and shared the work of Detroit’s burgeoning CLT movement. Our Community Legal Advocates also created a curriculum based on their work to be shared with our partners at three historically Black universities in Texas, North
Carolina, and Washington, D.C. At home, we celebrated the official opening of the LOVE Building with a week of activities that saw hundreds of people tour our new offices. We hosted a powerful screening of the documentary Coldwater Kitchen, complete with a meal catered by Chef Dink, of Green Mile Grille, who is featured in the film. We closed out the year with our Mental Wellness Partner Convening, where we were able to collectively address the mental health and harm reduction needs of our community.
We accomplished a great deal this year while doing a great deal of internal reflection in light of the shifting political landscape, where we’ve seen a rollback on progress and a condemnation of diversity, equity, and inclusion. As we reminded our followers after the election, we remain as committed as ever to the work of dismantling racial and economic oppression and encouraging the freedom dreams of those negatively impacted by the criminal legal system. We see our work as part of an intergenerational struggle, meaning that we are dedicated to leaving a better world for those who come after us. As our organization continues to broaden the reach of our work, we are sure that we will continue to attract more collaborators who are dedicated to building just cities alongside us everywhere we find ourselves.
In solidarity, Nancy A. Parker