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While completing his doctoral studies at Eastern Michigan University, Dr. Rod Wallace had a vision to give back to his community through music. From there, he partnered with Ypsilanti-based Grove Studios and Ann Arbor-based Leon Speakers to create The Amplify Project, which is now in its fourth season. Dr. Wallace joins Rylee Barnsdale to talk about the work they are doing to lift the voices of African American musicians in Washtenaw County.
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The City of Ypsilanti has approved giving FedUp Ministries $50,000 to help serve the less fortunate, but it took a little while to get there. WEMU’s Kevin Meerschaert reports.
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Right now, the waiting list for a space at the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County’s women’s shelter goes about 50-deep. The wait time for those women averages about seven months. That’s why the Shelter Association is undertaking a women’s shelter expansion initiative. WEMU's David Fair spoke with the association’s development director, Sarah Paspal-Jasinski, about the effort to expand capacity by 50%.
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The Rodeo is coming to Eastern Michigan University—the annual Bike Rodeo, that is! EMU will host its 7th annual Bike Rodeo on Saturday, June 15th. The event aims to promote bike safety for youngsters and create community engagement between kids and police officers. In addition to riding and learning from EMU’s bicycle officers, the free, family-friendly event provides free bicycle safety checks, helmets and bicycle locks. EMU Police Sgt. Joseph Torres joins WEMU's David Fair to discuss what’s in it for area kids and families and what the officers get out of the interactions.
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Racism exists, and it is called a lot of things. One of the more under-represented ways it is characterized is as a public health crisis. All of the evidence shows that is right on target. WEMU's David Fair is joined by the Washtenaw County Health Department's health equity manager, Charyln VanDeventer. She tells us how and where racism shows up as a public health crisis and what's being done about it in our community.
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There are underserved portions of our community, and among them are newcomers to Washtenaw County. Immigrants make up an important part of the area's workforce but often struggle to gain a stable foundation on which to build a new life in our country and in our county. WEMU's David Fair talked about the efforts to welcome and support immigrants with Shrina Eadeh of Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County.
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Washtenaw County has opened a new Senior Café in Manchester. As WEMU’s Kevin Meerschaert reports, it has been a years-long effort to help those in a long-underserved area.
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Acts of gun violence and deaths have reached epidemic levels throughout the United States. The group Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America is focused on reducing gun violence. Rylee Barnsdale speaks with Washtenaw County's chapter lead, Rochelle Igrisan, about the work they are doing in Washtenaw County and to highlight some upcoming events.
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There is growing support for an alternative to police response to a mental health crisis in the community. The question is: Can it be a safer and more effective tool in dealing with such incidents for the person involved and the community at large? Care-Based Safety is an organization pushing for such operations in Washtenaw County, Southeast Michigan and beyond. The organization's co-director of culture and operations, Liz Kennedy, talks to WEMU's David Fair about why she believes it could and would work in our community.
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As housing and rent costs continue to soar across the country, developers in Ypsilanti are working to address a shortage of affordable new units – and, in one case, open the door to home ownership for residents. City officials are working to ensure that developers not only have sufficient funding, but that their homes and communities meet Ypsi residents’ needs. Rylee Barnsdale talks to Michael Appel from Avalon Housing in Ann Arbor about the development projects that are expected to start this summer.