In the weeks since the murder of George Floyd at the hands of police officers, we have witnessed the faultline of racism crack open across the country with a force many of us have never seen in our lifetimes. Protests that started in the name of Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery have given way to demands to defund police, change the way we memorialize history, and reinvest in Black communities – policy transformations that are being taken seriously at every level of government.

Many of us have marched, donated, and educated. Yet when the protests wane and streets empty, what do we do? How can we continue to raise the banner of affirming the value of Black life?

The Muslim Unity Center Youth Group calls on the Unity community to contribute to DREAM of Detroit.

DREAM is a local organization combining organizing with housing and land development to build and empower a healthy, historic Black Muslim neighborhood on the Westside of Detroit. Many Unity Center members have been involved in clean-up days and volunteering to that end. But we want to build a stronger relationship.

DREAM has been doing this work for nearly 10 years, and we want to ensure that it survives long past the next decade – which is why our community’s support is vital.

Unity with DREAM in this Moment

DREAM serves a 10-block area near and around the Muslim Center Mosque and Community Center on West Davison. In providing housing, grocery services, financial training, and more for residents, it has been successful in revitalizing a neighborhood that had been written off by many. In addition to this local work, DREAM strives to bridge the gap between Detroit Muslims and suburban communities. In one of the poorest zip codes in Detroit, and one of the most segregated metropolitan areas in the country, DREAM gives voice to a vision we can all celebrate.

An oft-repeated command regarding charity in the Quran and sunnah is to care for our neighbors. We ought to fulfill this duty by fully supporting our Black Muslim sisters and brothers next door to us. Marches, protests, and dialogues are necessary. But we attend one of the wealthiest mosques in metro Detroit. Can we help DREAM grow bigger?

More about DREAM of Detroit

DREAM, as the startup nonprofit Dream of Detroit is often called, originally stood for a "Detroit Revival Engaging American Muslims.” We're a Muslim-led initiative that's combining community organizing with strategic housing and land development to revitalize our neighborhood around the Muslim Center of Detroit Mosque and Community Center.

Our neighborhood on the Westside of Detroit was hit especially hard by the shrinking auto industry and by the housing crash of 2008. Now, through hard work and physical labor, community outreach, and an extensive group of volunteers, we've started to carve out a unique role in rebuilding this community and fostering its growth.

DREAM now regularly hosts or coordinates several projects and programs to help our overall goal of building a thriving neighborhood and community:

• Neighborhood Clean-up Days
• Vacant Home Board-up Days
• Re-Entry Home
• Community Potlucks
• Islamic Financial Seminars
• Neighborhood Open Houses
• Community Organizing Workshops
• Entrepreneur Training Programs
• Establishing an Artists in Residence Program

To learn more about our work or sign up to get involved, visit: dreamofdetroit.org

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