Michiana Social Justice Coalition to hold virtual event today
ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. – The Michiana Justice Social Coalition is holding its fifth annual People’s Inauguration event, where they engage with the community members on issues happening in the community.
The topic this year is “Making Michiana a restorative community and the event is going virtual this time around. The community-wide event will divide participants into five breakout sessions, where they’ll have conversations and engage with various organizations in the community.
“We see restorative justice as a really important mechanism for us people to move forward, together as a community,” said Madeline Higgins, a member of Michiana Social Justice Coalition. “So really, we want to talk about how we treat each other, and what happens when harm occurs, what we do once that harm happens, and then how will we repair this harm.”
In previous years, the event is held in-person with over 300 people participating in conversations and networking with community members. This year, due to COVID-19 the event will be held via zoom. Participants will be divided into five breakout sessions and will focus on issues related to mental health, policing and violence, and economic impact and policy that will center on house bills in the state of Indiana. Some topics from the house bills will include immigration, driver’s license for undocumented immigrants, and access to education.
The development director for La Casa De Amistad Juan Constantino said he hopes people become more aware of issues in their community.
“We can always use more advocates for some of the pressings issues in our community, and many times we’re longing for ways to make an impact. And this is one of those ways where you can get involved, get engaged, learn some more, and hopefully make an impact right here in our community,” Constantino said.
Go to http://go.iu.edu/PI5 to register for the People’s Inauguration: Making Michiana a Restorative Community event. The event starts at 3 p.m. on Jan. 24.
Some organizations who are co-sponsoring the event include:
La Casa De Amistad
Moms Demand Action
Indiana University South Bend Civil Rights Heritage Center
Faith in Indiana
The Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley
Islamic Society of Michiana