Meet Mattie Jordan-Woods, Advocate for Economic Justice

Mattie Jordan-Woods/Second Wave Media

Mattie Jordan-Woods has been the Executive Director of the Northside Association for Community Development (NACD) for over 30 years. I recently had a chance to chat with her. What follows is an edited version of our conversation.

 

You’ve been the Executive Director of the NACD since 1987. Initially, you were going to stay for two years. Why did you decide to take the position, and what has kept you there for more than three decades?

My mother was always active in her community. She instilled in me to be part of the solution. During the first two weeks at NACD, I felt as if I didn’t know much of anything! Often people come into a leadership position with pre-conceived notions. But the NACD Board told me what they needed from me. They had fought the good fight. I stayed with NACD because I fell in love with the neighborhood. There is a strong sense of pride within this community.

 

Describe yourself in one word or sentence.

Most people say I don’t give up, I’m tenacious.

 

What is the proudest accomplishment you’ve had at the NACD?

I really believe getting the grocery store (Park Street Market) was the biggest success. It engaged community residents and the business community as well. The community partnership made it happen. Without the support of neighborhood residents and the larger community, it wouldn’t have happened. It was a multi-cultural, multi-community engagement.

One lesson we learned from the grocery store project is that if the community owns the land, the original intent of the project remains. It’s a testimony to the power of neighbors working together.

 

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve faced in your tenure with NACD?

There are so many organizations that use poverty statistics of a neighborhood to prove their effectiveness, but never have to prove that they’ve made a real difference. That’s mainly because rarely are people who propose and implement projects actually living in the neighborhood where the projects are being done. So, there’s no sustainability.

My biggest regret has been not ensuring that the (Park Street) grocery store was fully paid for.

Another challenge is addressing environmental racism. An example would be chemical-based industries located within low-income neighborhoods. This affects households who already are dealing with a lack of resources.

 

How has Kalamazoo changed during the five decades that you’ve lived here?

The evolution of different groups making decisions as to what happens in Kalamazoo. And the positive changes in local government and in public safety.

But there’s still inconsistency. For example, residents living in low-income neighborhoods are told there’s a process to implement change, but developers don’t always follow that process. We need to consider how to address the trauma of individuals paying taxes, living in these neighborhoods, for years, being told there’s a process, but some developers with a lot of money go around that process.  Real change comes when there’s an acknowledgment of the inconsistency. It’s one thing to have a meeting and talk about it (inconsistency), it’s another thing to implement change.

Oftentimes in situations like this, it’s the difference between unconscious and conscious bias. Unconscious bias is worse because it takes longer to reverse the deliberate harm it causes.

 

How has Covid-19 impacted the Northside community?

People who are the least likely prepared, technology-wise, were affected the most. They may have paid their taxes, but if the technology recording the payment malfunctioned, they don’t have a way to address the oversight.

Remote learning is another way Covid-19 has impacted the Northside. You can’t really expect heads of low-income households to become teachers overnight. There may be children from three different grade levels living in one home. If you don’t have the money (for additional computers) or adequate space in your home to do remote learning it’s difficult.

On the positive side, Kalamazoo has a lot of (philanthropic) donors who want to make a difference. And foundations have revisited what they will fund to help address these Covid-related challenges.

 

If you had one piece of advice to pass on, what would it be?

Stop making decisions in a box. The people who are going to be affected by a decision should be involved in the decision-making process. NACD provides a way for Northside residents to have an opportunity to speak. And eighty percent of the NACD board members have to be from the Northside neighborhood. 

Is there anything else you'd like to mention?

NACD is not the only organization on the Northside that has resident input and decision-making authority, several resident-led groups in the neighborhood are making a difference physically and through the power of the vote!  I have volunteered at some of their events and have seen the impact they are making in our residents' lives.

Here's another, more extensive interview, focusing on the NACD's recent business development on Kalamazoo's Northside.