Urban League, Community Members Take Part in First-Ever Redemption Walk in Grand Rapids

Community members highlighting new beginnings Saturday afternoon (June 6th) during the first annual Redemption Walk in Grand Rapids.

The event, organized by the Urban League of West Michigan (Grand Rapids, MI) and Cure Violence, brought residents together to publicly represent growth, accountability and positive change.

“A lot of members of our community, including myself, made very poor choices and decisions in the past,” said Rufus Will Granderson, event organizer and program manager of trauma and informed care with Cure Violence.

Organizers said the walk was designed to acknowledge past mistakes while celebrating those who have worked to turn their lives around.

“We want to make a public declaration of our ownership over our past and our present,” Granderson said. “We want to say that we’ll no longer be held by our past mistakes and that we’re moving positively in the future.”

Participants walked through the neighborhood carrying a message of redemption, hope, and atonement.

“Redemption means that I’m free indeed, and I’m going to move forward. And nobody owns me. My past doesn’t own me. Nobody owns me. This is for me. Right now, I’m moving forward,” Granderson said.

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