Established in 1999, the Richmond Improvement Association (A Faith Based Organization) was founded in the spirit of clergy members coming together similar to what took place back in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955. The organizing in Montogomery centered on the mistreatment of Negro citizens by the community’s local bus company. Montgomery’s Negro clergy rallied support across denominational lines, around a specific issue and formed the Montgomery Improvement Association headed by the late Martin Luther King Jr. Hence, the Richmond Improvement Asssociation (RIA) was formed in the same spirit of organizing clergy members across denominational lines around specific community issues in Richmond, California.
"Reading about the Montgomery Improvement Association on the internet was the inspirartion that drove me to start this wonderful faith-based organization. The MIA was the best model I could find to rally the clergy here in Richmond to help revitalize and restore hope to our fractured community," says Reverend Andre Shumake.
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