Earlier this year, the Dallas community and people all over the country mourned and honored the life and legacy of Bishop Omar Jahwar, who died in March at the age of 47 after a six-month battle with COVID and its complications.
Bishop was a tireless and transformative community advocate and visionary spiritual leader committed to healing divides in our country. For over 20 years, he worked within the prison system and urban communities to combat senseless violence and empower agents of change from within. As founder and CEO of Urban Specialists, he took the model and approach he pioneered in Dallas and trained thousands of individuals on his methodology.
Throughout his life, Bishop modeled how to lead with love and heart. As his obituary outlined, at a very early age, Bishop was focused on planting seeds in others and nurturing and uplifting those around him. He combatted gang violence and toxicity by having the courage to pull people together, navigating complex and sometimes tense division to find areas of alignment. He created proximity to help people see their shared humanity. And he empowered communities to drive the change.
In 2019, Bishop launched Heal America, a movement to fight racial injustice with love and redemption. In June, Calliope Advisors was thrilled to be part of the team that helped bring Heal America to the big stage during the inaugural Juneteenth Unityfest, a virtual concert to celebrate freedom, reflect upon our history, and commit to healing with a willingness to listen, an openness to dialogue, and the courage to speak up and act in the pursuit of justice. The virtual concert was hosted by the musician and philanthropist Robert Randolph and featured performances by Nile Rodgers, Earth Wind and Fire, Dave Matthews Band, and Black Pumas. The concert was featured in Rolling Stone, GQ, Ebony magazine, and Variety. It earned over 1.2M views, 45 community partners, and more than 25 watch parties across the country.