The Rust Belt is often described as a vestige of industrial strength. In the simplest terms, these are places where our collective victimhood — from the fall of unions, globalization and a contracting middle class — sometimes builds affinity. But those challenges raise questions, including, how do we survive places that don’t love us back in the..
Upton waiting out redistricting challenges before making re-election decision
U.S. Rep. Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph) says he's going to wait until challenges against Michigan's new political maps play out in court before deciding whether to run for re-election. The Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission approved new district maps in December. Its congressional map puts Upton living in the same district as another Republican incumbent,..
Loving work will always be unrequited, says author Sarah Jaffe
By some estimates we work 80,000 hours during our careers. But it’s not just time. Work signals to other people our importance. It tells them approximately how much we make and how much we are worth. The concept of work has changed in the past, and it seems to be changing now. As the pandemic..
“The Birds Aren’t Real” movement hopes parody can save us from false conspiracies
The Gen Z-fueled "The Birds Aren't Real" movement says birds are all actually government drones sent to surveil us from the skies, the streets and in our own backyards. Sound ridiculous? Well, it is. And that’s the point. "What I find most interesting is it's an attempt to change peoples' beliefs about conspiracy theories by..
Why it was important for Wayne County prosecutor, activist to clear backlog of rape kits
In 2009, 11,000 untested rape kits were found sitting in a Detroit Police Department storage room. Some of them had been there for over 20 years. Last year, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced that the backlog had been cleared. Earlier this week, a local activist and the Wayne County Prosecutor were honored by the..
New book “Let’s Talk About Hard Things” explores how to have difficult conversations during the pandemic and beyond
We’re two years into a pandemic that has killed more than 850,000 Americans and disrupted all facets of life. And the places that so many of us enjoy and turn to for solace — schools, churches, bars — have become more restricted and sometimes scary. All of these changes have taken a toll on our..
Firing of Mark Schlissel was “major development” that helped pave way for $490 million settlement with Anderson survivors, MLive reporter says
Mark Schlissel is no longer the president of the University of Michigan. After seven years, the University of Michigan Board of Regents fired Schlissel this past weekend after an investigation showed that he had an inappropriate relationship with a university employee. This comes just one year before Schlissel was set to retire from the university..
New Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield says “zero tolerance” for corruption
Last year’s municipal elections brought about some big changes in city government in Detroit. That’s especially true on City Council, which has been plagued by corruption probes and criminal charges in recent months and years. On Wednesday, a federal judge sentenced former Councilman Andre Spivey to two years in prison. "I'm looking forward to restoring..
Author Randal Jelks casts Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision forward to 2022 in “Letters to Martin”
Americans have been having some very serious conversations about race, inequality and police brutality in the past two years. I think we often miss King as this radical democrat all the time." —Dr. Randal Maurice Jelks, author of "Letters to Martin" A new book looks at those themes through the lens of democracy, ruminating on..
Liberals need to center race and class in political conversations, says Roosevelt Institute’s CEO and president
After ignoring the topic of race for a long time, there is a new debate emerging in Democratic political circles: How should liberals deal with the topic of race in politics? Should they lean into it, and push hard for not only racial justice but a pervasive racial consciousness, potentially shaping a nation dedicated to..