Detroit

“[Vincent Chin’s death] can’t be the end of the narrative. I need it to be more. I need to know that we have a pulse. This can’t be just where it ends,” Anthony Lee says. “There’s lots of things in the work and a lot of people with a sense of urgency, now more than ever.”

In 1997, Victor Villalobos was inspired after meeting a group of teens from the Royalty Car & Bicycle Club. He shared their concern that the community viewed them as a gang and not as a group of enthusiasts passionate about bikes and cars. Villalobos, a youth minister at the time, and still very involved in the festivities brought the club to a Catholic mass to receive a blessing, allowing other community members to meet them. A neighborhood tradition was born.

In April 2021, the leaders of three dozen major Michigan-based companies denounced a package of Republican-sponsored bills that would curb voting access in Michigan and other states. But since then, some of the companies have resumed funding the campaigns of Republicans responsible for bills that would make it more difficult to vote.

The reversal to phase out enrollment at Sampson-Webber Leadership Academy was one of four changes district officials say they are making to the district’s $700 million plan to renovate, rebuild, or demolish school buildings across the city. The changes come partly in response to community feedback shared during seven meetings in March and April.

Angel Squalls said, “Trees help mitigate storm water runoff and reduce flooding in the city. They help cool our streets and our neighborhoods.” Residents can request a free tree on Detroit’s city website, or reach out to Squalls directly at 313-224-6391.

Focus your inventory. Offer reasons to gather. All of which Janet Webster Jones has done since she opened Source Booksellers in 2013 with a tilt toward Afro-centric subjects and authors and a near-total emphasis on nonfiction that she explains in seven words: “I did it because I like it.”

An analysis of right to counsel ordinances in other states by Stout Risius Ross found dollars invested in the programs bring cost savings to cities that implemented them. Stout has estimated Detroit lost 24,000 residents after an eviction filing in the last decade. In total, Stout estimated the city of Detroit lost $28.7 million in economic value due to out-migration from evictions.

That local residents have come up with the “Remix of the Six” saying on their own is important to Dr. Geneva J. Williams, and demonstrates a buy-in of the corridor’s redevelopment plans. Even the word “remix” is important, its connotations suggesting that what’s happening on 6 Mile is adding to what’s already there, not reinventing it or making it unrecognizable. […] “Six Mile splits Bagley and Fitzgerald, which are overwhelmingly Black neighborhoods. We really wanted this project [7400 W. McNichols] to reflect the neighborhood,” Chase Cantrell says.

Detroiters can expect to see the council deliberate and take action on the creation of the Reparations Task Force by Juneteenth […] Lauren Hood encouraged Detroiters who feel passionate about the issue to get involved in grassroot organizing, community service, and city meetings now.

More than 215,000 Detroiters have criminal records, the city estimates, and a projected 168,000 are eligible to have their record expunged. […] Detroiters do not seek expungement because they don't know they're eligible, they believe they need money for attorney fees, they have had negative experiences with the criminal justice system or the process is overwhelming, Shayla McElroy said. […] For Detroit residents interested in registering to have a criminal conviction considered for expungement, reach out to Project Clean Slate or email projectcleanslate@detroitmi.gov.

“River otters were quite common in southeast Michigan, including the Detroit River, up through the arrival of European explorers and fur traders,” said Gearld P. Wykes. “During the fur trade era, they were much sought after for their fur, along with beaver. Based on historical records, river otters were likely extirpated from the Detroit River in the early 1900s.”

Before joining the city administration, Mallett held executive positions at the Detroit Medical Center, where Duggan was once president and CEO. Duggan later appointed Mallett as Detroit’s deputy mayor in 2020, tasking him with leading the city’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. […] City Council President Mary Sheffield said the city put out “feelers” to gauge interest for the position, though the search was not nationwide.

On Wednesday, activists and residents from across the Detroit community rallied in Highland Park to urge Michigan lawmakers to pass legislation to ensure accountability following power outages. […] Under the proposed legislation, a $5 credit per hour would automatically be applied to customer bills to reimburse residents for losses from food, medicine, and more. After 72 hours without power, that credit would increase to $25 per hour. If customers experience several outages in a six-month span, they would be credited $100. […] In 2021, DTE Energy reported earnings of more than $1 billion.

The Chinatown we think we know was a failed attempt at relocation after the original Chinatown was condemned and demolished for the Lodge Freeway project. […] There should, in the least, be a historic marker on the lawn of the Detroit Public Safety HQ to mark Detroit’s original Chinatown.

Our review found that lax enforcement, strong union protections and internal bias create a perpetuating cycle of limited accountability. […] “The risk to people in the community is very, very high,” said Jonathan Smith. […] Detroit is one of just a handful of major cities whose contract contains all six commonly found provisions that Check the Police, a project of criminal justice reform group Campaign Zero, deems problematic. […] For the bulk of the last 20 years, the Detroit police department has been in a perpetual state of reform, pushing forward with marginal improvements against the weight of its own mismanagement.

Erika Boyd and Kirsten Ussery wanted to help Detroiters explore the world of plant-based flavors. “Our objective was to entice the carnivore,” Boyd said. “Texture and flavor can basically change something that seems alien.” Interestingly enough, most of Detroit Vegan Soul’s customers are meat-eaters.

If an Arabic translation is approved before the final deadline for election materials, then it could make the next election. However, “that timeline exists from the Secretary of State,” Kathy Angerer said, “We don’t create it.”

“I am a citizen here in Highland Park, I was born in Highland Park, so I was basically taught by my ancestors and elders that we help uplift the community,” Mama Shu explains. “So, me as a citizen, I knew I didn’t want to live in blight. I wanted to live in a beautiful neighborhood with beautiful surroundings like other neighborhoods in Michigan.”

“We also know that refugees from Ukraine are expected to come into our care in the coming weeks and months,” Kelli Dobner said. “These individuals and their families need support, especially in their first year.”

The Highland Park Board of Education is overseeing the initiative and has begun plans. […] Community activists and supporters are welcome to the table. […] Slated to potentially open in 2024, the new high school will be a victory for Highland Park.

“Just because we signed treaties didn’t mean we gave up our rights,” Jefferson Ballew IIII from the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians Bear Clan says. “Every time native people show up to be sacred, it’s what scares America the most.”

Basement backups can be prevented by installing a backwater prevention valve. This can be expensive, but the city is offering to help through a program targeting 11 neighborhoods this spring and summer. […] DWSD released a guide with other steps Detroiters can take to prevent basement flooding.

We inherited a food system that was flawed at best and broken at its worst. Yet the solutions most often proposed focus solely on emergency food. […] Long-term solutions can take many forms, like increasing support for sustainable urban agriculture, community grocery stores, and farmers markets. Restaurant workers and food entrepreneurs, especially from marginalized groups, need tangible aid to establish more financial security for themselves and their employees. [… We need] healthier school lunches, food for senior citizens, and more democratized agriculture. We also need to ensure that working people receive living wages that allow them to meet their own needs.

“Detroit is right in sync with what we’re seeing with cities across the country,” Molly Weston Williamson said. […] Ruth Martin noted most municipalities with leave programs offer partial wage replacement and that 100% wage replacement is not common. Scott Benson said Detroit isn’t the first in Michigan to authorize paid parental leave, but he believes the city is near the front of the pack.

Under the new policy, the district will randomly test a pool of 10% to 20% of the district’s population. Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said the decision was based on cost considerations, as well as the shifting opinion from health experts on the current stage of the pandemic.