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Michigan Republicans clash over Trump’s future in the party
An ongoing series about extremism and the radicalization of the Michigan Republican Party • Part 1: How a Michigan couple radicalized the state’s GOP and emboldened insurrectionists • Part 2: White angst keeps Trumpism alive in Macomb County • Part 3: Behind the GOP plot to restrict voting access in Michigan • Part 4: Michigan…
Detroit City Council revamps towing practices amid FBI investigation
The Detroit City Council unanimously approved an ordinance Tuesday aimed at protecting Detroiters from predatory towing practices. The vote comes amid an ongoing FBI investigation, called Operation Northern Hook, that focuses on ties between at least three council members and the towing industry. Council members Scott Benson and Janeé Ayers, whose homes and offices were…
Budweiser launches limited edition tallboys infused with the ‘sounds of Detroit’
If you’re a plant parent then you’re probably used to the idea of music affecting your plants’ mood, and even making them bloom a little different. Now imagine that same concept, but make it beer. Budweiser announced the limited release of their Detroit Music tallboys, like regular Budweiser tallboys but infused with the sounds that…
Activists call on Biden to shut down Canadian oil company’s Line 5 pipeline in Michigan
A coalition of environmental activists called on President Joe Biden to weigh in on the ongoing fight to decommission Line 5, Canadian oil company Enbridge’s aging oil and gas pipeline in Michigan’s Great Lakes. The coalition, which includes groups like Clean Water Action, Oil and Water Don’t Mix, the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, and…
New redistricting maps would wipe out all majority-Black districts in Michigan, Sen. Hollier says
Michigan would lose all 17 majority-Black legislative districts under new maps drawn up by the state’s redistricting panel, according to Sen. Adam Hollier, D-Detroit. The Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, which includes four Democrats, four Republicans, and five independents, advanced the newly drawn maps for state Senate and House districts on Monday. The commission was…
Former Nike designer plans to reopen Michigan’s only HBCU
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) have seen a steady increase in interest and enrollment since 2017, which many have directly correlated with the state of politics and the election of President Donald Trump. Detroit once was home to its own HBCU, located on Detroit’s west side. The Lewis College of Business was founded in…
Mayor Duggan (reluctantly) endorses Gabriela Santiago-Romero in Detroit City Council District 6 race
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan has never publicly endorsed a candidate for City Council. That changed Monday, with Duggan’s endorsement of District 6 candidate (and former Metro Times intern) Gabriela Santiago-Romero, who is running against Hector Santiago for Raquel Castañeda-Lopez’s soon-to-be-vacated seat. As the Detroit Free Press points out, Duggan made the endorsement somewhat reluctantly. It…
Activists urge Detroit to increase inclusion of indigenous communities
Indigenous activists are calling on Detroit leaders to address historical inequities and honor the original people who were displaced from the city. The Detroit Indigenous Peoples Alliance (DIPA) made the demands while gathered in front of the Spirit of Detroit statue on Woodward on Indigenous People’s Day on Monday. “This place here is the traditional…
Mayor Duggan calls for new animal shelter at former incinerator site
Mayor Mike Duggan has a simple solution for solving the overcrowding problem at Detroit’s animal care and control facility — build a larger building. Mayor Duggan presented his plans to Detroit city council for approval of the new $5 million shelter that will allow twice as many kennels and, according to him, would improve the…
Keto Strong Reviews Is This Dietary Support Really Worth Trying This Year
Keto Strong is a dietary ketogenic regimen which helps you to cut down the extra body fat from the body that helps in rapid and normal weight loss. This supplement will work on the formula of ketosis which will help you to maintain your body as before you are. This supplement contains the BHB Ketones…
Cannabis use could make COVID-19 breakthroughs more likely, according to study. More data is needed.
Last week, a new study published in the World Psychiatry journal found that people diagnosed with substance abuse disorder had an elevated risk of getting COVID-19, despite being vaccinated. The study, led by researchers at the National Institute of Health’s National Institute on Drug Abuse, found so-called “breakthrough” infections occurred in about 3.6% of vaccinated…
Judge upholds MSU’s vaccine mandate against a professor who cited natural immunity
A federal judge has ruled against a Michigan State University employee who claimed in a lawsuit that the school’s vaccine policy is unconstitutional and irrational because she already has “robust immunity” after recovering from a COVID-19 infection. Jeanna Norris, a supervisory administrative associate and fiscal officer at MSU, asked the court to block the vaccine…
Whitmer joins Biden in declaring Oct. 11 ‘Indigenous Peoples’ Day’
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has joined a growing chorus of elected officials acknowledging Oct. 11 as Indigenous People’s Day. “Today is a day of remembrance, reflection, and celebration of the Indigenous peoples, including those who call Michigan home,” Whitmer said in a statement. “The success of tribal communities is inextricably linked to Michigan’s success, and…
Opinion: Hamtramck city attorney comments about disabled man is example of systemic ableism
Dessa Cosma is the executive director of Detroit Disability Power. Detroit Disability Power’s mission is to leverage and build the organizing and political power of the disability community to ensure the full inclusion of people with disabilities in metro Detroit. I was appalled by the recent news exposing the horrifying behavior by James Allen, Sr.,…
Detroit’s Motown Museum unveils plans for new plaza
Detroit’s Motown Museum continues its planned multimillion-dollar expansion, announcing a new plan for an outdoor plaza. According to a press release sent Sunday, the plaza design is “inspired by a time when young Motown acts like Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, the Supremes, The Temptations, The Four Tops and so many others, would hang out…
Detroit developer says trees are key in Core City projects, and embraces the space
When developer Phillip Kafka first started buying property along Grand River Avenue near Detroit’s Core City neighborhood about a decade ago, what is now dubbed Core City Park was a garbage-ridden, overgrown parking lot surrounded mostly by abandoned buildings. Once Kafka’s team started digging, they discovered an old, razed firehouse once stood here; an excavated…
Redevelopment projects get brownfield funding to clean up contaminated sites in Detroit
The state of Michigan announced Friday that it’s awarding $3.6 million in brownfield grants for the redevelopment of four contaminated and abandoned industrial sites in Detroit. The plans include a large, multi-tenant industrial facility at the former Cadillac Stamping Plant, the renovation of blighted buildings on the city’s east side for apartments, a restaurant, retail…
Painting by Detroit artist Tylonn Sawyer is first work purchased from Black art acquisition fund for DIA
A painting by Detroit artist Tylonn Sawyer is the first work acquired by a fund established in 2020 to acquire African American art for the Detroit Institute of Arts’ permanent collection. The DIA’s Founders Junior Council selected Sawyer’s “White on White: Stone Mountain” as the first work acquired through the African-American Art Acquisition Fund. The…
Michigan abandons plan to ban flavored vaping products in favor of new approach
Michigan has abruptly abandoned its two-year effort to ban the sale of flavored nicotine vaping products and now plans to take a different approach to address youth vaping, which has sharply declined. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) withdrew rules this week that were aimed at permanently banning the sale and distribution…
DIA celebrates the Black, beautiful photography of Kwame Brathwaite
“Black is Beautiful” has always been more than a cultural catchphrase. Before it was a common adage used as a compliment within the Black community, it was a ’60s movement. It was a phrase sprouted in rebellion that stands right next to “Black Power” in its Black cultural significance. Perhaps no one is more responsible…
COVID-19 cases in K-12 schools now account for more than half of Michigan’s outbreaks
COVID-19 cases in K-12 schools accounted for 56% of all recorded new outbreaks in Michigan last week, according to state health department data reported by the Detroit Free Press. As a result, more than 375 children under 12 were infected each day. And while COVID-19 cases have been dropping in the U.S. for the past…
Michigan community faces water crisis, calls for lead pipe replacement
As Congress continues to negotiate infrastructure and social safety-net bills, advocates for environmental justice say measures like lead-pipe replacement cannot wait. Drinking-water systems for more than nine million homes across the country contain lead pipes, with Black, brown and low-income communities disproportionately affected. Mustafa Santiago Ali, vice president of environmental justice, climate and community revitalization…
Blackground Records 2.0 to celebrate Aaliyah’s life with Detroit event
It’s not a secret that Aaliyah was a refreshing beacon of light no matter how dark and cruel the music industry was for her. The talented R&B star from Detroit died at age 22 in a plane crash in 2001. Like writer Imani Mixon wrote in a recent Metro Times cover story: For other Black…
Black realtor and his clients, mistaken for squatters, were handcuffed at gunpoint at home in West Michigan, lawsuit says
A Black realtor was showing a vacant house to a prospective buyer and his teenage son, who are also Black, when police in West Michigan ordered them out of the home at gunpoint, handcuffed them, and forced them into the back of a squad car, according to a recent lawsuit. Six officers were dispatched to…
After 10 years, Red Bull Arts Detroit will host its final exhibition
Red Bull Arts Detroit, the cavernous art exhibition space in an old Eastern Market brewery, is ending its 10-year run. But before it closes, the gallery, formerly known as the Red Bull House of Arts, will host one final art exhibition with an opening reception on Friday — and refreshments provided by its corporate sponsor,…
Give Thanks Bakery opens second location in Detroit’s Midtown
There are people who thank the coffee gods every morning for making their day tolerable, and now Detroiters will be able to give more thanks to the coffee and pastry heavens as Rochester’s Give Thanks Bakery has opened its second location in Midtown. The bakery is the first tenant in the newly renovated first floor…
ACLU calls for Justice Department to investigate Taylor Police Department’s ‘culture of cruelty’
The ACLU of Michigan is calling on the Justice Department to launch an investigation into the Taylor Police Department following “an ongoing pattern and practice” of excessive force and racial discrimination. In a 27-page letter to the Justice Department, the ACLU cites 20 instances of “alleged and documented acts of unconditional, extreme violence committed by…
Red Hot Chili Peppers are coming to Detroit next year with the Strokes and Thundercat, you know, as a treat
Oh, how we’ve waited to be “standing in line to see the show tonight, and there’s a light, a heavy glow.” As we look to 2022 — and the many tours that have been scheduled for next year — it almost feels like we’re on the “Otherside” of the pandemic (though not really.) Who will…
Macomb County announces its first-ever Pride Festival in downtown Mount Clemens
Macomb County — the county that basically handed former President Donald T*ump the 2016 election — is finally seeing rainbows. Macomb County announced that it will host its inaugural, grassroots Pride Festival to celebrate its LGBTQAI+ community Friday, Oct. 15 through Sunday, Oct. 17 in downtown Mount Clemens. The festival, which is described in a…
Michigan Senate Republicans pass voter ID law ‘on steroids’
The Republican-controlled Michigan Senate on Wednesday approved a controversial bill that would impose new restrictions on voting, but Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has pledged to veto any measure that makes it more difficult to vote. The Senate voted along party lines, 20-15, to implement strict voter ID requirements and prohibit election officials from sending unsolicited absentee…
Metro Detroit bar, with one of the best burgers in America, is up for sale
For 80 years, Miller’s Bar has been a staple in Dearborn, serving burgers on wax paper and using the honor system for payment. Now, the small bar that was once listed as one of the best burgers in America is up for sale as the owners, brothers Dennis and Mark Miller, are looking to retire.…
Nelly and Ludacris will warm up Detroit’s Fox Theatre this December for 105.1 Bounce’s Holiday Heat
The year is 2003, you’re wearing your favorite throwback NBA jersey or jersey dress and crisp, white Air Force Ones (sorry Gen-Z, these are clean and creaseless). Nelly’s “Shake Ya Tailfeather” comes across your Sony boombox and you hit your best chickenhead. Those days are long gone, but you can dust off your G-shock and…
Why Detroit needs democracy
On a recent Friday, in the heart of Detroit’s New Center neighborhood, a crowd of roughly 50 people gather in a lot one block east of Pallister Park, just outside of the Fisher Building’s long shadow. Made up of dedicated activists and community members, the group was responding to the Detroit People’s Platform’s call for…
Biden endorses Duggan for a third term in chummy announcement
President Joe Biden endorsed Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan for a third term, calling him “one of the best mayors in America.” Duggan is running against Anthony Adams in the Nov. 2 election. “I know him. I trust him,” Biden said in a statement Wednesday. “I’ve watched him help lift Detroit off its back by betting…
Why is so much weed being smuggled from Canada, where it’s legal, to Michigan, where it’s also legal?
Marijuana was legalized for recreational use in both Michigan and Canada in 2018. Yet seizures of illegal pot at the U.S.-Canada border have increased sevenfold since then, according to Customs and Border Protection officials and reported by MLive. This year alone, officials have seized nearly 15,000 pounds of marijuana at the Michigan border, compared to…
Sportsman’s Pizza emerges as a winner in metro Detroit’s crowded field
Metro Detroit is the land of 1 million pizza shops and the increasingly crowded field makes it difficult for new stores to stand out, or for old favorites to protect their turf. Most commonly, restaurants that are new to the game are corporatized or focus on any number of pizza phylum — Detroit-style, NY-style, Neapolitan…
Echo Fest, Indigenous Peoples Day, Cider in the City, and more things to do in metro Detroit this week
Beetlejuice shadowcast with the Goblin King players Friday, 10/8-Saturday, 10/9: If you identify as someone who is strange and unusual, find that Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O!” lifts you up and/or you cannot decide whether Michael Keaton’s portrayal of a crusty, sarcastic, greasy-haired demon was disgusting or kind of sexy, then it might be showtime, baby. To…
Nothing is off limits for Bianca Del Rio, drag’s hurricane of hate
You don’t need a cock to be cocky nor a cunt to be cunty, but when it comes to “the Joan Rivers of the drag world,” Bianca Del Rio, well, she’s got an asshole at both ends. And boy, is she full of shit. Too harsh? Not for the acidic, dimple-cheeked, black and yellow-obsessed self-described…
I can’t stop sexting my ex
I’m a cis woman. I had a quasi-relationship with a man last year that only lasted a couple of months. The sex was great, and sexting was always a big part of our connection. Since the breakup, we’ve fluctuated between staying in touch and radio silence, sometimes going months without speaking. During our periods of…
Free Will Astrology (Oct. 6-12)
ARIES: March 21 – April 19: Aries poet Anna Kamieska said her soul didn’t emanate light. It was filled with “bright darkness.” I suspect that description may apply to you in the coming weeks. Bright darkness will be one of your primary qualities. And that’s a good thing! You may not be a beacon of…
ICYMI: Justice for Aaliyah, marching for abortion rights, that time the White Stripes played at the DIA, and more
Last week, a jury in the Eastern District of New York convicted singer R. Kelly of eight counts of sex trafficking and one of racketeering, which included the charge that Kelly had a government employee bribed to allow him to marry the late Detroit star Aaliyah in 1994 when she was just 15. Surviving R.…
No, the pandemic isn’t the new normal
It’s been a year and a half since the pandemic took its first life. As cases, hospitalizations, and deaths quickly mounted through the fateful spring of 2020, many of us settled into a new “pandemic normal.” Nearly 700,000 American lives later, it sometimes feels like we haven’t made progress at all. After all, more than…
Our democracy is failing. Here’s how we can (but probably won’t) fix it.
In a survey taken this summer by the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, 83% of Trump voters agreed with this statement: “There are many radical, immoral people trying to ruin things; our society ought to stop them.” More than four in five Trump voters also believed that “Our country needs a powerful leader in…
