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Keith memorialized as historic jurist and ‘amazing man’
Hundreds of mourners attended a three-hour funeral service for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Damon J. Keith on Monday at Hartford Memorial Baptist Church in northwest Detroit. Keith died on April 28 at age 96. The Detroit native was appointed as a U.S. district judge by President Lyndon Johnson in October 1967. President Jimmy Carter […]
Levin, Moolenaar unveil bill stopping deportation of Iraqi nationals
U.S. Andy Levin (D-Bloomfield Twp.) and U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Midland) on Friday announced that they will introduce a bill on Tuesday halting the detainment and deportation of Iraqi nationals who have orders for removal. They unveiled the legislation at a press conference attended by U.S. Reps. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly) and Haley Stevens (D-Rochester Hills) […]
Klobuchar pledges infrastructure support during Detroit speech
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) on Friday touted her support for improving the nation’s infrastructure, support for Obamacare and criminal justice reform during her first campaign visit to Michigan since announcing her candidacy for president. “I’m sure you are sick and tired of having all the infrastructure in the country on the back of […]
Duggan asks for volunteers to combat Detroit flooding
As Detroit is facing even more rain this week amidst flooding, Mayor Mike Duggan has put out the call for people to help their neighbors. Duggan asked for volunteers to sign up to help fill and place thousands of bags of sand along key sections of the seawall to effectively raise their height. The city […]
Detroit rally for undocumented immigrant rights draws 500
Five hundred people marched on Wednesday along West Vernor Highway in Southwest Detroit to demand driver’s licenses for all — including undocumented immigrants. Protests also were held in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. Movimiento Cosecha, which sponsored the event, is a national movement fighting “for permanent protection, dignity and respect for all 11 million undocumented immigrants […]
Keith’s civil liberties and civil rights legacy lives on
“I don’t scare easily,” Damon J. Keith declared once about threats to his life stemming from his ruling in the seminal 1970 Pontiac public schools integration case. His decision that African American and white students should attend schools together prompted intense pushback from some — including the Ku Klux Klan. Keith’s decades-long tenure as a […]
Judge Damon Keith dies at 96, remembered as ‘crusader for civil rights’
Updated, 2:10 p.m. with comments from Gov. Whitmer and others: Damon J. Keith, the legendary federal judge from Detroit, has died at age 96. An announcement was made on Sunday at Hartford Memorial Baptist Church where he has attended services for the last several years. His passing also was confirmed by his family. Keith was […]
Stevens, Benson talk voting rights with high schoolers
U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Rochester) held a roundtable discussion Tuesday on voting with some Michiganders who aren’t even eligible to cast a ballot. She was joined by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Voters Not Politicians Executive Director Nancy Wang and American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan voting rights strategist Sharon Dolente. Their audience in […]
Peters taps campaign manager as he gears up for 2020
U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Twp.) already raised almost $2 million in the first quarter for his 2020 re-election bid and now he’s hired Dan Farough as his campaign manager. Peters was first elected in 2014 for an open seat, as U.S. Sen. Carl Levin (D-Detroit) retired. Peters defeated Republican former Secretary of State Terri […]
Tlaib, Carter thump auto insurance credit scoring
Detroit resident Dotti Sharp has endured her auto insurance rates shooting up from about $160 a month three years ago to more than $200 a month today. “It keeps rising up,” Sharp said on Monday. “I have no tickets. No accidents. So why does it keep going up?” She joined two of her legislators during […]
Tlaib responds to death threat, says she must ‘outwork the hate’
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) talked to the Michigan Advance on Monday about a death threat she received from a Florida man last week and the precautions police are taking. As reported by the Advance, Tlaib and two Democratic presidential candidates, U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), received threatening voicemails […]
Manoogian condemns arrests, opposes Chaldean deportations
State Rep. Mari Manoogian (D-Birmingham) on Wednesday called on House colleagues to formally oppose the mass deportation of Chaldeans living in Michigan. Metro Detroit is home to the largest concentration of Chaldeans outside of Iraq. Over the last two years, more than 100 state residents of Iraqi and Chaldean-Assyrian descent have been arrested by federal […]