Local Government
Senate panel votes to repeal ‘Death Star’ legislation hampering local governments
Members of the Senate Labor Committee on Wednesday moved to advance bills repealing preemptions on local government control of labor and workforce policies. The committee voted 3-1 along party lines to report Senate Bills 170 and 171, both sponsored by Sen. Sean McCann (D-Kalamazoo), to the Senate floor with recommendation that they pass. The bills […]
Column: Local communities know what’s best for their residents
For the last 30 years, I have spent my days in the classroom helping children learn reading, math and other critical skills. Educators strive to understand all the factors — in and out of the classroom — that impact our students, because we want every child to have a healthy, full life. I will never […]
Oakland University groups call out former Gov. Rick Snyder headlining ‘civility’ event
Two Oakland University-based organizations are calling out a school decision to host GOP former Gov. Rick Snyder in an Oakland University Center for Civic Engagement event on Monday. The event is titled, “Breaking the Barrier: The Importance of Civility and Improving Political Discourse.” In response, two campus groups, the Oakland University Campus Alliance for Sustainability […]
Labor leaders, lawmakers rally to repeal ‘Death Star’ bill tying local governments’ hands
Progress Michigan Executive Director Sam Inglot said the force was with workers, local government leaders and lawmakers on Wednesday as they rallied around bills that would repeal a ban on local project labor agreements (PLAs) and a law preempting local government control of labor and workforce policies — nicknamed the “Death Star” bill in an […]
Tepfirah Rushdan is appointed Detroit’s first director of urban agriculture
In many ways, Tepfirah Rushdan was already acting as Detroit’s unofficial director of urban agriculture for years before she was officially given the title. Rushdan is the co-director of Keep Growing Detroit, one of the city’s biggest urban farms. She’s also one of the co-founders of the Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund, which helps buy land […]
Macomb County community honors former U.S. Rep. David Bonior
Dozens of Macomb County residents and others assembled on Saturday to dedicate a bike path and a newly created sculpture after Democratic former U.S. Rep. David Bonior. A host of political leaders, including former Michigan Democratic Party chair Mark Brewer as well as former state House members Nick Ciaramitaro, Fred Miller, Paul Gieleghem, all Democrats, […]
Duggan announces changes to tax plan to address concerns by Detroit’s urban farmers
When Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan announced a proposal to increase taxes on vacant land earlier this summer, Tepfirah Rushdan started asking questions. As co-director of Keep Growing Detroit and co-founder of the Detroit Black Farmer Land Fund, she had been advocating for farmers to purchase land to grow their own food. The question was: Does […]
Group calls for I-375 project to invest more in Black community than a walkable boulevard
Plans are underway to demolish Detroit’s I-375 freeway and replace it with an “urban boulevard” in an effort to reverse the destruction it brought to the historically Black neighborhoods Paradise Valley and Black Bottom. Social justice group Detroit Future City, however, is questioning whether simply replacing I-375 with a walkable boulevard is enough to restore […]
‘The rent is too damn high’: Dems plan to tackle housing costs in Michigan
From immigrant rights’ groups and affordable housing advocates in Detroit to students in Ann Arbor and community organizers in Lansing, there’s a phrase that is said time and again when talking about housing costs: “The rent is too high.” There are variations of that – “damn” is often inserted in there, for example – but, […]
Couch, car or curb: Defining which young person is ‘homeless’ affects aid state by state
The spectrum of youth homelessness is vast. It includes young children sleeping with their mothers in crowded shelters and families living in tent encampments in public parks. There are teenage runaways who have fled abusive homes to live on the streets and kids who spend their nights hidden in cars or abandoned buildings. But youth […]
Michigan ‘bill of rights for the homeless’ to be introduced as part of larger housing package
For people experiencing homelessness, the trauma of losing access to housing is a major burden that’s often worsened by the barriers people face when trying to find housing, employment or access public services and medical care. Folks experiencing homelessness often face a Catch-22 when applying for work without a permanent address, including discomfort in applying […]
Michigan leaders salute hip-hop at 50: ‘It’s part of a fabric of our culture’
Hip-hop, a rhythmic music often featuring vocals over samples of soul, jazz, rock and other styles, is credited with being popularized as early as this month in 1973. While hip-hop is rooted in New York City culture, several Michiganders have contributed to its legacy. They include the late J Dilla of Detroit and MC Breed […]