Commentary
Gun violence is a proxy war on the American public
As the riot of gun violence in America produces fresh massacres by the day, firearm fundamentalists refuse to acknowledge the blood on their hands, and their suicidal stance in the face of escalating carnage is that more guns are the answer. But it’s worse than that. Take a close look at the arguments that gun […]
David Hecker: Don’t fall for well-funded, divide-and-conquer tactics
Throughout history and across continents, wealth and power have often been concentrated in the hands of just a few people and organizations. That’s while the rest are left to contend for scraps, and the United States is no different. The ultra-wealthy are an extremely small part of the population, so they work to hold onto […]
Rick Haglund: Whitmer says ‘bigotry is bad for business.’ Is it true?
It was a clever phrase designed to grab headlines, and it did. “Bigotry is bad for business,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in her January State of the State speech, imploring lawmakers to add anti-discrimination protections based on gender identity and sexual orientation to the state’s civil rights law. They ultimately obliged and Whitmer signed the […]
Column: Expanding affordable housing access will improve health and education outcomes for kids
Our state has long failed children, particularly those from families with low incomes, when it comes to education. According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Kids Count project, for the last two decades, Michigan has ranked near the bottom of the states in education, with the rate of fourth-graders not proficient in reading and eighth-graders […]
Susan J. Demas: As other states attack LGBTQ+ kids, Michigan emerges as a safe haven
After decades of fighting for basic rights and dignity, LGBTQ+ people last week finally became full and equal citizens in Michigan. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday signed a landmark bill expanding the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) that bars discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. The Lansing ceremony was marked by hugs […]
Rick Haglund: Michigan’s state budget is flush with cash. Is it sustainable?
For decades, sluggish tax revenue and difficult funding decisions defined Michigan’s state government budgeting process. Yes, total revenue went up every year. But it wasn’t nearly enough to keep up with inflation and address growing spending needs for roads, education, payments to local governments and other responsibilities of state government. Oddly enough, the COVID pandemic […]
Column: Current postpartum coverage leaves out some of Michigan’s most vulnerable pregnant people
In our training as medical students, we have had the privilege to participate in the care of new parents during postpartum visits. We were surprised to see the different types of health complications that can come after giving birth. We talked to new parents experiencing postpartum depression, saw exacerbations of high blood pressure, diagnosed new-onset […]
Rick Haglund: More education funding is a good start to boost Michigan’s economic competitiveness
Thirty years ago, then-Gov. John Engler used to say that the best-educated state wins. Michigan has not been winning. It ranks among the bottom 10 states in high school completion. Nearly half of Michigan’s 2022 high school graduates were not enrolled in college six months after graduating. Fourth- and eighth-grade reading scores plunged in national […]
David Hecker: Students should be taught the truth about Rosa Parks and other civil rights leaders
The myth: Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus to a white man because she was physically tired. The truth: As Advance readers know, the truth is that Rosa Parks was not physically tired, but was tired of the humiliation, the second-class status; that Rosa Parks was an activist, the […]
Susan J. Demas: What we owe our children after the horror at MSU
Michigan State’s sprawling campus has been home to thousands, like my daughter, during some of the most exciting and demanding years of their lives. It can feel like just about everyone in the state has a connection to the school in one way or another. And so, there are countless personal stories about the Michigan […]
Column: Michigan’s cash assistance program is failing to reach families in need
In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, the year Republican Gov. Rick Snyder took office, an average of 79,660 Michigan families per month received cash assistance through the Family Independence Program (FIP). Eleven years later, in 2022, only 11,947 families received it. What happened? First, let us not think for a second that this had to do […]
Column: White nationalism gets a hearing in the Republican House
Xenophobia is the original offense of the Trump era. The former president launched his campaign in 2015 by saying of Mexican migrants, “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” It was a gross mischaracterization of facts, but the nativist message resonated with a Republican base primed by far-right media figures to despise non-white immigrants. When […]