What does “belonging” mean to you?

Maybe it’s being in spaces where you feel comfortable, or being surrounded by others with similar interests. No matter what “belonging” means to you, it’s a very human desire.

Like other nations, America has drawn internal lines, preventing people from belonging in its experiment.

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Poet Brad Walrond explores “belonging” in his latest book “Everywhere Alien.” Walrond is a poet, author, conceptual-performance artist, and one of the foremost participants in the 1990s Black Arts Movement in New York City.

He is also the first poet to be published by Moore Black Press, which was founded by Detroit’s Poet Laureate jessica Care moore.

To share more about “Everywhere Alien,” Walrond and Moore joined The Metro.

“Everywhere Alien” analyzes the idea of belonging and feelings of isolation. In the book, Walrond connects these main ideas and feelings and relates them to the African American community.

“It centers Blackness. But Blackness is a civilizational inheritance. It is the species, right? And then we have white supremacy. And it’s almost like…the world has conspired to alienate ourselves from our own humanity,” Walrond said.

Walrond got the inspiration for his book from his rich journeys and experience in New York City. More specifically, he got the meaning of his book from visiting underground movements in NYC, where he felt extremely immersed in the scene — yet alienated at the same time.

“It is like this uber surrealist, dimensional journey, and ultimately, it’s a journey inward,” Walrond described. “I think that’s what this notion of alienation and belonging has taught me — that the journey really is inside, and really capturing the contours of all the beings inside you — and finding the faith and the courage to live that as wildly and as boldly as you can.”

Walrond explained how his dream for every human being was to find and live out that journey inside themselves.

Moore also explained how Black Women Rock is coming to The Fillmore Detroit on Aug. 31 for its 20th anniversary.

“If you don’t have your tickets, it’s the baddest rock and roll concert in the world,” Moore exclaimed. “These women are legends, and they’re stars already. That’s not an emerging, emerging talent show. Just because you don’t know who they are doesn’t mean that we don’t know who they are. And if you haven’t seen the show, come it’s a great weekend, Labor Day weekend Fillmore, Detroit.”

Tickets for Black Women Rock are available at livenation.com and the venue box office.

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 15, 2024:

• In politics, there are always people that need to be persuaded to your side or need convincing to come out and vote. One person doing a lot of that convincing is Lori Goldman. Lori is the founder of Fems for Dems, a group of progressive women organizing for Democrats in Southeast Michigan. She’s helped create the blue wave that’s washed over Oakland County this past decade. Goldman joined The Metro to discuss her theory of organizing and what Democrats need to do to turn out the vote in Oakland County.
• Earth Tones Concert at the Palmer Park Log Cabin returns this Sunday. The series brings people together in the park through music, arts and storytelling. Detroiter Wendell Harrison and the curator of the Earth Tones Concert series, Joe Darling, joined The Metro to discuss the show.
• We live in an era of fast fashion. Department stores and malls are closing all the time, but there is still one tried and true source for shopping in real life — thrifting. And that’s especially true now as this Saturday is National Thrift Shop Day. To talk about all things thrifting, Bri Stacy from Hamtramck-based Public Thrift joined The Metro.

It’s fascinating to see that in a world where technology is king, there’s still a strong love for needlework growing throughout metro Detroit and the country.

Maybe it’s because you grew up watching a parent or a grandparent do it, maybe you had a friend that did it, or maybe you just like the community around it, or honestly, maybe it’s nice to just do something with your hands. There are countless reasons why someone may take up a needle-based craft like crocheting, knitting or quilting. But these hobbies have rich histories behind them, whether it’s origins in ancient Egypt or ties to African storytelling traditions.

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To address the rise of the fibrous arts and the history behind them, The Metro was joined by two women in the world of needlework and quilting.

The owner of Parker Avenue Knits in Detroit, Sally Moore, and fiber artist and sculptor, April Shipp, shared their experience and expertise about needlework and quilting.

The fabric arts has been a popular hobby among many including the young, old, male and female. Shipp said she loves fabric and quilting because of the textures, its representation of life and the free feeling she has when crafting.

“First off, the first thing you’re clothed in, the first thing you’re swaddled in, is cloth, right? And when you die, that’s the last thing you wrapped in, is cloth as well. So cloth, to me, is just the feeling of it in my fingers is just amazing,” Shipp said. “I love textiles, and I think we weave so many stories of love and what we do, we tell with my work, I tell stories. I tell narratives, funny and serious, sad and happy. It’s all in the cloth.”

Shipp brought some of her favorite pieces she’s created to the WDET studios, including one where she grabbed scrap fabrics off the floor and threw them together to develop a beautiful collage.

But quilting and knitting aren’t just hobbies — they are a way of storytelling and keeping memories, history and personal legacies alive. 

“In the African community, it [needlework] is the story telling. It is the verbal history. Because we weren’t allowed to keep our history. We weren’t allowed to write it down, or we didn’t — we were illiterate — we didn’t know how to write it down, but it didn’t mean that it had to die,” Moore explained. “And in this day and age, with all the noise around us and the short attention spans, having this tool to bring people still and in each other’s presence.”

For African Americans, and many other communities, needlework has passed down many memories and heirlooms through generations. The creativity in the fabric arts is ageless.

At Parker Avenue Knits, Moore created a community of not only African American individuals, but a diverse gathering of anyone and everyone with an interest in fabric arts.

“Many of us [were] strangers before we walked in, but the fiber just levels the playing field and reminds you that we are all part of one big community,” Moore stated.

Her philosophy in creating the shop was to give people a space to have all sorts of conversations, essentially creating a community out of unique characters and turning them all into artists and friends. Needlework, whether someone is creating quilts, clothing, home decor, or whatever their imagination desires, creates a community and spreads love.

Moore provided some advice to people interested in taking up the “sport” when she said, “We figure it out. We commiserate, we rip it out. We do whatever has to be done. But, April made the statement, the only limit is your imagination. So don’t let perfect be the enemy of progress…just keep going.”

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 14, 2024: 

• Mastodons roamed the earth between 23 million and 12,000 years ago. Hundreds of mastodon fossils have been found in Michigan. So many that it became Michigan’s state fossil in 2002. Yes, you heard that right, mastodons are Michigan’s state fossil and could soon become the national fossil thanks to a bill sponsored by Michigan U.S. Sen. Gary Peters. One place you can see our state fossil up close is the University of Michigan’s Museum of Natural History in Ann Arbor. To talk about mastodons, Jake Downey, the docent at the museum, joined The Metro.

Some believe poetry is a lost art, but don’t say that to many Michiganders.  

That’s in part thanks to the efforts of many local arts organizations that foster poetry and the work of poets around the state — including Michigan Poet Laureate Nandi Comer.  

A native Detroiter and Kresge Arts Fellow, Comer was recently given another award for her efforts in expanding access to poetry — she’s one of 23 fellows for the Academy of American Poetry. The program will help her use billboards to expose the public to the work of Michigan poets.  

To discuss her latest project, what it’s been like to be the state poet laureate, and to explore an event she’s teaching, Nandi Comer joined The Metro.

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Comer recently received $50,000 to initiate her project, Michigan Words, a statewide billboard campaign for poets. 

“They asked me what I wanted to do for my capstone project, and I wanted to showcase Michigan poets in their own communities,” Comer said. “So that we as a city, as a town, as a municipality, can see our poets physically and know who they are and really celebrate them.”

Comer’s goal is to make these poets’ words as visible to the public as possible. To do that, she is having their works displayed on billboards and in pedestrian areas so that people traveling throughout Michigan can see them.

“I think because poets oftentimes have trouble celebrating themselves, we sometimes forget how rich our history is in poetics. I think that we’ve never really had a drought in talent,” Comer stated.

As well as increasing the representation of Michigan poets, Comer has also strived to help support writers succeed in the industry.

Comer helped start the organization Detroit Lit, which provides support to writers of color. Detroit Lit is hosting the Detroit Lit Summer Writers Institute, a series of professional development workshops and panels for writers of color, August 14-26 at 27th Letter Books on Michigan Avenue in Detroit, just west of Corktown.

People interested in attending can register for different workshops on Eventbrite.

“The goal of the series is really to provide professional development to writers. We know that our writers oftentimes have goals to become very known in their community, to publish in their community, but they don’t know the steps to getting there,” Comer explained. “And so I’m really excited that we’re able to have some of the best, most talented writers in Detroit who have already accomplished a lot in their careers, really lay out some really great advice, some really great training on how to do that.”

Detroit Poet Laureate Jessica Care Moore, as well as writers and poets Tawana Petty, Jonah Mixon-Webster, Tariq Luthun, and more, will give panels and share publishing and professional tools to help writers excel.

“We’re a strong city. We have strong writers. The only thing is, is that we have a lot of talent that needs to be supported,” Comer said.

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 13, 2024

• In America, there aren’t a lot of resources to help children and young parents. If you lack money for a babysitter, pretty much the only thing you have is the people around you. The Methodist Children’s Home Society wants to add some resources to that list. The foster care agency is holding their annual community resource fair on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for teen parents in Detroit’s Virginia Park neighborhood. To talk more about the resource fair and the experiences of young parents, Kevin Roach, the CEO of the MCHS, joined The Metro.
• Michigan’s population has been stagnating. The state ranks 49th out of 50 in growth since 2020. And by 2050, Michigan’s population is projected to shrink. The Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a free-market think tank, hosted an event at Ike’s Restaurant in Sterling Heights to discuss different ways to increase the state population. The Metro producer Sam Corey sat down with Michael LaFaive of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy to learn more about what he believes will bring people to the state.
• Until the past few decades, science fiction — whether in movies or books — hasn’t put Black and Brown people at the story’s center. But people working in the art space are constantly working to change that. Such is the case with “Return of The Start: A Star Wars Exhibition,” which is on display at the Norwest Gallery of Art. The exhibit features artistic depictions of Star Wars with an afro-futuristic bent. The goal is to celebrate the broad diversity of Star Wars fandom. The owner and founder of the Norwest Gallery of Art, Asia Hamilton, joined The Metro to chat more about the exhibit.

The accessibility of fresh, clean water and a functioning infrastructure is something that many of us take for granted. 

Last week, The Metro had Detroit artist Sabrina Nelson on the show, who had recently returned from Africa. She said her appreciation for water changed once she had to walk miles a day to get water for basic needs like bathing and cooking.  

Imagine what it would be like trying to farm or grow crops with no immediate access to water. And the lack of proper infrastructure and access to clean water also present themselves as problems here in Michigan.

Read: Firm announces $25M settlement over role in Flint water crisis

The state of Michigan has a new pilot project by the U.S. Department of Agriculture which is offering financial assistance to help irrigate crops for local farmers. Those interested need to apply for the federal government grant by Aug. 16.

To talk about that initiative, Patrice Brown, Detroit’s Associate Director of Urban Agriculture, and Angela Thomas, the Garden Development Manager at Keep Growing Detroit, joined The Metro.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Access to water is a major struggle for urban farmers in Detroit. 

“This is something that we’ve been fighting for for the last, I would say, five to seven years,” Brown explained. “We are excited that we are getting a chance to get to be the first state with this pilot.”

The National Urban Agriculture conference held in Detroit this past weekend discussed and addressed the need for accessible water and labor in Detroit. Brown heard discussions at the conference about the need for labor and water on urban farms, as well as the access to funding sources.

The goal of the new state of Michigan pilot project is to help alleviate some of the hardships on farmers by offering financial assistance to help irrigate crops for them.

Farmers applying for the federal grant, or interested in other resources, need to get a Farm Service Agency number to become an official farm. Thomas said anyone looking for help applying or getting an FSA number can call Keep Growing Detroit or call the USDA Service Center in Ann Arbor to get a number.

Also, Detroit has been working with the Natural Resources Conservation Service, which has an office at the Ann Arbor center, to build greenhouses, or “hoop houses,” that people may have seen around metro Detroit.

“We are trying to help build the infrastructure so that farmers can actually grow healthy produce, but also scale up their business and maybe sell it…give away more of what they’re growing,” Thomas explained.

Also on The Metro, the Detroit Documenters coordinator Noah Kincade discussed their most recent coverage on the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department Board’s new payment plan for residents. 

The DWSD EasyPay Plan was designed for residents who have a hard time paying past due water bills.  

“So the way that it works is, if you have a past due amount on your bill, you can get into this plan with a simple $10 down payment, and then the remainder of your past due amount will be spread out over 36 months, equally and just added on to your existing bill,” Kincade explained.

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 9, 2024:

• A collard greens cook-off, barbecue in Highland Park, and all the sandwiches you could ever want in Eastern Market. Those are just a few of the summer food festivals happening soon. Melody Baetens from The Detroit News talked with WDET’s Ryan Patrick Hooper about all this, in addition to a report on restaurant closings and openings that recently happened in metro Detroit.
• The problem of commercializing self-driving cars and trucks hasn’t gotten much easier over time. In fact, some automakers have disbanded their self-driving teams. But what is the state of autonomous driving now in 2024? To help us answer that, Pete Bigelow, the tech and innovation team leader at Automotive News and host of a podcast about mobility, talked with WDET.

Jeff Milo is WDET’s resident expert on the local music scene and host of MI Local. He will also be hosting WDET’s “SOUNDS LIKE DETROIT” concert, showcasing of some of the most talented Tiny Desk Contest bands who submitted their videos for the NPR contest.

The concert will be held at New Center Park on Thursday, August 15th at 6 p.m.

Milo joined The Metro to share some of the music and bands that will be featured at SOUNDS LIKE DETROIT.

He explained how WDET’s music hosts completed a mini Detroit version of NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest. They sifted through hundreds of submissions to NPR’s contest and, with help from WDET listeners, selected five artists to perform on stage in Detroit.

Milo shared a quick peek into the musical masterpieces of the chosen artists and bands on The Metro.

Here are the artists performing at “SOUNDS LIKE DETROIT”:

• Drey Skonie & The Klouds
• Chris Lanard & One Band Global 
• C3theartist
• Isis Damil
• Elspeth Tremblay & The Treatment

People can listen to these artists and more on WDET’s Tiny Desk Playlist on YouTube or live at New Center Park on August 15th.

Milo described the venue when he said, “Oh yeah, it’s like this secret, cozy little grove with a very impressive stage and sound system. And you can just kind of chill and sprawl out on the grass, or you hang out. You can get as close as you want, far as you want, but wherever you’re going to be, it’s going to sound great. And that’s the best part about that venue.”

Anyone interested in attending can visit wdet.org/events to get tickets.

“I’ll be there all night if you want to meet me,” Milo said. “I’d like to meet you.”

More headlines from The Metro on August 8th:

• Back in late June, two cyberattacks completely shut down CDK Global. It’s the largest provider of dealership management services software in the nation. This meant that thousands of dealers around the country couldn’t operate going into the July 4^th weekend, one of the biggest sales periods of the year. Also, buyers couldn’t finish their purchases. In all, dealerships lost over a billion dollars in business. It’s just a small slice of the economic impact of cybercrime. To talk about the threat and what we can all do to prevent these kinds of attacks Justin Shanken, CEO of Black Breach, joined The Metro.
• Yesterday, Rep. Xiong easily beat her opponent in a primary race. But, she’s been making headlines for other things. Earlier this month, the Macomb Daily reported that Xiong’s Warren home was listed in a 2022 civil lawsuit with money from her sister that was obtained through a Ponzi scheme, according to financial regulators. Xiong’s home is one of eight properties that were allegedly part of the scheme. Xiong has denied receiving money or property from her sister. To discuss this, Macomb Daily reporter Susan Smiley joined The Metro.
• WDET’s reporter and host of All Things Considered Russ McNamara attended the Presidential campaign for Vice President Harris, and her running mate Time Walz, at the Detroit Metro Airport onWednesday. McNamara joined The Metro to share details of the campaign.

The Detroit Police Athletic League is partnering with the Detroit Police Department to start a new community initiative to help build positive connections with the city’s youth.

The “Coolin’ with Cops” program will start with a meet-up at Rouge Park at 6 p.m. this Wednesday, with future meet-ups occurring every Thursday for the next nine weeks.

David Greenwood, director of community engagement and facilities for Detroit PAL, and Sgt. Bryant George, a Detroit Police sergeant and Detroit PAL’s youth development officer, joined The Metro on Wednesday to share more about the new program.

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Greenwood explained how Detroit PAL, a nonprofit that started in 1969, began as a way to bridge the gap between the police department and the community. Greenwood and others with PAL continue to bridge that gap today. 

PAL uses athletics as a way to connect with Detroit’s youth and build a positive relationship between them and the police.

“Well, what we see is growth. What we see is friendships. I think one of the biggest things, even for myself, I maintain a friendship 40 some odd years later, with friends that I met through Detroit PAL,” Greenwood said. “It’s cool to play sports and all of those good things, but we know through sports, we develop so much more. There’s goal setting, resilience, embracing a healthy lifestyle, accountability and teamwork.”

But how do they achieve that growth and teach kids valuable lessons through sports? George, a previous PAL kid himself as well as Greenwood, said it’s all about making it personal for them.

“It’s just all about just being yourself. You know, I wear a uniform to come to work, but I’m still a person,” George said. “And you know, when you allow them to know that, and they can feel and touch and see and you know, you really can just break that barrier of, you know, I’m afraid of the police, or I can’t trust the police.”

George says Detroit PAL complements well with the more proactive side of policing to provide a well-rounded service to the community. The upcoming “Coolin’ with Cops” meet-ups are just one of many ways PAL aims to help grow connections between local youth and the police.

“Our goal is to keep them away from guns, away from gang violence. Hey, pick up that football, keep this in your hand. Go to a good high school, go to a good college,” George said. “Become whatever it is that you want to become, even become a Detroit police officer, you know, like I did, but you know, that’s our goal is that, you know we’re present, and you don’t have to be perfect, but you just have to be present.”

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Greenwood and George.

More headlines from The Metro on August 7, 2024:

• The Ann Arbor-based Center for Automotive Research is holding its annual Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City this week. It’s a gathering of some of the most important automotive leaders and thinkers, as well as public officials — including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Jamie Butters, executive editor of Automotive News and host of the Daily Drive podcast, joined The Metro to share more about the event and discuss the panels he’ll be hosting there.
• The primary elections happened yesterday in Michigan. Despite an exciting presidential election year, there weren’t a lot of surprises this time around. Congressional Democrat Elissa Slotkin and Republican Mike Rogers will be moving on in the Senate race. And Congressman Shri Thanedar defeated Detroit Councilmember Mary Waters in the 13th Congressional District. WDET’s host of Morning Edition, Pat Batcheller, joined The Metro to discuss the main takeaways from yesterday’s election.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Detroit has been the epicenter of the global automotive industry for more than a century. Although foreign competitors from around the world have taken big bites out of America’s market share, General Motors, Ford and Stellantis still command a huge piece of global production and sales. And that continues to fuel the local economy here in Southeast Michigan.  

But according to some experts, a major disruption is on the horizon, and this time it’s coming from China.

Michael Dunne is the CEO of Dunne Insights and he’s one of the leading thinkers when it comes to the auto industry in China. He recently wrote in his newsletter that by the end of the decade, China’s market capacity could climb to 75% of the world’s volume. Dunne joined The Metro on Monday to discuss the growing Chinese automotive market.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Dunne explains that “it’s not a matter of if, but when” China becomes a major automotive challenger. 

“This year, China will build more than 30 million vehicles, that’s three times what America makes. China will build more electric vehicles than all other countries combined,” Duanne says. “Probably most important, China’s able to build these cars at 20–30%, more cheaply than we are here in the U.S. or even in Europe.”

According to Dunne, China is sending a great number of cars to Mexico, the U.K., Brazil and other countries across the world except for the U.S. And it isn’t only Chinese auto companies producing cars in China, but also legacy automakers like Detroit’s Big Three producing cars there.

“These companies are turning to China as a production hub for export to markets globally,” Dunne said. “So this is a really disconcerting, alarming trend. Not just the Chinese automakers are liking their chances exporting out of China, but the global automakers too are joining the trend.” 

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Dunne.

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 5, 2024:

• COVID-19 has been on the minds of more Michiganders lately as the number of cases doubled from June to July. So how much did COVID spread in Michigan during July? And how dangerous is the infection at this point? Dr. Matthew Sims, the Director of Infectious Disease Research at Corewell Health East, joined The Metro to discuss.
• Liz Triden, the Executive Director of Science & Social Studies at the Detroit Public Schools Community District, is working to create a think tank that centers around the desires of students. She joined The Metro to discuss the new Social Studies Student Think Tank and how it aims to give young people the opportunity to make suggestions that shape their education.
• Local Black femme punk rock group We Are Scorpio consists of Detroit Poet Laureate jessica Care moore and singer, songwriter and performer Steffanie Christi’an. Christi’an joined The Metro to discuss the group’s upcoming performances and new music.

If James Baldwin were alive today, he would have been celebrating his 100th birthday. To honor his legacy, Detroit artist Sabrina Nelson created an intimate, multi-sensory experience of the acclaimed figure.

If you’re not familiar with James Baldwin’s work, he was an American author and civil rights activist. As early as the 1950s, Baldwin’s writing posed fundamental questions about masculinity, sexuality, race and class. They were questions that influenced the civil rights and Gay liberation movements for decades to come.

Nelson is opening her traveling exhibit “Frontline Prophet: James Baldwin” at the Charles H. Wright Museum on Friday.

Nelson, as well as longtime creative allies and co-curators Ashara Ekundayo and Omo Misha, joined The Metro to talk more about Baldwin and the exhibit.

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Ekundayo described what people can discover about James Baldwin after seeing “Frontline Project.”

“Sabrina has brought to us this multifaceted, multi-sensory invitation…people will find that they can see his humanity,” Ekundayo said. “What comes out the most is…his laughter, his rage, his sensitivities, his quietness, who he is as a lover, and as a fighter, and someone who was just a deep thinker. And I think that we forget that sometimes when we…elevate or deify public figures, we forget that they’re just regular people.”

While the exhibition will showcase Baldwin’s life and humanity, it also will honor the activism he achieved through his work and as a gay, Black man in the 20th century.

“I think all artists have a responsibility to the times that they’re living in. And we certainly saw that with James Baldwin — he understood his assignment and leaned way into it,” Misha explained. “And it doesn’t mean that he always liked it. But he started that journey as an activist, as a young pastor, as a child — and he never abandoned that. And he really saw that as his role in society.”

In fact, Misha recounted and paraphrased a statement from Baldwin when she said, “But if I do my job right today, I will be here for you in the future.”

Nelson and her partners named the exhibition “Frontline Prophets: James Baldwin” because it highlights Baldwin as a prophet and activist who spread the truth.

“James Baldwin said, ‘if I love you, I get to tell you the truth,’” Nelson stated.

“Frontline Prophets: James Baldwin” opens Friday at 5:30 p.m. at The Wright in Midtown Detroit. The exhibit will run through Feb. 28, 2025. Details can be found at thewright.org.

More headlines from The Metro for August 2, 2024:

• Hate it or love it, many have heard of the Woodward Dream Cruise. But now there’s a new tradition being started by lovers of electric cars. The “Clean Cruise” will bring together industry experts, EV owners, environmentalists and members of the public to explore all things EV in downtown Ferndale. To discuss Saturday’s event, Amy Rogghe, a physician’s assistant by trade, and the executive director of the Michigan Electric Vehicle Alliance, joined The Metro.
• Today, many public schools remain segregated. One reason for that segregation is Detroit’s segregated neighborhoods. But there are efforts underway to preserve Detroit communities as they grow. One example is Corktown. That area has seen massive economic growth alongside a federal grant that the city received to ensure low-income families can keep their roots planted there — and thrive. Sarah Lenhoff researches educational equity at Wayne State University and she’s been studying this project. Lenhoff joined The Metro to discuss preserving Corktown’s community.
• Every week, The Metro is joined by the Detroit Documenters. On Tuesday, Detroit City Council approved phase one of a plan to build solar panels on vacant land. To discuss this plan and other things that happened during the marathon session, Detroit Documenters’ Nachum Eichenhorn and Noah Kincade, who attended the city council meeting joined The Metro.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

On Wednesday, the Biden administration announced plans to notify 25 million student loan borrowers of new debt relief options. Closer to home, Oakland County recently passed a resolution to partner with the company Savi to cancel a portion of student debt for 172,000 residents. 

Oakland County Commissioner Charlie Cavell joined The Metro on Thursday to discuss the new resolution and how the partnership with Savi will work.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Cavell said the partnership could help residents save tens of thousands of dollars on their student loans. That new collaboration is important, Cavell says, because college debt often makes it hard for people to do things like purchase a home or pay for childcare. 

“It’s a huge, terrible, grinding burden on lots of people,” he said.

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Cavell.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 1, 2024:

• Some of the gaps created in educational outcomes are a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. But, what else is going to prevent people from achieving success in Detroit? And what can the country, state and city do to unlock opportunities for more residents here? To discuss these things, Anika Goss, the Chief Executive Officer of Detroit Future City, joined The Metro. 
• The Belle Isle Art Fair along the Detroit River brings art to the people. This Saturday and Sunday the art fair will highlight works of more than 100 artists from across the country. To talk more about the Belle Isle Art Fair and the importance of highlighting the arts community, Mark Loeb, the director of the Belle Isle Art Fair, joined the show.
• Months ago, the ‘uncommitted’ movement pledged not to vote for President Joe Biden until he did more to stop Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza. What do Arab and Muslim Michigan voters want now that Kamala Harris is the presumed Democratic presidential nominee? To discuss this and more, The Metro guest co-host Robyn Vincent spoke with Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

There will be 22 candidates on the ballot in November vying to fill three open seats on the Detroit Public Schools Community District Board of Education.

Chalkbeat Detroit reported this week that two new people will join the board, after two current members did not seek reelection. But there are familiar faces running as well, Chalkbeat reports, including two former school board members, a handful of people who have sought to join the board in the past, and teachers who have been frequent critics of the district.

Mario Morrow, a political analyst and former educator, administrator and assistant superintendent in Detroit, joined The Metro on Wednesday to share why he says this election is so important and what it can tell us about the politics of public education.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Morrow says there are several different reasons why one might want a position on the school board.

“They are very dedicated to education, they want to see the district move in the right direction. Or maybe they’re using this as a stepping stone for another political career. Or just maybe they just want to get paid,” Morrow said. “It is a paying position now, and you can get a stipend. I think it’s $250 a meeting, which is about $75,000 a year. It’s not a bad gig to have.”

No matter the reason for running, the candidates have several responsibilities to fulfill if elected as a school board member.

“The two main responsibilities is, No. 1, hiring and firing of the superintendent. And No. 2, creating and making sure that policy is followed within the district,” Morrow said.

Morrow says school board candidates don’t have to have any educational experience, but rather, just show a dedication to working with the administration and community. He spoke about Mother Moore, a longtime social justice activist and centenarian in Detroit, who — despite her age — has been very involved at school board meetings, and how she is a prime example of what a school board member should be.

“I wish school board members, these 20 plus candidates, would take a page or a chapter out of her book to make sure that they do the right thing if they’re elected,” Morrow said.

Strong leadership in the district is key as they aim to address its many ongoing challenges such as “chronic absenteeism,” of which Michigan has some of the most abysmal rates in the nation. 

In order for the district to improve, school board members need to have the “dedication, commitment and knowledge base” to make a positive change, Morrow said.

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Morrow.

More headlines from The Metro on July 31st:

• The last few weeks have been a wild time in politics. Dennis Darnoi, a Republican strategist and owner of Densar Consulting in Farmington Hills, joined The Metro to discuss how Michigan voters are handling this election cycle.
• The 9th annual “Aging Matters Education and Expo” is taking place this Thursday at the Fellowship Chapel in Detroit. Its goal is to empower aging adults to live their golden years a little brighter. Bernadette Hudgins, one of the event’s organizers, joined the show to talk about what resources they have to offer.
• After being an underground cultural touchstone for decades, break dancing is now out in the open as an official Olympic sport. Break dancing began in the late ’60s and early ’70s in the Bronx.  And as the dance spread nationwide, Detroit and other cities added their own regional flare. To discuss break dancing and the stamp Detroit placed on it, Detroit freelance journalist Kahn Santori Davison joined The Metro.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

“Chronic absenteeism” is one of the biggest problems hurting students in Detroit and across the country, accounting for any students who miss at least 10% of school days. 

Chalkbeat Detroit reports that Michigan had one of the worst rates of chronic absenteeism in the nation during the 2021-22 school year. While the rates improved the following school year, 30% of students still were chronically absent statewide. Those missed days not only make it hard for kids to succeed in the classroom, but also makes a teacher’s job a lot tougher.  

So how should schools go about solving the problem, and what might lawmakers need to do to intervene? To help us answer these questions, Lori Higgins, bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit, joined The Metro.

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Higgins has covered Michigan education for nearly 25 years, and she describes chronic absenteeism as a critical issue across the state that has worsened as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“You still have in Detroit 66% of the kids who are chronically absent. And a third of the kids across the state who are chronically absent, and the state numbers are well above what they were before the pandemic,” Higgins said. “Obviously, the pandemic had an impact on chronic absenteeism. And schools are still trying to recover from it.”

Through her reporting and research, Higgins found that poverty is a large factor of chronic absenteeism in Detroit. Students in poverty face many issues like stable housing, reliable transportation and safe neighborhoods that may cause them to miss school.

“We talked to a student who said one day it was really cold in the morning. He was waiting at the bus stop around 6 a.m. and the bus just drove right past him. And so what did he do? He went right back home. He said, ‘I’m not going to wait here another 45 minutes for another bus,” Higgins said. “And that’s just how easy it is for a kid to become chronically absent, is that split second decision that I’m not going to school today, because the transportation was not reliable, it didn’t pick me up on time.”

Higgins also spoke about a Detroit mother who prefers to walk her daughter the 5 to 6 blocks to school, and keeps her home on the days she is unable to accompany her because of safety concerns. Throughout the first half of the school year, the daughter had a total of 50 absences, she said.

“Schools cannot solve this issue alone, they cannot fix all the societal problems that are leading to chronic absenteeism,” Higgins said. “And that makes it really critical for schools and communities to be working together to find solutions to chronic absenteeism.”

Unfortunately, Higgins said, lawmakers haven’t done much to address the issue.

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Higgins.

More headlines from The Metro on July 30, 2024: 

• To date, in the 2023-2024 cycle, the Republican National Committee’s legal team has engaged in a total of 78 election-related lawsuits in 23 states — raising doubts about the integrity of our electoral system before ballots are even cast. Abby Vesoulis, a national politics reporter for Mother Jones, recently wrote about the RNC’s “bogus” lawsuits, calling them the GOP’s “secret weapon of 2024.” Vesoulis joined The Metro to discuss her reporting on the issue.
• July is National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, and metro Detroit-based Hegira Health is hosting a virtual town hall on Wednesday featuring a panel discussion about how to address mental health care disparities. To talk more about the town hall and Minority Mental Health Month, Hegira Health Director of Development Dr. Andrea Rodgers joined the show.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.