The Detroit Health Department says people should continue to plan for poor air quality from Canadian wildfires. Yesterday, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy put out a statewide Air Quality Alert. Smoke is likely to linger this week.  

In Detroit, the air quality is in the “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” range. 

Detroit Health Department Director Ali Abazeed says residents should check current conditions and adjust outdoor activity. He says residents will be notified if air quality worsens. 

People should avoid strenuous outdoor activities, take frequent breaks and keep quick relief medications, such as inhalers, nearby. People should also keep their windows closed and run AC units and filters. 

Residents should monitor health conditions such as coughing, wheezing, chest tightness or irritation of eyes or throat. Anyone who is having trouble breathing should contact a healthcare provider. 

Visit airnow.gov for air quality conditions. 

Additional headlines for Monday, July 20, 2026

Dance parties

Detroit Disability Power and DanceAbility are hosting several dance parties to get groovy this summer. Join six Zoom sessions online or in-person workshops. Cara Graninger will facilitate. People can also join in person for three sessions with local musicians. ASL interpretation is available upon request. 

The first in-person event takes place July 21 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Valade Shed on the Detroit Riverfront.  

Wright Museum hosts Golf Classic

The Charles H. Wright Museum’s Women’s Committee is hosting a golfing event next month. The Golf Classic is an annual fundraising event to raise money for the museum. Named in honor of Roberta Hughes Wright—an award-winning author, humanitarian and the late wife of Dr. Charles H. Wright, the founder of the museum—the event also hopes to explore African American history and culture.

Proceeds will go toward the museum’s unrestricted operating budget and children’s educational programs at the museum. 

The Golf Classic takes place Thursday, August 6 at the Lakes of Taylor Golf Course from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Register at thewright.org/events. 

Get Out to Vote Block Party

The city of Detroit’s Department of Elections and Detroit Votes 2026 is hosting a Get Out to Vote block party this weekend. The event takes place Saturday, July 25 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 2978 West Grand Blvd. outside of the Department of Elections Office. There will be community resources, entertainment and kids activities. 

Organizations offer tools to beautify city

Several Detroit organizations are coming together to provide community resources for clean-up and beautification efforts in the city. The tool kits are accessible to residents, community groups, and nonprofits. Tools include small construction tools and safety equipment for snow removal and lawn and landscaping. 

The tools can be picked up from the Bailey Park NDC, the E. Warren Tool Library, or the Premier Group Associates in Detroit. 

Visit the Department of Neighborhoods on detroitmi.gov. 

Usually, they are found in school gymnasiums or church fellowship rooms. Voting booths are among the most intimate spaces in American democracy.

The process is typically quiet and quick, and it is supposed to be equal. But this is not the case for people with disabilities. A new report published by Detroit Disability Power documents just how often there are barriers at the voting booth, and why it keeps getting worse.

1 in 4 Americans has a disability. In Michigan, that number is nearly 1 in 3. Yet this new report finds only 10% of the polling places assessed in 2025 were fully accessible. That’s down from 13% in the previous report covering the 2024 elections and 16% in the report covering the 2022 elections.

Detroit Disability Power has now audited more than 1,000 polling places across metro Detroit. Trained volunteers have visited precincts during early voting, primaries, and on Election Day, carrying a checklist and a mission: ensure the law is being followed.

Eric Welsby is the advocacy director at Detroit Disability Power. He serves on the Michigan Bureau of Elections’ Voting System Advisory Committee for Accessible Elections, and was recently appointed by Governor Whitmer to the Michigan Developmental Disabilities Council.

Bakpak Durden is a Detroit-born artist, disability advocate, and one of the people who actually show up to do the audits — at roughly 100 polling sites and counting.

They joined Robyn Vincent to discuss why the number of accessible polling locations continues to shrink and what it feels like to be part of a community treated like an afterthought.

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