Around 30 community members, led by state Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit), blocked traffic on Fort Street at a rally Tuesday evening in front of Southwestern High School, staging a sit-down to protest its scheduled closing.

The recent decision by Detroit Public Schools to keep operating southwest Detroit's Maybury Elementary School has emboldened parents and community members working to prevent the closing of the nearby Southwestern High.

"This is about bringing attention to an injustice," said Tlaib, herself a graduate of Southwestern, who called for the rally.

Police were on the scene when Tlaib sat down in front of traffic at 5:30 p.m. after giving a short speech to the gathering. Police cruisers were already parked in the center lane from an earlier effort to prevent members of the crowd from marching across the road. The crowd finally responded to police requests to return to the sidewalk after about 10 minutes of blocking traffic.

"I wouldn't do this if this was a school that wasn't working -- a school that wasn't graduating our kids," Tlaib told The Huffington Post, noting only eight students had failed to graduate during the previous year.

She also wondered how the district would accommodate future high school students.

"Forty percent of the population [of Southwest Detroit] are children, 18 and under," she said. "We're building K-8 schools all over the district right now. What high school are they going to [go to]?"

Southwestern is one of five high schools DPS plans to close next year as the district continues to cut costs and respond to shrinking enrollment. The district says it is closing Southwestern due to low enrollment.

"Southwestern High School has lost over 27 percent of its enrollment since 2009 and is expected to lose 31 percent over the next five years," said DPS spokeswoman Jennifer Mrozowski in an email. "The 583 students at Southwestern can be accommodated at Western International (800 empty seats) or Northwestern (1,000 empty seats)."

Mrozowski said the district believes it can handle stable or increasing demographics in southwest Detroit, but said the depopulation of other areas of the city has forced the district to make tough decisions.

"Rather than continue to support buildings that are far under-utilized, we will close, consolidate and merge schools, allowing us to drive additional resources to a smaller group of higher-quality facilities and to our students in those buildings," she said.

Mrozowski also noted that Southwestern appeared on the Michigan Department of Education's 2011 Persistently Low Achieving (lowest 5 percent) list for academic performance and was eligible for closure by the state or for transfer to the state's newEducational Achievement Authority district for low-performing schools.

Cheryl Elum heads Southwestern's Local School and Community Organization, a parent-teacher group, and has a 17-year-old son attending Southwestern. She doesn't think the district or its state-appointed emergency manager are being straightforward about motivations for closing the school.

Tuesday's protest was not the first action to keep the high school open. In April, students from Southwestern and nearby Western International High School walked out of class, demanding the former school be kept open. Community members who successfully fought to keep Maybury Elementary open have also participated in joint rallies with those supporting Southwestern.

Tlaib said the example parents set in saving Maybury inspired her to put a call out for the Tuesday rally. She said she is pushing to keep Southwestern open so that other young people in the neighborhood have an opportunity to become state representatives.

"Amazing people have come out this school: [neurosurgeon] Dr. Ben Carson, Jalen Rose, who is now an ESPN correspondent," she said. "They have done a phenomenal job in educating our youth here and they need to keep it open."

Rose, who went on to become a college basketball and NBA star after his time at Southwestern, awards a scholarship to a Southwestern High School student each year and recently paid to re-do the school's basketball court. Rose also runs a charter high school in Detroit.

The Rev. Marvin Winans’ remark, “I refuse to be afraid of us,” in the wake of the robbery attack on him by four young Black men at a neighborhood gas station on Linwood and Davison, carries a moral truth. 

 is a statement deeply rooted in the belief that we cannot throw our children away or become prisoners in our own communities, afraid to go out because  young Black males have become tigers in the hood, on the prowl for their next victims. 

I refuse to accept the notion that there is nothing else we can do, and that the solution is to dump Detroit and move out as quickly as you can. While such reasoning is politically expedient and the common sense thing to do in a state of fear, it is not the answer to the growing socioeconomic ills facing our community. It is not the answer to halt the violence in our town. 

To conclude that the best way  to  deal with the escalating violence in Detroit is to move out of the city is a defeatist attitude grounded in a weak notion that, in fact, we can no longer be problem solvers. Therefore, we should run away from the problem. 

What happened to our resilient spirit? 

The carjacking of Rev. Winans, a prominent Detroit minister and nationally celebrated gospel singer who was driving with a suspended license, provides a context for our men and women of the clergy to be engaged in tackling the despicable acts of crime in this city. 

Just as many were concerned about Winans and his well-being in the aftermath of the carjacking, we should all be equally concerned about the escalating crime rate in our city, and the senseless taking of lives. 

We should be concerned about the young woman who was raped in view of her child in broad daylight on Detroit’s west side. 

Children and adults are dying in horrific numbers, and the perpetrators of the crimes are usually young Black men. 

The young men who attacked Rev. Winans did not know who their victim was, despite his being a prominent figure, seen often on television and in the print media. It says something much deeper: how out of touch they are with the real world outside of their own underworld of violence and mayhem. 

If those young men had been properly steered on a right, productive path they would not have become carjackers. 

If properly brought up in a nurturing environment and having the self-confidence to know they can be whoever they choose to be, they would not be lured into a world of crime and drugs. 

Yes, they must bear personal responsibility, but as a community we also bear responsibility. Churches in particular cannot sit on the sidelines, claiming that parents have all of the responsibility. 

What happened to the communal spirit that made each of us responsible for the other? Our brother’s keeper.

What happened to the church that was once the center of our life and thus took a prominent role in the well-being of our children – the future leaders? 

Truth be told, Rev. Winans’ attack brought the violent crime in Detroit to the doorstep of the church, and has prompted many in the clergy to call for some kind of action, and knowing that they could be the next victim. 

The church has long been the center of transformation and at this crucial time cannot ignore its role in the community. The engagement has to reflect a broader embrace of children who are often treated as outcasts.  They need not be. 

The interest has to go beyond  church members focusing on their own well-being. After all, the church’s Biblical mandate is to go in search of the lost, not the saved. 

We have lost young Black males walking down the streets like lions looking for someone to devour. They need to be saved and mentored into understanding that they have great potential, they need not rob, sell drugs or kill. 

If their homes did not remind or inculcate in them that sense of personal responsibility, the church can help them develop a clear path to the future. Because the Black church historically has been the guiding light for our communities. 

If there was ever a time for the church to demonstrate its power, it is now when Black children are dying and adults are  being killed by their own children. 

To be commended are the group of clergy members, including Bishop Edgar Vann, as well as members of the law enforcement community and other leaders who last week launched an initiative called Detroit Night Walk to fight crime.  

We can create change and help those young Black males trapped at the crossroads of drug dealing and carjacking. I believe that we can transform young Black males who believe they have no alternatives and no future. 

In the words of the hip-hop icon and street poet Tupac Shakur, we can make these young Black males “the rose that grew from concrete,” because by virtue of being a Black male they already live under the heavy weight of stereotypes just as we saw in the Trayvon Martin case. 

Our young Black males — and anyone who is raising a Black boy is aware of this reality — are already facing an image battle, and many of them are holding our community hostage. 

The church can liberate the hostage taker and the hostages. 

Bankole Thompson is the editor of the Michigan Chronicle and the author of a six-part series on the Obama presidency, including “Obama and Black Loyalty,” published last year. His latest book is ”Obama and Christian Loyalty” with an epilogue written by Bob Weiner, former White House spokesman. His upcoming books in 2012 are “Obama and Jewish Loyalty” and ”Obama and Business Loyalty.” Listen to him every Thursday morning on WDET 101.9 FM Detroit and every Sunday, 9 to 10 p.m., on “The Obama Watch” program on WLIB 1190 AM-New York. E-mail   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . 

In his usual eloquent and subdued manner, Detroit’s 36th District Court Judge Willie G. Lipscomb, Jr. spent his last days on the bench listening to an array of criminal cases. The only thing different was that he was preparing himself to leave the courtroom for a new and challenging career.  He notes that he has enjoyed nearly 30 years of what he calls the rare privilege of presiding over some of the most serious criminal cases, prosecuted by the best prosecutors in the country, and defended by the best criminal bar anywhere. 

“I am retiring at this time to complete and promote my first novel (a fictional work about a mythical African king who attempts to curb the spread of slavery) and explore other endeavors. I believe that my most significant and lasting accomplishment while on the bench is the founding and administration of the Handgun Intervention Program,” the retiring judge said. 

Lipscomb is known across the United States for commitment to The Handgun Intervention Program (HIP) which was the first of its kind court administered program, which started in 1993. For almost two decades, Lipscomb has dedicated his Saturday mornings to conducting intense workshops and classes with defendants, as a condition of their bonds. 

These defendants, who have been charged with gun crimes, have benefited greatly from their involvement with HIP, according to Judge Lipscomb. His relentless dedication to this cause has earned him numerous honors and awards including Michiganian of the Year, and The University of Notre Dame Alumni of the Year Award. 

“The program has helped to educate citizens about the senseless violence that too often results from the possession of handguns.  Although I have retired from the court as a sitting judge, I intend to continue with my involvement in this program and others, aimed at improving the quality of life in The City of Detroit,” Lipscomb said.  

Judge Lipscomb is a U.S. Air Force veteran, and has served as an adjunct professon of criminal law for 30 years at Wayne County Community College District. He resides in Detroit and is the father of one adult daughter and has two grandsons.  

In his usual eloquent and subdued manner, Detroit’s 36th District Court Judge Willie G. Lipscomb, Jr. spent his last days on the bench listening to an array of criminal cases. The only thing different was that he was preparing himself to leave the courtroom for a new and challenging career.  He notes that he has enjoyed nearly 30 years of what he calls the rare privilege of presiding over some of the most serious criminal cases, prosecuted by the best prosecutors in the country, and defended by the best criminal bar anywhere. 

“I am retiring at this time to complete and promote my first novel (a fictional work about a mythical African king who attempts to curb the spread of slavery) and explore other endeavors. I believe that my most significant and lasting accomplishment while on the bench is the founding and administration of the Handgun Intervention Program,” the retiring judge said. 

Lipscomb is known across the United States for commitment to The Handgun Intervention Program (HIP) which was the first of its kind court administered program, which started in 1993. For almost two decades, Lipscomb has dedicated his Saturday mornings to conducting intense workshops and classes with defendants, as a condition of their bonds. 

These defendants, who have been charged with gun crimes, have benefited greatly from their involvement with HIP, according to Judge Lipscomb. His relentless dedication to this cause has earned him numerous honors and awards including Michiganian of the Year, and The University of Notre Dame Alumni of the Year Award. 

“The program has helped to educate citizens about the senseless violence that too often results from the possession of handguns.  Although I have retired from the court as a sitting judge, I intend to continue with my involvement in this program and others, aimed at improving the quality of life in The City of Detroit,” Lipscomb said.  

Judge Lipscomb is a U.S. Air Force veteran, and has served as an adjunct professon of criminal law for 30 years at Wayne County Community College District. He resides in Detroit and is the father of one adult daughter and has two grandsons.  

Churches are key to saving young Black males  

The Rev. Marvin Winans’ remark, “I refuse to be afraid of us,” in the wake of the robbery attack on him by four young Black men at a neighborhood gas station on Linwood and Davison, carries a moral truth. 

 is a statement deeply rooted in the belief that we cannot throw our children away or become prisoners in our own communities, afraid to go out because  young Black males have become tigers in the hood, on the prowl for their next victims. 

I refuse to accept the notion that there is nothing else we can do, and that the solution is to dump Detroit and move out as quickly as you can. While such reasoning is politically expedient and the common sense thing to do in a state of fear, it is not the answer to the growing socioeconomic ills facing our community. It is not the answer to halt the violence in our town. 

To conclude that the best way  to  deal with the escalating violence in Detroit is to move out of the city is a defeatist attitude grounded in a weak notion that, in fact, we can no longer be problem solvers. Therefore, we should run away from the problem. 

What happened to our resilient spirit? 

The carjacking of Rev. Winans, a prominent Detroit minister and nationally celebrated gospel singer who was driving with a suspended license, provides a context for our men and women of the clergy to be engaged in tackling the despicable acts of crime in this city. 

Just as many were concerned about Winans and his well-being in the aftermath of the carjacking, we should all be equally concerned about the escalating crime rate in our city, and the senseless taking of lives. 

We should be concerned about the young woman who was raped in view of her child in broad daylight on Detroit’s west side. 

Children and adults are dying in horrific numbers, and the perpetrators of the crimes are usually young Black men. 

The young men who attacked Rev. Winans did not know who their victim was, despite his being a prominent figure, seen often on television and in the print media. It says something much deeper: how out of touch they are with the real world outside of their own underworld of violence and mayhem. 

If those young men had been properly steered on a right, productive path they would not have become carjackers. 

If properly brought up in a nurturing environment and having the self-confidence to know they can be whoever they choose to be, they would not be lured into a world of crime and drugs. 

Yes, they must bear personal responsibility, but as a community we also bear responsibility. Churches in particular cannot sit on the sidelines, claiming that parents have all of the responsibility. 

What happened to the communal spirit that made each of us responsible for the other? Our brother’s keeper.

What happened to the church that was once the center of our life and thus took a prominent role in the well-being of our children – the future leaders? 

Truth be told, Rev. Winans’ attack brought the violent crime in Detroit to the doorstep of the church, and has prompted many in the clergy to call for some kind of action, and knowing that they could be the next victim. 

The church has long been the center of transformation and at this crucial time cannot ignore its role in the community. The engagement has to reflect a broader embrace of children who are often treated as outcasts.  They need not be. 

The interest has to go beyond  church members focusing on their own well-being. After all, the church’s Biblical mandate is to go in search of the lost, not the saved. 

We have lost young Black males walking down the streets like lions looking for someone to devour. They need to be saved and mentored into understanding that they have great potential, they need not rob, sell drugs or kill. 

If their homes did not remind or inculcate in them that sense of personal responsibility, the church can help them develop a clear path to the future. Because the Black church historically has been the guiding light for our communities. 

If there was ever a time for the church to demonstrate its power, it is now when Black children are dying and adults are  being killed by their own children. 

To be commended are the group of clergy members, including Bishop Edgar Vann, as well as members of the law enforcement community and other leaders who last week launched an initiative called Detroit Night Walk to fight crime.  

We can create change and help those young Black males trapped at the crossroads of drug dealing and carjacking. I believe that we can transform young Black males who believe they have no alternatives and no future. 

In the words of the hip-hop icon and street poet Tupac Shakur, we can make these young Black males “the rose that grew from concrete,” because by virtue of being a Black male they already live under the heavy weight of stereotypes just as we saw in the Trayvon Martin case. 

Our young Black males — and anyone who is raising a Black boy is aware of this reality — are already facing an image battle, and many of them are holding our community hostage. 

The church can liberate the hostage taker and the hostages. 

Bankole Thompson is the editor of the Michigan Chronicle and the author of a six-part series on the Obama presidency, including “Obama and Black Loyalty,” published last year. His latest book is ”Obama and Christian Loyalty” with an epilogue written by Bob Weiner, former White House spokesman. His upcoming books in 2012 are “Obama and Jewish Loyalty” and ”Obama and Business Loyalty.” Listen to him every Thursday morning on WDET 101.9 FM Detroit and every Sunday, 9 to 10 p.m., on “The Obama Watch” program on WLIB 1190 AM-New York. E-mail  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . 

Novi Mayor Bobb Gatt announced this morning that the state fair is “coming back to Michigan,” although it has a new name, a new location and no state funding.

• Map of the Great Lakes State Fair

The event, which organizers have named the Great Lakes State Fair, will be held Aug.31-Sept.3 at Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi. Organizers said this new event is revitalizing the Michigan State Fair, which closed in 2009 because of the lack of funding.

Organizers acknowledge the new event will be a smaller version of the original, while featuring many of the same elements: a midway, carnival rides, livestock and produce exhibits, a beer tent and entertainment.

The new event will also feature a Shriner’s Circus in the parking lot.

Advance tickets cost $25 for adults and children over 12; $20 for children.

Detroit — Mayor Dave Bing is not expected to veto the City Council's amendments to his 2012-13 budget, in contrast to the squabbles that marked previous years.

Bing staffers officially received the $1.1 billion budget Tuesday afternoon and have until Friday to return the document to the panel. Mayoral spokeswoman Naomi Patton declined comment.

But Council President Charles Pugh said Tuesday he isn't expecting problems this year, unlike the past two years when back-and-forth debate over the budget lasted another month after its initial approval. The difference this year is an improved revenue consensus process, which sets the amount of money available to be spent, Pugh said.

"That was the main source of the conflict (before)," he said. "I'm glad we're avoiding the (drama) this year. What citizens need is a responsible budget."

The council last week approved the budget, keeping much of Bing's proposed $250 million in cuts intact but restoring some departments slated for elimination. The fiscal year starts July 1.

The council passed the budget 6-3, with members JoAnn Watson, Kwame Kenyatta and Brenda Jones dissenting. Bing's proposed budget eliminates 2,566 positions, reduces the city's deficit by $75 million and includes a 10 percent pay cut for police officers. It reduces Police Department spending by $75 million to $340 million and cuts officer staffing to about 2,950 through attrition and work rule changes.

The council decided to restore funding to the Law Department; keep the Human Rights Department; provide funding in General Services to maintain comfort stations at Belle Isle; put back $2.3 million to the Elections Department to cover presidential year expenses; and fund the Health & Wellness Promotion Department while they study an outside entity to run it.

"Obviously (Bing) is getting most of what he believes is fiscally necessary to at least get through this year," said political analyst Eric Foster. "He believes this can work. Council made changes, but it ended up close to balancing out what (Bing) wanted in terms of the budget. It's going in the right direction."

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120530/METRO01/205300354#ixzz1wMKn4YAJ

The annual watering hole gathering of Michigan’s top civic, business, labor, education, government, political and foundation leaders is set to begin.
This three-day event, The Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference, draws up to 1,500 of Michigan’s “movers and shakers.”
Beginning Tuesday, they will eat, drink and mingle on the world’s largest porch at the Grand Hotel to gab about the state’s problems and opportunities. There is no shortage of either.

Will this year be different, or will the confab once again be an annual “pogo stick convention”? Will this be yet another gathering of well-intended people where lots of jumping up and down occurs without any real forward movement?

The event is well organized and features great speakers with a solid agenda. The leaders, Sandy Baruah, president of the Chamber, and conference chair Nancy M. Schlichting, CEO of Henry Ford Health System (winner of the 2011 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award), are extremely able and talented people.

A year’s worth of networking with influential decision makers can be accomplished in three short days on the island. But shouldn’t successful business performance be measured by results rather than by jibber-jabber, schmoozing and socializing?

The theme song from past Mackinac Policy Conferences should be borrowed from country sensation Toby Keith’s CD, “Whole lotta talk ... not much action.”

Since 1981, our top leaders have been gathering on the island of horses and fudge, but to what end? What has been accomplished?

This is not a slam at the Detroit Regional Chamber, which is to be commended for creating a forum for discussion of issues impacting Michigan. Everyone who attends, however, needs to pull out a mirror and take a look — everyone shares the blame for the lack of tangible results.

If government, education and the nonprofit human services community had hosted this 31-year gathering, the business community would be quick with their ridicule and scorn for the lack of results.

Results should matter! Or are we in a collective state of denial?

Michigan has a historical, almost cultural unwillingness to say that the “emperor has no clothes.” Through the years, we have been either unwilling or unable to take on many real problems and to demand real solutions.

Gov. Rick Snyder started off strong in his desire to “reinvent” Michigan. Will he keep the reinvent Michigan pedal to the metal?

We need to stop pretending and worrying about offending. We need bold leadership, courageous action and positive results. Michigan must adapt to the 21st century global economy through innovation and collaboration in order to succeed.

Fareed Zakaria, CNN contributor, and Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times columnist, will be “keynoters” at the conference. They may want to remind the audience that while we dither, the world is moving forward. Michigan is two peninsulas — not an island.

I hope to see “relentless positive action” resulting from the 2012 Mackinac Policy Conference. In the absence of that, I hope attendees at least enjoy the fudge. No pun intended, my favorite is Rocky Road.

Tom Watkins is a former state mental health director and state superintendent of schools and is currently a US/China consultant. He can be reached at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. " 

Democracy is dead. That was the message leadership from Rainbow PUSH Michigan, and other civil rights groups wanted to spread Monday morning by staging a mock funeral for democracy at Galilee Baptist Church in Detroit. The rally attracted nearly 50 people and was a stark protest to Public Act 4 and the Michigan Board of Canvassers’ failure to certify a petition for a ballot measure to let residents vote on whether the City of Detroit should allow a state mandated finance team to take over the city’s money during it’s financial crisis.

The purpose of the event was to call attention to threats to democracy in financially vulnerable cities such as Detroit and to organize leadership to fight for voting rights.

“We hope to get the word out,” said Alexander Bullock, State Coordinator of Rainbow Push Michigan and President of the NAACP Detroit Chapter. 
“This is as much about saving the vote as it is about stopping violence,” he said, noting a correlation between political apathy and lawless behavior including violence.

Instead of appointing a nine-member board to take over Detroit’s finances or a state appointed emergency financial manager, Bullock believes the city should lobby for a federal intervention.

He noted a recent report that Jack Martin, the Chief Financial Officer of Detroit’s mandated financial advisory team, called for advice and administrative help from the Obama administration.

“If a ‘competent’ guy is saying we need help from the Obama administration, then what do we need a financial board for?” Bullock asked. He said Detroit needs to call for a federal plan that targets public safety and supports small businesses.

Other human rights groups agreed. “Selling our democratic rights at a cheap price just because we’re in a crisis is absurd,” said Dawud Walid, President of the Council for American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). “Public Act 4 is turning back the clock and disenfranchising American citizens,” He said, adding that state takeovers of Michigan cities have had a “disproportionate affect on people of color.”

The event was themed to bring attention to other voting rights issues such as voter suppression and voter suspension and challenging ballots as the 2012 presidential election draws closer.

Rev. Robert Smith, pastor at New Bethel Baptist Church, gave the eulogy at the mock funeral and said people need to become more educated on their rights. “I hope this wakes people up,” he said.