Stateside Daily Archive

Nandi Comer was recently appointed Michigan's poet laureate. Originally from Detroit, she's the first person to hold the title in decades. GUEST: Nandi Comer , author and poet laureate ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way . If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music from Blue Dot Sessions See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informatio...

Infighting in the MIGOP led, at least in one case, to an actual fight during an after-hours gathering in Clare. Bridge Michigan wrote about the scuffle between Party officials from Kalamazoo and Macomb.  GUEST: Jonathan Oosting , Bridge Michigan ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way . If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music from Blue Do...

If you’ve been in the international section of a supermarket, chances are you've seen La Choy products — maybe even bought some of their sauces or noodles. And while the brand's signature blue label and mimicry font are ubiquitous, it's origin story is not. The company was started in 1922 right here in Michigan. GUEST: Amy Elliott Bragg , assistant city editor at The Detroit News ___ Looking for m...

Last October we aired a story two weeks before the election in which voters were asked to decide whether to guarantee access to abortion in the Michigan state constitution. For this story, Michigan Radio reporter Kate Wells spent several days in a Michigan abortion clinic, speaking with women about what led them there. That story was recently nominated for a Peabody award. Voters passed Propositio...

Kids book author Kyunghee Kim of Ypsilanti talks about honoring the complex emotions and experiences of kids in her new book "See Us Bloom". GUEST: Kyunghee Kim , author and teacher -- Looking for more conversations from Stateside ? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The small town of Marshall has been rocked by the planned use of a large swath of land for a Ford battery plant. The Detroit News looked at the long shadow cast over land use in the community. You can read their story here . Today, how Ford's proposed battery manufacturing facility has the town of Marshall divided. GUESTS: Kalea Hall , Detroit News Jordyn Grzelewski , Detroit News See omnystudio.c...

The nearly unbelievable story of an amateur archeologist's massive and illegal collection and how a Michigan tribe stepped forward to reinter unidentified native remains. GUEST: Matthew Miller , Senior Reporter, MLive Matthew Bussler, Historic Preservation Officer for the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi -- Looking for more conversations from Stateside ? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the...

Among the most prestigious awards in poetry is the Whiting Award. And this year, the award went to Detroit native Tommye Blount, a writer known for his poetry collection Fantasia for the Man in Blue (2020) . He stopped in to discuss his work and future endeavors. GUEST: Tommye Blount, award-winning poet -- Looking for more conversations from Stateside ? Right this way. If you like what you hear on...

Michigan's 2019 auto no-fault reforms aren’t just hurting people who were injured prior to 2019, they've left out Michiganders injured today. Today on the pod: a new generation of crash survivors struggling to get the medical care they need. GUEST: Tracy Samilton , reporter at Michigan Radio  ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way . If you like what you hear on the pod,...

Over the weekend, U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk blocked the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, a drug used for medication abortion. The FDA had approved the drug back in 2000, but Judge Kacsmaryk ruled the decision to be invalid. Less than an hour later, U.S. District Judge Thomas O. Rice issued an opposing decision, ordering the FDA to maintain access to mifepristone. State-by-state tumul...

Coming in with a little something extra for you this weekend. Today, a story from one of our producers about a city in Michigan with a new plan to revitalize their downtown.  ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside?  Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider  supporting our work. Music from   Blue Dot Sessions .   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stateside's Studio Visits introduces you to artists across Michigan–and their workspaces. When you spend time where artists work, you can pick up a lot about what makes them tick, and what shapes their creative process. In this episode, we take you to the west side of the state to meet an artist whose work is transforming the landscape of public art–and making visible the lives of Michigan’s Indig...

One year ago this month, Patrick Lyoya, a Congolese immigrant, was fatally shot in the back of the head by a white Grand Rapids police officer.  It’s yet another instance of a officer using deadly force against a Black individual. Yet another reason to continue the conversation around training, racial bias, and accountability in our police departments.  Today, one year after that tragedy, we ask w...

Over 700-thousand customers of DTE and Consumers Energy lost power in an ice storm earlier this year. There’s since been a public outcry for state leaders to hold the power companies accountable. That pressure ratchets up as DTE faces scrutiny for its political spending.  We examine the relationship between the investor-owned utilities and state lawmakers. Plus one Democrat in the State House shar...

Walking in Michigan’s prairies, you may have seen a poweshiek skipperling – a small silvery butterfly – and not even known it. But the reality is their population is dropping at an alarming rate. We talk to a biologist who's trying to change that. GUESTS: David Pavlik , research associate at Michigan State University ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like wh...

How do you stage authentic looking intimacy in film and theater? How do you do this while advocating for the people starring in these roles? Today, a conversation with two Michigan State University professors who a book on the intimacy direction. It's called “Supporting Staged Intimacy: A Practical Guide for Theatre Creatives, Managers and Crew.” GUESTS: Tina M. Newhauser , head of the BFA program...

Jimmy Lee Hill is the executive chef instructor of Lakeland Correctional Facility's food service and culinary arts program. The training program, Hill, and his students are the subject of a new film called Coldwater Kitchen . The documentary offers a lens on modern corrections, and also the power of food in our culture. Today on the podcast, we revisited our original trip to Lakeland's kitchen bac...

In the debate over so-called "red flag" laws in the state, the subject of suicide is centered. Rural Michigan - as in the remote regions throughout the nation - suffers from the highest rates of suicide. And many of those deaths are caused by guns. Just as most gun-related deaths are self-inflicted. Advocates for red-flag laws say the change could help prevent many of those deaths. GUEST:  Pat Gal...

Democrats in control of the state Legislature think they can start to turn the tide of preventable gun death here in Michigan. But the thing about laws, is they have to be enforced to work. And not all county commissions want new laws on the books.   GUEST: Matthew (Matt) Saxton , Michigan Sheriffs’ Association  ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what yo...

This weekend, UAW members elected the next UAW president: Shawn Fain. And Fain’s taking a strong stance out of the gate – promising a more aggressive approach with automakers. So what does this new era of UAW leadership mean for auto workers, and for the automotive sector at large? GUEST:  Jamie LaReau , reporter at the Detroit Free Press ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right th...

Wayne County has a juvenile detention crisis. Last week Wayne County Executive Warren Evans declared it public health emergency. GUEST: Christine MacDonald, investigative reporter at the Detroit Free Press ___ Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music from Audio Network   and  Blue Dot Sessions . See omn...

What does accountability look like when a mass shooter is a minor?  In the case of the shooting at Oxford High School, the local county prosecutor is taking a unique approach: charging the alleged shooter’s parents. Today, we’ll talk about prosecutors’ strategy in this case, and the legal precedent it could set if it’s successful. GUEST:  Mike Nichols, criminal defense attorney in East Lansing and...

Today, a studio visit with collage artist Judy Bowman. In less than a decade, Bowman’s bright, textured collages have gained a national audience and collector base. She’s shown her art in New York, at Art Basel Miami, and her first solo exhibition, called “ Gratiot Griot ,” is currently wrapping up at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit. But despite her national fame, Bowman is, admittedly, a h...

In the aftermath of power outages that affected hundreds of thousands of people in February and March this year, many Michiganders are scrutinizing the state’s largest investor-owned utilities: DTE and Consumers Energy. Michigan’s Public Service Commission is holding town halls this week on the outages, and dozens of Michiganders have come forward to share their frustrations. Meanwhile, an Ann Arb...

Since the beginning of the pandemic, we’ve seen an uptick in alcohol related liver disease hospitalizations across the country. In Michigan that number increased by 50% in 2020. We've also seen an increase in younger people needing care. Today, the rising rates of alcohol consumption, the reasons behind it, and what people are doing to make a change. GUESTS: Austin Johnson , Construction inspector...