State Rep. John Olumba, I-D, Detroit, says he wants to lead Detroit. In an interview with the Michigan Citizen, Olumba said he wants to lead the troubled city into an “age of revival.” “I’m encouraged because we’ve always shown our ability to bounce back,” he said. But he questions the record of some of the candidates. “Are we going to go with someone who’s been a part of the political establishment? Across ...

Detroit Emergency Manager Kevin Orr issued his first report on the city’s financial emergency May 13. The report was issued after Orr’s first 45 days in office. For many, Orr’s report did not reveal much new information on the city’s financial emergency. According to the report, city debt is about $15 billion. The city is spending more than it is taking in. It has a structural deficit with revenue falling e ...

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing will not run again for mayor but is considering a run for Wayne County executive. In a speech at the Charles H. Wright African American History Museum May 14, Bing said he had an “unwavering devotion” to the city and announced that he would not seek reelection but would form an exploratory committee for a county run. It is not clear if he could or would be a resident of Wayne County ...

The not so “Great Gatsby” film was a celebration of whiteness and class bias. Damn, “Gatsby” reminded me of what is happening to the city of Detroit right now. White folk are cheering and partying, flaunting the law of the land pouring ‘em down, while their minstrel Emergency Manager has the stage. Bright media driven lights bounce all around the democracy destroying event of our times as we listen to the d ...

The Office of the Emergency Manager issued its Financial and Operating Plan for the City of Detroit. It is a limited document. As predicted, it states Detroit is in financial trouble. It repeats the concern for the $15 billion in long-term debt and adds that the city was out of money as of April 26, having $64 million in cash but $226 million in obligations. It goes on to tell us that much of the city is “d ...

Martin Luther King High School junior infielder Avonte Maddox started last Friday’s game between King and Western International with a triple and scored on a wild pitch in the first inning. That play was the only offensive highlight for the Crusaders the entire game. The Cowboys erupted for nine runs in their half of the first with starting pitcher sophomore Joshua Armstrong en route to a 16-1 drubbing of K ...

WEEK#4 Girls Softball Monday, April 29 PSL East Cass Tech 15, Denby 0 East English Village 15, Pershing 0 King 25, Osborn 18 Southeastern over DIA (Forfeit) ...

Wayne County Commissioner Martha G. Scott is the new chairperson for the 13th Congressional District. Scott’s May 4 victory follows much controversy over leadership within the new district, represented by Congressman John Conyers. At the Feb. 23 elections during the state’s Democratic Party convention, Rev. D. Alexander Bullock emerged the 13th’s victor. Another candidate for the position, Frazier Kimpson, ...

On the 40th anniversary of the arrest of ex-political prisoner in exile Assata Shakur for the death of New Jersey Police Officer Werner Foerster, the FBI added Shakur to their Most Wanted Terrorist List, making her the first woman and second domestic terrorist to make the list. In additon, the NJPD contributed $1 million to the FBI’s $1 million bounty on Shakur. The following is an open letter from Assata S ...

Over the May 18-19 weekend, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History will celebrate the 88th birthday of Malcolm X, who was born May 19, 1925, and killed Feb. 21, 1965. On Saturday, the film “Make it Plain” will be shown and my old friend Bill Strickland, University of Massachusetts professor, will be speaking. Sunday afternoon, I will speak briefly about why honoring Malcolm in the 21st cen ...