Stateside

Many Americans watched in horror as rioters stormed the US Capitol on Jan 6. That includes immigrants to this country. That day, many of them saw the same kind of political instability they came here to escape. Today, voices and sentiments from immigrants in the Detroit area on the insurrection at the Capitol, and some of their hopes for the inauguration.  GUEST: Beenish Ahmed, Michigan Radio reporter NOTES: Stateside’s theme music is by 14KT. Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions...

Martin Luther King's time at the Detroit Walk to Freedom in June of 1963 came several months before the famous March on Washington. And yet, this was the place where people would first hear some of the language and themes that would power the iconic "I Have a Dream" speech, and galvanize the nation for change. GUEST:  Ken Coleman, Detroit journalist and author of On This Day: African-American Life in Detroit  Stateside’s theme music is by 14KT. Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions...

Detroit’s Martin Solis, a Tejano music pioneer, never recorded any of his songs. Or at least that’s what most people thought. Now Third Man Records (Jack White’s label) is releasing some of those recordings. On Today’s episode we’ll talk about the legacy of Martin Solis and his band Los Primos. GUESTS: Frank Solis, son of Martin Solis Eddie Gillis, Third Man Pressing Music by Los Primos courtesy of Third Man Records. Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions...

Today, former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and several people in his administration face criminal charges for their parts in the Flint Water Crisis. On today’s episode, we’ll talk about the legal case against the former state officials and what it might mean to Flint residents who have been waiting for justice for nearly seven years...

Now that teachers are eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, Governor Gretchen Whitmer says she wants schools to start offering in-person learning for students by March. But that depends on those vaccines actually getting to educators. On today’s episode, we’ll talk to a reporter about how quickly that might actually happen. You’ll also hear from teachers themselves about what this year of pandemic learning has been like for them...

On today's episodes, you'll hear about the latest developments with Enbridge’s controversial Line 5 pipeline in the Straits of Mackinac. Plus, environmentalists worry ballast water rule changes put the Great Lakes at risk of more invasive species.  GUESTS: Lester Graham, Michigan Radio reporter  Marc Smith, Policy Director National Wildlife Federation Stateside theme music is by 14KT. Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions...

Michigan is one of just a handful of states that doesn’t restrict guns in their statehouses. But in the wake of violent riots in D.C. last week, that’s changing. Today, the Michigan Capitol Commission voted to ban the open carry of firearms in the statehouse. The proposal did not address concealed pistols. But it’s still a huge move for a state that has been very resistant to banning any weapons inside of the people’s building...

When Donald Trump told that crowd to go march on the Capitol saying they needed to show strength, he set off an unprecedented chain of events. It’s led us to a moment in which just about everyone has had to make a decision: what’s the appropriate response to all this?  On today’s episode, we’ll talk about US Education Secretary Betsy DeVos's resignation and also put this moment into a historical context with presidential historian, Gleaves Whitney...

President Donald Trump has spent months stoking outrage among his supporters with false claims about election fraud. Yesterday, that anger exploded in a terrifying and chaotic scene at the U.S. Capitol. A mob of pro-Trump extremists breached police and stormed into the House and Senate chambers...

In a year marked by contentious partisan divisions, maybe the one thing Michigan Republicans and Democrats seem to agree on is criminal justice reform. Governor Whitmer earlier this week signed into a bipartisan package of major criminal justice reforms that addressed issues like mandatory minimum and penalties for driving on a suspended license. Meanwhile, Washtenaw County became the first in the state to move toward eliminating cash bail for most criminal cases...