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THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE

Dateline

One is forced to wonder if

there is a concerted effort by the media to bury Detroit alive despite the efforts being made by committed, hardworking men and women to change the current economic and politi- cal climate.

Hansen talked about the

city’s old train station stand- ing in ruins for years as an example of how economically destabilized Detroit is. But he woefully failed to mention the Matty Maroun connection to that train station and why it is in its present condition.

Why? Is it because Maroun is

a powerful transportation mogul, almost an omnipotent White businessman who is untouchable by the media?

Is it because the reporter

EMMETT STEWART now works at GM’s Brownstown plant after being laid off from a job making convertible tops for the Pontiac G6.

Earth Day

It’s not that Detroiters don’t

recognize the importance of environmental friendly ini- tiatives. I’d imagine if polled, most would agree that if we don’t get a better grasp of how much of the world’s natural resources we use, we won’t have much of it around in the future.

That’s pretty much common

knowledge. But when strug- gling to meet basic needs like making sure you have a roof over your head and food on the table, it’s kind of hard to see the benefits of “going green” aside from cashing in on those empty cans or bottles.

“It is difficult for people to

see that stuff when they are starving,” said Taja Sevelle, executive director and found- er of the Detroit based Urban Farming, whose grassroots organization focuses on em- powering the community with food, skills and job training through community gardens.

Truth is, though, there are

a lot more benefits we need to consider.

THINK AGAIN

“Detroit needs to be able to

attract global investors. That’s going to be critical to the growth of the city,” said Sev- elle. “One of the things they

stown Battery Assembly Plant that will assemble bat- tery packs for the company’s highly anticipated electric car, the Chevy Volt will employ about 100 people assembling lithium ion battery cells pro- viding new opportunities for people like Emmett Stewart, who was hired at the plant after being laid off from a job making convertible tops for the Pontiac G6.

The Volt, which goes on

sale later this year, is being manufactured at GM’s Detroit- Hamtramck Assembly Plant.

A $450 million investment

by Ford at its Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti Township and plans to build a plug-in hybrid and battery elec- tric version of the Ford Focus at the automaker’s Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne is expected to create 1,000 new jobs in the state by 2012.

The Korean based LG Chem

has announced it will invest $300 million in a Holland, Michigan battery plant that is expected to employ over 400 workers by 2013. LG Chem will use the new facility to supply battery packs and cells for both GM and Hyundai-Kia vehicles, including the Chevy Volt and the upcoming Hyun- dai Sonata hybrid.

From page A-1

an hour. “We are feeding a lot of

people, entrepreneurship and educational programs, and training people for the green- ing of Detroit,” said Sevelle.

Bliss Cuerton, founder

of The Green Bliss Group, is spearheading an Earth Day celebration entitled the Urbane Group Networking Event in Detroit’s Historic Corktown district with Good- ness Gracious floral arrange- ments and other Detroit-based environmental organizations and business.

The Green Bliss Group fo-

cuses on bringing more aware- ness to environmental con- cerns indoors.

“Most people aren’t aware

of the pollutions we consume indoors,” said Cuerton. “We actually consume more haz- ardous toxics in the schools, work and home.”

WORTH CELEBRATING

The Earth Day celebration

in Detroit’s Corktown will be held on April 22-23 and will include guest speaker Scott Gregory Minos, senior Policy & Communications specialist from the U.S. Department of Energy.

The event seeks to estab-

lish business-to-business in- teraction as well as being an avenue for dialogue between businesses and consumers about environmental initia- tives, said Cuerton.

“The idea is to bring more

awareness to green initiatives in Detroit,” said Cuerton. “We do have some positive things going on in the city. This event is also geared toward supporting environmentally friendly Detroit and Michigan based businesses.”

Urban Farming will cele-

brate Earth Day in Detroit on May 1 by cleaning up Farwell Park on Eight Mile Road in conjunction with Motor City Makeover.

look at is how green a city is, how clean it is and what the practices are in the city to help keep the air clean. That’s important for every Detroiter who wants to see Detroit have a major comeback.”

The idea of limited resourc-

es is the other side of the coin, explained Sevelle.

“We are all connected,”

said Sevelle. “We are all rely- ing on each other. When one city goes down, it affects the state, it affects the United States, it affects the world. We need to be thinking global and how and we are affecting each other and how we are affecting the planet.”

Even more, the push to “Go

Green” is ushering in more jobs in Michigan, which the state is in dire need of.

THE GREEN IN GREEN

The $43 million GM Brown-

Mourned

James’ love for the commu-

nity was driven by his charita- ble spirit. He established Pro- Care Health Plan Inc, which offers services to under-in- sured, uninsured and Medic- aid patients in Detroit.

A wake for James will be

held on April 21 from 4 to 9 p.m., and April 22 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Swanson Funeral Home.

The Nigerian- born James

said he decided to become a doctor after being treated for nearly-fatal double pneumonia by a Dublin-educated Nigerian doctor at age 10.

In 2008, he told the Michi-

gan Chronicle that he decided to provide health care ser- vices to those in need for two key reasons: he was dissat- isfied with a particular HMO

he declined to name, and for him health care is his busi- ness, and his patients are like family.

James earned a bachelor’s

degree in pharmacy in 1974 from Columbia University, and subsequently a doctor- ate in pharmacy from Wayne State University and a medi- cal degree from Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Subsequent to that, he re- turned to Wayne State to spe- cialize in internal medicine at the Detroit Medical Center. He opened his own practice in 1987.

As of 2008 he was working

on opening an HMO in Nige- ria.

James currently has six

clinics in the city. He also has other doctors in his multi-spe-

According to published re-

ports, Michigan could capture a total of 32,000 new jobs by 2020 through the auto indus- try’s adoptions of “clean tech- nologies,” including hybrid and electric vehicles.

The Recovery Act Funding

grant will provide $1.3 billion in Michigan to support the next generation of batteries and electric vehicle manufac- turing and development.

The Greening of Detroit,

a non-profit outreach group, offers a number of green ini- tiatives, including a Garden Resource Program Collabora- tive that sponsors workshops each year to provide individual urban gardeners with train- ing in key topics ranging from greenhouses to irrigation.

Urban Farming provides job

training in new job opportuni- ties emerging in the area that pay anywhere from $20 to $75

The key in getting more De-

troiters to realize the benefits of environmentally friendly initiatives, said Cuerton, is to continue to put the green issue in a context where resi- dents can’t see the benefits.

“People are visual,” she

said. “They have to see how the idea works to empower them socially, economically and environmentally. They all work hand-in-hand, day-to- day.”

Urban Farming is building

on its green initiative this year with the equivalent of starting 800 new gardens in Detroit of roughly 1,000 or more new ones around the world. The initiative will require signifi- cant manpower that will put more people to work in addi- tion to providing neighbor- hoods with food.

“This is not about just sur-

viving, it’s about thriving,” said Sevelle.

From page A-1

cialty practice, which includes o.b./gyn, pediatrics, family practice, and internal medi- cine, who work for him.

A traditional Nigerian fu-

neral service will take place April 22 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Redeemed Christian Church of God Winners Chapel, 13980 Greenfield. Funeral services will be at Sacred Heart Catho- lic Church, 1000 Eliot, at 11 a.m. on April 23. Entombment will be at Elmwood Cemetery.

James is survived by his wife Robin Kole-James and chil- dren.

In lieu of flowers, the com-

munity is being encouraged to donate to the Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts of which James served as a board member.

thinks that Detroiters cannot read between the lines of their very subjective and prejudicial reporting?

This type of omission is

one reason there is a growing suspicion that the media is never up to any good when it comes to Detroit.

It is the same reason why

a lot of people are no longer watching the news and read- ing the newspapers, choosing instead to tell their own sto- ries through the blogsphere.

If the media, which is sup-

posed to be that sacred fourth estate, is now a fifth column, then it is justified when people look to the Internet for infor- mation instead of the clearly filtered, biased news organs.

Hansen owed his viewers the

responsibility of an accurate picture of the city. He men- tioned the 1967 riot in pass- ing (perhaps it was not that significant to him as far as De- troit’s political and economi- cal evolution is concerned), a cunning way to dance around the issue of race.

At the center of Hansen’s re-

porting is Cordette Grantling, who has been raising aban- doned children despite having a meager income. But the spirit that Grantling exempli- fies is the same zest and dy- namism maintained by those who have chosen not to leave Detroit despite the constant bashing by the media.

All Hansen had to do was

find more people who per- sonify Grantling’s spirit, but he instead went in search of the most extreme situations which can be found anywhere in New York, Chicago, Wash- ington, DC, and any other city where there is a large under- class.

The portrayal of Detroit on

“Dateline NBC” was primitive with its ever-present racial un- dertones taking the city to the dark ages, a stark reminder of how the media succeeded in blindfolding African Ameri- cans about Africa with its “Tarzan ape” image of another misunderstood continent.

Hansen showed an older

Detroiter who kills raccoons for his own consumption and also sells them to survive in the economically depressed climate. Lest we forget, Blacks were once referred to as “coons.”

When you portray a majority

African-American city in such a decayed and animal-like manner and the only solution

Hooks

year-old Dr. Hooks as “simply the greatest living person to have served as executive direc- tor and CEO of the NAACP.”

Hooks was also a Baptist

minister, a lawyer, an FCC commissioner, a businessman and a judge. But he was best known as a civil rights leader who resurrected the nation’s oldest civil rights organization as its longtime executive di- rector from 1977 to 1992.

A viewing for Hooks took

place April 19 at Greater New Mt. Moriah Baptist Church (in Detroit) where the Rev. Ken- neth Flowers, current pastor, praised Hooks’ contribution to the Civil Rights Movement. His funeral was set for April 21 in Memphis.

Under Hooks’ leadership,

the organization led the way of pressuring Congress to pass the extension of such landmark legislation such the civil rights and voting rights bills. Also, NAACP’s member- ship base reportedly grew by hundreds of thousands during his tenure.

President Obama called

Hooks a “true trailblazer” who, as the first African American to serve as a criminal court judge in Tennessee and to serve on the Federal Communications Commission, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his work, in 2007.

“As I was running for this office, I had the honor of

to the city, according to the report, is help from the sub- urbs, undercutting the efforts of groups and organizations based here that are working tirelessly, why won’t others call your reporting racist?

Why didn’t Hansen inter-

view City Year Detroit, New Detroit Inc, City Connect De- troit, Detroit Parent Network, Michigan Welfare Rights Orga- nization, Community Develop- ment Advocates of Detroit and many others? He could have talked to the Detroit Regional Chamber, the largest business group of its kind in the nation headquartered in Detroit.

Hansen could have sat

down with Faye Nelson of the Detroit Riverfront Conservan- cy to find out what is being done to attract families to the downtown area in the summer months.

But interviewing these or-

ganizations would not make for a titillating interview for “Dateline.” It is not the kind of interview that will create a jaw- drop for his national audience which forces us to wonder what the editorial agenda of that reporting was?

In the last two years Detroit

has seen two new hotels in the downtown area. The Book Ca- dillac Westin and the Double- tree hotels are signs that busi- nesses are not giving up on Detroit.

One of the owners of the

Doubletree, Emmett Moten, has been at the center of Detroit’s economic and po- litical journey for decades. A former development czar for ex-mayor Coleman Young, and a once instrumental figure to the creation of the Illitch busi- ness empire in Detroit, Moten could have schooled Hansen about Detroit and where it is today.

So why did Hansen miss

the developments of these two hotels in his reporting?

The Detroit Metro Conven-

tion and Visitors Bureau just struck a deal for Detroit to host the 2015 American Soci- ety of Association Executives conference, expected to gener- ate $2.8 billion in revenue for this area.

Why was this important

news development missing in the one-hour special?

Maybe the editors and pro-

ducers of “Dateline NBC” do not see such developments important enough to merit in- clusion in a report that puts a major city’s reputation and spirit at stake on the national stage.

In June of this year, Detroit

will host the 2010 U.S. Social Forum, the gathering of activ- ists, social justice advocates, progressive politicians and policy makers. This gathering will bring about 20,000 visi- tors to the city and generate a significant economic stimu- lus.

Yet Kid Rock tells “Date-

line” that Detroit is a “ghost town” which is an insulting description by someone who professes to love the city. If Detroit is, as he said, a “ghost town,” why are major busi- nesses and companies still here?

If Detroit is such an empty

town to the extent that it is be- coming unlivable as the “Date-

From page A-1

spending some time with Dr. Hooks, and hearing about his extraordinary place in our American story,” said Obama.

Speaker of the House Nancy

Pelosi said that Hooks helped shape the modern-day Civil Rights Movement.

“With great patriotism,

he led the day-to-day efforts to root out discrimination and injustice and worked on behalf of equality and oppor- tunity for all Americans for more than half of a century,” Pelosi said. “Dr. Hooks had a remarkable career, as a judge, an FCC commissioner and as a minister.”

Senate Majority Leader

Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Hooks’ “contributions reso- nate within the African-Ameri- can community but will have a lasting impact on all Ameri- cans.”

Rev. Wendell Anthony, pres-

ident of the Detroit Branch NAACP, said, “Our nation has lost not only a voice for the neglected and rejected, but a giant who fought for racial equality. Known for his wit and humor but also for his laser-like precision on issues that blocked the upward mo- bility of people of color, the passing of Dr. Hooks leaves a void in the civil rights com- munity.”

April 21-27, 2010 Page A-4

From page A-1

line” report attempted to sell to its national audience, why are all the major universities in this region, University of Michigan,Wayne State Univer- sity, Michigan State, enhanc- ing their foothold on the city?

What we witnessed in the

“Dateline NBC” report is yet another example of the on- slaught of pseudo-journalism and the handsome salaries paid to those who practice it.

Those who are concerned

and have a stake in the ter- rible image that was presented about Detroit on “Dateline” cannot keep silent. They should respond vigorously and demand objective coverage by hurling piercing shards of fact, logic and history of the city’s present state.

When I look back on the

reporting of Hansen, it seems like Grantling, the woman raising abandoned children, was used a pawn on a larger scheme to scare businesses, development and families away from the city.

But again, for those who

are familiar with the different harbingers of the media evolu- tion will know that this latest Hansen report is another re- minder of journalism’s decay. That the true ideals of journal- ism are sacrificed for stories that are woefully lacking in facts and balance.

Joseph Pulitzer, journal-

ism pioneer, called for an ac- curate press.

“Put it before them briefly

so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, pictur- esquely so they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light,” Pulitzer said.

Certainly if Detroit is to be

guided by the light of reports such as Hansen’s, we might as well turn off the lights and leave the city.

Last Friday Wayne State Uni-

versity School of Journalism honored Pulitzer Prize win- ning columnist Leonard Jr.; Lynette Clemetson, founding editor of the Root.com; Osama Siblani, publisher of the Arab American News; Walter Mid- dlebrook, assistant managing editor of the Detroit News; and myself with the Helen Thomas Spirit of Diversity Awards. The award is named after Thomas, dean of the White House Press Corps.

The students in attendance

heard from virtually every speaker on how significant diversity is. Because when stories like the one “Dateline” aired on Detroit are reported it underscores why we are fight- ing for diversity in the media. Because if we depended on the one-sided view of the Hansen- type reports, Detroit would be cast in the dark ages. Diverse voices in the media

help to unmask the kinds of subterfuge presented as spe- cial reports by media outlets that have shown what their editorial agenda is.

Watch senior editor Bankole

Thompson’s weekly show, “Center Stage,” on WADL TV 38, Saturdays at 1 p.m. This Saturday’s program, April 24, will feature a feature a special roundtable discus- sion about the “Dateline NBC” report on Detroit with Tony Mottley, Emmy Award-win- ning producer; Deidre Bounds of Brogan and Partners; and Bertram Marks of the Detroit Council of Baptist Pastors. E- mail bthompson@michronicle. com.

Conference

From page A-1

men who have fathered their daughters through a variety of means (ranging from the tradi- tional nuclear family to chal- lenges such as unemployment or incarceration) to attend the banquet and be honored.

With regard to men who are

doing their best to be a father to their children while incar- cerated, King participated in a program earlier this year where children were brought into prison to visit their fa- thers for a full day of activity. She learned that some fathers are able to maintain relation- ship with their children be- cause the children’s guard- ians will bring them in for visitation two to three times a month. The fathers are also able to keep connected with their children through e-mail and/or phone calls.

“It’s creative parenting, but

it’s fathers who want to stay in touch with their children,” King said.

This conference will become

an annual event of the Detroit Fathers and Families Coali- tion. The organization’s main focus is to try to bring educa- tional resources to fatherhood practitioners as well as to fa- thers and families in the Metro Detroit area. Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36