Stateside

In February, the Detroit News broke the story about allegations of abuse involving former University of Michigan sports doctor Robert Anderson. Since then, hundreds of men--and some women--have come forward to accuse Anderson of sexually assaulting them. Anderson worked at the University of Michigan from the mid-1960s until he retired in 2003. He died in 2008.

But survivors such as Jon Vaughn, who played football for UM and in the NFL, want to see institutions implement protections for students who are abused on their campus, especially in sports.

As people victimized by Dr. Robert Anderson continue to come forward, state legislators have been working on bills that allow survivors to seek justice through the courts. One of those lawmakers is Ryan Berman, a member of the Michigan House of Representatives.

Today on Stateside, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death last week sent shockwaves throughout the nation, both emotionally and politically. We talk to one of her former clerks about Ginsburg's legacy and what the future makeup of the Supreme Court means for Michigan. Plus, a former Michigan football player talks about the abuse scandal surrounding former sports doctor Robert Anderson, and the breadth of access our state institutions provide to abusers.

Today on Stateside, U.S. Representative Elissa Slotkin discusses how Congress is still struggling to get a COVID relief package through before the general election. Plus, we’ll hear about the evangelical Christians making a case against President Trump.

White evangelical Christian voters are all in for Donald Trump—or, at least, that's the conventional wisdom. And while the president continues to see high approval ratings among that group, there are some faith leaders who hope to convince religious voters to move away from Trump in the November election. The nonprofit group Vote Common Good is holding rallies across the state through next week to try and do just that. 

The wildfire season in the Pacific Northwest has been historic. With millions of acres of Western land up in flames, the trail of smoke has made its way to Michigan. It’s created strange and spectacular displays in the sky, especially at sunset. But Nick Schroeck says those beautiful colors hold an ugly truth: the impacts of climate change don’t stay in one spot.

On Stateside, how can schools keep COVID-19 cases under control on campus, while also holding in-person classes? Albion College is hoping that their pandemic pod model might be the answer. Also, why the spectacular skies caused by Western wildfires are a reminder of the collective stakes of climate change. And finally, we hear from members of an artist collective that questions white people's fascination with—and sometimes fetishization of—Indigenous culture.

On Stateside, the state Senate passed a bill this week that allows local and county clerks to begin preparing absentee ballots a day ahead of the election. We check in with two clerks on whether the state's election system is ready for a potential wave of absentee ballots as November approaches. Also, a Detroit Free Press reporter updates on the Big Ten’s decision to resume football this fall. Plus, a look at the legacy of the first Black faculty member at the University of Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre, and Dance.

The Big Ten has reversed course. There will be college football this fall.

The Big Ten announced Wednesday that the fall football season will begin October 23. The conference has not said when or if other fall sports will also get the go ahead. 

The Michigan Senate adopted a bill Tuesday that would allow many local governments to prepare absentee ballots the day before Election Day. They could then be opened and counted starting on Election Day.

That rule would only apply to cities of 25,000 or more residents.

Local clerks say that alone could shave hours off the process of tallying the ballots.

Today on Stateside, new data finds that colleges and universities are now Michigan's biggest COVID-19 hot spots. We talk to an epidemiologist about the challenges of containing campus outbreaks. Meanwhile, to make in-person learning safer, one Detroit school is moving all of its classrooms outside. Plus, one of the Detroit activists leading protests against police brutality talks about how the game changed this summer.

Members of the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO) at the University of Michigan have voted to continue their strike for another week. The university has called the strike a "profound disruption" to students' education, and has asked the Washtenaw County Circuit Court to order striking GEO members to return to work.

U of M filed a restraining order and preliminary injunction against GEO with the Wastenaw County Circuit Court. GEO leadership assured members that no individual is at risk because U of M filed an injunction, and promised to update its members as it has more information.

Today on Stateside, a petition aiming to curb the governor's executive powers is nearing the number of signatures it needs. And, graduate students at the University of Michigan are continuing their strike against the school over concerns about COVID-19 regulations and precautions. Plus, a conversation with the director of Michigan Opera Theatre about how he plans to add to Detroit’s illustrious musical legacy.

The Michigan Opera Theatre has a new artistic director: renowned opera director and MacArthur Fellowship recipient Yuval Sharon. He’s bringing his experimental approach to Detroit right from the start: his first project at the helm of the organization will be a condensed, drive-in staging of Richard Wagner’s Twilight of the Gods, set in a parking structure. Stateside spoke with Sharon, who is succeeding the theatre’s late founder David DiChiera, about his work and his hopes for how opera can evolve in the years to come.

Today on Stateside, we check-in with Crain’s Detroit Business about the latest in vaccine development for COVID-19. Plus, we talk to a hip-hop artist from Detroit whose career was just picking up steam when the pandemic came crashing down on the music industry. And we ask parents and kids how they're handling the new school year.

At this point, nearly all Michigan students are back in class for the fall semester, through Zoom meetings, physically distanced instruction, or shepherding from grownups at home. As the COVID-19 pandemic forces teachers and families to navigate a new world of education, Stateside checked in with parents feeling their way through the first days of a back-to-school season unlike any other.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes we’ve all had to learn to make do with whatever we happen to have at home. That’s what Tammy Coxen of Tammy’s Tastings had to do to make a new cocktail recipe she found.

It all started with peaches being in season.

Today on Stateside, a violinist from the Grand Rapids Symphony talks about rehearsing without an ensemble, and other oddities of 2020. Plus, we talk about the shift in Michigan’s car culture.

On Stateside, a church in Romeo grapples with systemic and politically motivated vandalism. And, what six months of COVID have looked like. Plus, we continue a focus on Detroit Month of Design with a conversation with the winner of the Design in the City competition.

June Teisan isn't a fan of national standardized testing for K-12 kids under the best of circumstances.

During a pandemic, when many school districts are offering remote instruction, she says it's unconscionable. But U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy Devos says she will not grant waivers to states like Michigan that want to skip the testing this year.

Way up in the Andes mountains sits a little bit of East Lansing. On the Cerro Pachón mountain in Chile, the Southern Astrophysical Research, or SOAR, telescope looks out at the stars. It’s a partnership between four institutions including the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Michigan State University. Talk about working remotely.

Today on Stateside, U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos says Michigan students need to take standardized tests this year. We check-in with an educator and an administrator who have thought a lot about the role of testing. Then, Detroit's creative pros talk about what design has to offer during a time of crisis. And, Michigan State takes stargazing to high heights.

Today on Stateside, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson discusses the state's preparedness for a deluge of absentee ballots ahead of the November election, and how the new redistricting commission is shaping up. And a Michigan MC hangs up the mic to spend time on herself and her family.

The state is moving forward with preparations for redistricting following the passage of Proposal 2 in 2018. The ballot initiative established the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, which is tasked with redrawing Michigan’s congressional districts based on the 2020 census. Thirteen people—none of whom are political officeholders—were randomly chosen for the commission, which will be overseen by Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s office. 

Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden picked up a cross-party endorsement Thursday from Republican former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder.

Snyder published an op-ed in USA Today explaining his support for Biden and disappointment in President Donald Trump's leadership. He wrote that Trump is a bully who doesn't represent the interests of all Americans, rather, just his supporters.

Today on Stateside, Michigan’s political world got baked into an upside down cake on Thursday as former Republican Governor Rick Snyder endorsed Joe Biden, and Democrat Mark Hackel threw his support behind a push to limit Governor Whitmer’s emergency powers. We'll talk to a reporter covering the party-flipping endorsements. Plus, we hear from a Detroit child care provider who is feeling the financial pressure as the pandemic continues and parents remain at home. 

In the latest edition of National Geographic, you'll find a big spread dedicated to exploring how ice coverage has dramatically decreased on the Great Lakes over the past 40 years. The photos you'll see, of not-so-solid lakes, and people navigating warmer Michigan winters, were taken by Detroit photojournalist Amy Sacka.

Before 1968, most Americans had never heard music played on a synthesizer, which was then still an emerging technology. Many would also have said at the time that they didn’t know anyone who was transgender. All that began to change, though, when composer Wendy Carlos released her debut album, Switched-On Bach.

Today on Stateside, the Yemeni community in Hamtramck recently marched with Detroit Will Breathe protesters through the city and into Detroit. We spoke with an editor of the Yemeni American News about the community and their role in the protests. Plus, a new biography about Wendy Carlos, the woman who changed electronic music and reset the boundaries for composition.

Southeast Michigan – specifically cities like Hamtramck and Dearborn – is known as a hub of Arab American culture. But that group is not a monolith. Individual ethnic groups have their own cultures, cuisines, and stories about how they settled down in Michigan. That includes the more than 30,000 Yemeni Americans living in the region.