HIRAM E. JACKSON Publisher Chronicle PATREICE A. MASSEY Managing Editor | AJ WILLIAMS City.Life.Style. | Entertainment Editor

SAMUEL LOGAN JOHN H. SENGSTACKE LONGWORTH M. QUINN Publisher 1933-2011 Chairman-Emeritus 1912-1997 Publisher-Emeritus 1909-1989

CONTACT US iewpoint 1452 Randolph • , MI 48226 • (313) 963-8100 VA Real Times Media Newspaper July 31 - Aug. 6, 2019 | Page A-4 e-mail: [email protected] What Do Blacks Want…I Mean Really?! By NAACP reports We want our retirement programs and social security to be preserved when we A reporter asked me the other day in get ready to use it. It is our earned mon- preparing for the Democratic Candidates ey. It is not a special federal grant. Forum, what do black people want? It is not the first time I’ve been asked such a We want to be able to send our children transparent question. Black and brown to college that is affordable and won’t people are Americans, even though suffocate them with endless debt after many don’t want to recognize that fact. graduation. We didn’t fall out of the sky like man- We want jobs and opportunity for those na from heaven. Black folks, originally inside the neighborhood and those re- brought here on slave ships, have fought turning citizens coming back to the for and earned every right and privilege neighborhood. America has to offer. We are not some American aberration, nor are we a fig- We want an environment in which our ment of American imagination. Quite children will be able to get clean water, frankly, we want the same damn thing breath fresh air, and enjoy the beauty of that every other American wants. nature for future generations. First, we want to win! We want America to treat people seek- ing asylum in this nation humanely, We want a President with an administra- with dignity, and proper care, not in cag- tion that respects us, not just in word es but in communities We want fair and but in policy. open elections without voter suppres- We want a President that does not lie or sion or intimidation. Unions Built the Working Class – divide the people against each other. We want a nation that is respected We want a President that works to make around the world, not one that is reject- Let’s Support Them and Their Fight us better people, not bitter people. ed because of its behavior in the world. We want a President that will advocate Finally, we know that we deserve rep- By Sen. Adam Hollier The fact of the matter is this: Every not only for the middle and upper class, arations after 400 years of disparaging worker in Detroit and across Michi- but who will also remember the plight of treatment, racism, income inequality, In May 2013, I stood with fast food gan deserves to have a workplace that the poor and those left behind. unequal opportunity and blatant dis- workers as they went on strike in De- is safe. Unions have led to safer work crimination. This is not new. Other troit to fight for a $15 minimum wage sites. Every worker deserves fair and We want a President whose cabinet will groups have received such compensa- and union representation. true living wages. Unions fight for fair have folks that not only look like us but tion to repair past injuries – Japanese wages for a day’s work. And, for gener- who are advocates for our community. Americans, Native Americans, Jewish Six years later, more people have be- ations, thousands upon thousands of Americans, and others. Most of us are gun to galvanize around a $15 minimum We want to keep and expand our health workers in this state – union and non- not limiting our vote to this one issue. wage as well, but we sometimes forget care. Don’t end it, fix it! union – enjoyed employer-paid benefits, For many, that is not a deal breaker. For the people pushing, organizing and We want excellent schools that educate better-paying jobs, weekends and more some it could be a deal maker whether it sustaining that early movement were our children with good teachers and ad- because leaders and unions supported comes in effective policy or a paycheck unions and workers who know the value equate funding, right in our own neigh- the rise of a middle class. that we never received. The bottom line of union representation. borhoods. Unfortunately, that has already start- is we want a future that is economically Earlier this month — thanks to the ed to erode under a Republican-led legis- We want police officers that respect the sound, politically empowering, justice work of SEIU Local 1 — janitors and se- lature and the previous administration. rights of black people and won’t kill us oriented, and people prioritized. curity officers in were when stopped on the street, walking in a These things are not hard. It is not able to successfully negotiate a $15 The GOP has spent the last eight park, or shopping in a store. about your personality. It is about your minimum wage. years gutting citizen-led referendums intended to support all Michigan work- We want access to finances and to cap- policy. One can have all the personality Among them was Dolores, a 12-year ers and making back-door deals to bust ital to buy homes and to fund our busi- in the world but if you ain’t got no policy, veteran security officers born and raised up workers’ rights with the so-called nesses. can’t implement no policy, can’t unite in Detroit who is raising her 4-year-old “right to work” law. We want neighborhoods that are safe, folks around your policy, in the words of granddaughter and living in subsidized beautiful, and secure. the King of Soul James Brown, “You’re housing. She has worked more than one When the debate about this na- just talking loud but saying nothing!” job all her adult life and is still working tion’s and state’s future comes to part-time hours between two companies. Michigan next week, let’s let every- She’s one of the SecurAmerica officers one know: It’s not too late to get back who went on strike, and, after months to the playbook that built the mid- of being ignored by management, their dle class, and that time is now. BB Letters to the Editor action earned them a $15-an-hour mini- Workers should be allowed to organize, mum wage on July 5. and everyone deserves a fair, livable By Victor L. Marsh, Sr. be hard to beat in most American cities wage for a day’s work. A $15 minimum on Election Day. This week, U.S. Sen. Kamala Har- wage is one important part of the equa- Dear Editors: Democrats must be smart and strate- ris was in town and listened as Mattie tion. Hunter, another security officers, told I have mellowed since my retirement-- gic. They must also realize that #45 her story, demanding a voice in her We can do better when we work in -less grumpy, less stressed and pretty will make mince-meat out of Sanders, workplace. Thanks to SEIU Local 1 a US solidarity. much laid back these days. As Detroit Warren and everyone else outside of prepares to host the 20+ crowded field Biden-Harris in any debate/town hall Senator, and presidential candidate ac- Sen. Adam Hollier (D–Detroit) rep- of Democratic presidential candidates; format. The problem with Senator War- knowledged her leadership, echoed her resents citizens of the 2nd District in this grandfather gives pause to lessons ren and Senator Sanders, most Demo- words and showed her respect and dig- Wayne County that includes the cities learned over the past 40 years as an Ac- cratic insiders know that these folks nity. Sen Harris was clear and on target of Detroit, Grosse Pointe, Grosse Pointe tivist/Political Operative. will return to the Senate and not help saying “Unions built the middle class, Farms, Grosse Pointe Park, Grosse and we must hold corporations like Bed- the ticket win next November once they Pointe Woods, Hamtramck, Harper One thing is for certain---at the RNC lose, just ask Hillary. rock accountable to give every worker a Woods and Highland Park, and the Vil- right now there is a team of commu- voice and fair treatment.” lage of Grosse Pointe Shores. nication experts, radio, TV and image About the Author: Victor L. Marsh, Sr., analysts breaking down every negative 62, is the father of a 3-time Emmy-win- fact (or fiction) Democratic candidates ning Producer & Writer, John, and for- will hurl at each other now until their mer U. S. Diplomat, Victor, II, and the convention next Summer 2020. If Dem- grandfather of Josephine Eleanor of ocrats, do not get behind a Biden-Harris Silicon Valley. He is one of few individu- ticket, featuring Obama Veep and for- als in Detroit political history who has mer U. S. Senator Joe Biden and Oba- worked for a Wayne County Chairman, maesque U. S. Senator Kamala Harris; Five Detroit Mayors, Three Detroit City we will have hell to pay next November Council Presidents and a Detroit Board and beyond. of Education President and has nev- er lost a political campaign where he The Biden-Harris ticket unites old was the Campaign Manager of record. school versus new school, it also re- Marsh also spent 22 years as a drive- minds us that Democrats are more time radio talk show host for Golden diverse than the GOP will ever be at Mic award-winning The Queen’s “Back- least for another generation, anyway. to-Back” Show heard daily back-in-the Biden-Harris unites this country--East Raman Singh Rev. Stancy Adams Robert Bruttell on WQBH. Marsh & his wife, Cheryl, Coast and West Coast, young and old, reside in Detroit’s Rosedale Park. You And then they came for me... rich and poor, and a dynamic that will may reach him via Linked-In. Posters expressing anti-Semitism do with the brash ignorance of those found recently in Royal Oak and Bir- who want to rid American society of its mingham reflect the growing expression religious and social diversity, and revert of religious and cultural hatred in our back to the hatred of the antisemitic and society. The posters are attributed to the racist past? The Chronicle Cares... Atomwaffen Division, labeled as a ter- We who may be from other countries, Do you have a news tip, opinion piece, firsthand account, information or rorist hate group by the Southern Pov- or people of color, or religions unfamil- photos about a news story to pass along to our editors? Well we want to hear erty Law Center, one of 148 hate groups iar to Americans fear the underlying about it. in the , many of which are passion of the crowd’s chant “Send her linked to white nationalist ideology. Here’s how you pitch an idea to the back.” When will they call for us? When : It is especially disheartening that will they post threats to everyone other the president of the United States has than their definition of religion? • Briefly summarize your story idea. chosen to be a cheerleader for racism, We, of good faith and humane intent, • Briefly explain why you’re the right anti-Semitism and Nativism. Democ- should reflect on the poetic interpre- person to write the piece. What’s your racy and pluralism are not just quaint tation of the German Lutheran Pastor, American notions but rather they are relevant expertise or experience? Martin Neimoller, featured in the Unit- • Briefly explain why this argument or the core of what America is and what ed States Holocaust Memorial Museum. makes it great. To entertain and encour- Rev. Neimoller criticized German soci- story matters. What are the stakes age divisiveness, racism and Nativism ety for not resisting the rise of Nazi pow- here? risk breaking the bonds of affection that er in German. It is as relevant today as • Briefly outline how the piece will start sustain America as a nation, internally then: and end. If you have a draft, include it strong and worthy of respect interna- tionally. “First they came for the socialists, and I in the body of the email. did not speak out -- • Note clearly in the subject line what you’re pitching, using a clear, We who commit to improving the social fabric through healthy interfaith Because I was not a socialist. informative headline. engagement and education fear that the Then they came for the trade unionists, • Specify in the subject line if your pitch is time sensitive. growing expression of religious hate and and I did not speak out -- • Include a short description of your previous writing experience and links to racism is a grave threat to the survival of Because I was not a trade unionist. published clips, if relevant. American culture. It is built on embrac- Then they came for the Jews, and I did ing the cultural and religious differenc- not speak out -- Submit to [email protected] | Attn: Patreice Massey es that have enhanced this nation since Because I was not a Jew. its inception and promise to continue The fine Print: We’re not only interested in policy, politics or government. to do so, if not stifled by this dangerous Then they came for me -- and there was We’re interested in everything, if it’s opinionated and we believe our readers trend in our society. no one left to speak for me.” will find it worth reading. The InterFaith Leadership Council of Raman Singh, President The Michigan Chronicle accepts opinion articles on any topic, for the Metropolitan Detroit has demonstrated InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Viewpoints page. that educating young people through Detroit Articles typically run from 300 to 600 words, but submissions of any length our Religious Diversity Journeys and Rev. Stancy Adams, Chairperson will be considered. All submissions must be original, and exclusive to The adults through Exploring Religious InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Michigan Chronicle. Landscapes leads to understanding, Detroit acceptance, and engagement with re- Submissions may be sent by email to [email protected]. ligions that otherwise may seem But Robert Bruttell, Past Chairperson these are people willing to consider dif- InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan ferent beliefs and customs. What do we Detroit