03 - Listening to the People and Preparing to Act

In this episode, Joanna goes on a podcast called "Daily Detroit". She discussed the campaign and the issues that many people have been waiting for an elected official or a candidate to talk about. 

LISTEN TO DAILY DETROIT: https://www.dailydetroit.com/podcast/

DONATE: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/joannawhaley

Transcript

SPEAKER_06 0:00

Okay, maybe you're like me, but I listen to a lot of podcasts. I'm in my car, I'm driving, and sometimes I can get lost in the storytelling, and I miss my exit, and I work my day job while campaigning. And I'll get so sucked into a narrative that all of a sudden I'll find myself five minutes or ten minutes out of my way. And today on the show, we're going to talk about what it's like to tell the stories of people publicly. Because the people of our community have not had anyone telling their story in Lansing and across the state. No one's been willing to blaze a trail for them. So we will continue to blaze that trail together and tell their stories.

SPEAKER_04 1:01

I'm believing during the Pledge of Allegiance and the promise of America. But that promise is what a hope. I'm skin before you are a clear person in America wondering where the promise is, and I am seeing it's not a people.

SPEAKER_06 2:21

You gather your closest advisors and people who believe in you to run for office. And when I was in that phase of, you know, gathering those people and trying to understand what's going on around me, I started to scour the podcasting world for local podcasts that I could listen to on my way to my uh, you know, my job. I worked at the University of Michigan, and I had like an hour in the car, two hours in the car every day. And I figured I should fill that time with learning about my community. And that's when I came across a podcast called Daily Detroit. Some amazing hosts on the show. Uh, you've got uh JR Stays, who um who you hear, and not on this episode, but another guy named Norris Howard's on the show, Devin O'Reilly, just some great hosts, and Cheyenne, their uh their producer, um, just an awesome team of people who, after being a fan of their show for some time, I was incredibly honored to be invited to come on the show and share about why I was running for office. And in this conversation, we talk about all things from my faith background, and we really centered on putting people first. Because the Down River community for so long, the areas I'm running in Allen Park, Lincoln Park, Melvindale, and Southgate, Michigan, just south of Detroit, just have not had someone who actually listens and tells their story to the world. This is an often ignored district within our community. And so today, you're gonna get to hear my interview on Daily Detroit. I believe that all Michiganders should have a way forward. That means treating everyone with respect and dignity. And I think we need that. We need professionalism in our political leaders and not just, you know, those that are looking to, you know, make big headlines.

SPEAKER_05 4:41

Hello and welcome to your daily Detroit sharing what to know and where to go in southeast Michigan. I am Jair Stays, and this is your episode for Tuesday, January 13th, 2026. Joining me in the studio at Tech Town is an honored guest, listener of the show, and candidate as a Democrat in the primary for State District 2 for State Representative, Joanna Whaley. Welcome to Daily Detroit. Thank you, Jair. It's so good to be here.

SPEAKER_06 5:08

It's good to have you. I understand that you actually listen to the show. Yes, I am a longtime listener, first-time guest show.

SPEAKER_05 5:15

Not caller. No, this is not a caller. I mean, I guess I could. That'd be kind of fun. That'd be kind of fun. I got to start with there then. So, like, how did you find the show and why do you listen to Daily Detroit?

SPEAKER_06 5:26

When I started making the decisions that I want to get more involved in my community, in the district, in my uh in the state in general, I was struggling to find good information uh that was very locally focused. And so I just started scouring the podcast world. And uh I was doing it while driving. I'll be honest. I was looking through the local podcast and came across Daily Detroit and I just fell in love with the show. And I listen almost every day. Even when you're just talking about what is the best food to eat, you make me hungry.

SPEAKER_05 5:59

I figure that we're helping commerce. We're doing we're doing commerce a good here. Yes. All right. So listen, uh running for office is quite the thing.

SPEAKER_06 6:08

You're telling me. Um why, Joanna, on earth would you do this? It's a great question. I'll have to back up a little bit on that one. I was brought up in a world where I was an evangelical pastor for 20 years of my life. And in that world, I was kind of conditioned that if you were someone of faith, you had to be a Republican and you had to only have one political view in the world. And I kind of grew up with that. And over the years, I wrestled with some internal things of my life. And about four years ago, I came out as a trans woman and I started doing LGBTQ rights work within religion, a very niche space within the world.

SPEAKER_05 6:51

Yeah, my gears are kind of turning with that, I admit it.

SPEAKER_06 6:54

Yes. And so, you know, I I started traveling the entire state. I started visiting other states, advocating for queer folks in their faith systems. That really naturally started to draw some attention to those that were in the political space. And I got invited to speak at a uh political rally in the downriver area, and they were like, Well, we're looking for two speakers, and they said we're looking for somebody to talk about LGBTQ rights and somebody to talk about Christian nationalism. And I said, ding ding, I've got both of those for you. I'm deeply trained in both of them. So I spoke at this rally, and people from the community started asking me to run for office. And I said, That's not on my bingo card, no, thank you. But then those conversations just continued to move forward, and it just became really clear, especially when some things were going on in Lansing that were against the LGBTQ community, that it became really clear that I needed to run. And a lot of the civil rights things going on across the country and in our state. This is a huge passion of mine. And it just made sense that it was time to have somebody who's listening to the people. I was trained in uh Christian work for most of my life. And sometimes people are like, What you're a queer person and you're Christian, that like how does those two things compute? I do have a seminary degree. I studied liberation theology, which is the study of marginalized people within systems, especially within like uh, you know, divinity. And so I've been just like listening to the people of my community, and they need someone to listen and advocate for them. So that's why I'm running.

SPEAKER_05 8:28

So if listeners don't know, District 2 comprises Allen Park, Lincoln Park, Melvendale, and Southgate. It's kind of a chunk of that kind of uh south of Detroit area. Yes, we are the journey song.

SPEAKER_04 8:41

You you are you or is it Windsor?

SPEAKER_06 8:44

What's that? Well, Windsor's. And that was the thing is that not many public leaders were actually listening at the levels of government that I started to put my eye on, especially at the state representative level. I would ask people in our community, do you know who our state representative is? And people couldn't even answer the question. Elected officials didn't even know the representative's name, and this began to show me that this is something we had to address.

SPEAKER_05 9:22

When we're talking about this part of town, what are a couple of things that you're hearing from people that they need addressed?

SPEAKER_06 9:30

I'm running as a Democrat. Every Democrat right now is talking about affordability, but I think what specifically impacts my community when you talk about especially Melvendale in Lincoln Park, Allen Park and Southgate as well, is how they're being treated in the corporate scheme and the corporate world, right? Corporate behavior is one of the number one things I hear from my district and from the people of our community. While things are, you know, going on in the city, many people just kind of forget about the neighboring cities and how sometimes that group of people can tell you what's going to come in the years to come because our community is affected first by corporate behavior, specifically when it comes to hiring practices and being able to be compensated for their work. You know, I talk to people in our community who work 50, 60 hours and can barely pay the bills because they can't find full-time work. They can't find anything but part-time and contingent work because corporations are becoming more and more risk averse in this chaotic economy and world we find ourselves in right now. And so our district is just saying we want to be treated fairly in our jobs. It's trying to advocate for those things and listen to people is one of the number one things they want. They want leaders who are listening, not just yapping at them. If you come to any of my events, I probably talk only 40 to 50 percent of the time, and the rest of the time is listening. And that's something that our people are asking for and they need.

SPEAKER_05 10:57

Economic challenges are something. You know, when I first started this project 1800 episodes ago, 1800? Yes. Wow. More than at this point. One of the things that I learned quickly was is that in the media narrative, there's this idea that only the city of Detroit is facing challenges with poverty, with job access, with transportation. You name it, right? Right. But the longer I do this, the more I realize that a number of these inner ring suburbs, of which Allen Park, Lincoln Park, Melvendale, and Southgate, they're all but close to the city. From my house, I I got here in 10 minutes. Right. It's very close in reality to because we're, you know, our studio is in Midtown. But those inner ring suburbs are dealing with a plethora of issues. Obviously, there's bright spots and there's really cool things happening.

SPEAKER_06 11:48

Our community really is one of the bellwethers of things to come. And I mentioned this a little later in the podcast, but it's true. And some of these issues show up because we are labor town. Many of our people in our community work in unions, but there are many who do not. And they they don't have that protection of a labor union, which we should make sure we protect access to at all times. Is that many people are struggling to make ends meet. DoorDash and Grubhub just aren't cutting it when the bills keep getting higher and higher. These are the stories of our people that they're just waiting for someone to hear and be able to act upon.

SPEAKER_05 13:07

Those in a ring suburbs, I think, oftentimes get ignored in the conversation.

SPEAKER_06 13:12

Yeah, and that is one of the number one things I hear, apart from not being able to afford life, that many people in the district just say, no one has paid attention to us. We've been saying this for years, and no one in Lansing has even showed up in our community. And that's why it's been a big key for me to show up and listen to the people of these communities and voice their concerns rather than my own. There's been a lot of talk about dysfunction in Lansing.

SPEAKER_05 13:39

Yeah. Over the years, right? A little bit. And I am not a member of a party. So it's my opinion that some of it is, you know, across bipartisan levels. Oh, yes. If you get to Lansing, what do you see needs to change that you want to be a part of?

SPEAKER_06 13:54

We have right now a House majority that is mimicking the chaos that they are seeing in DC. And I think that it's not good for our state to be so chaotic and so extreme in some of the ways we do things that we've got to find a way to work together. That's one, but we've also got to find a way in our state to not let the worst ideas that get the most press win out, right? I think that's something that we're struggling with. Like just recently, the House of Republicans cut $645 million to the state of Michigan, just you know, like that. And it it's going through the courts. But I mean, we're talking about money that had already been agreed upon by both parties. And we've got to stop stabbing each other in the back when it comes to these things. And the extremism in our politics, I want to be a part of changing that narrative. Even though people would look at me, you know, I am a walking-talking uh holiday conversation nightmare. Okay. I can only imagine. I am a politician. I am a seminary grad and I'm a trans woman, right? So, like my presence could stir people up. But what I want people to see is that even though I may advocate for certain things, I believe that all Michiganders should have a way forward. That means treating everyone with respect and dignity. And I think we need that. We need professionalism in our political leaders and not just, you know, those that are looking to, you know, make big headlines. In your district, you have to sit in community with people who don't agree with you. Oh, all the time. Yeah. I'm having a coffee hour today with folks in the city of Melvindale. And there are many people in the city of Melvindale who don't like my politics, but they show up and they support what we're doing because we're showing up and listening. I was trained in this when I worked in ministry for 20 years, right? You have to serve people who may not even like you, right? And that's something that I learned in my 20 years of working within the religious spaces, is that you advocate for what the people need. And what I'm trained in is to hear existential crisis and be able to act on the people's behalf without them even having to have put words to it. And so that's something that I am really passionate about. And I think that's what's going to make this a really interesting race in our district because no one has done that in our district. Hey friends, thank you for listening to this podcast. And we'll get right back to the show in a second. But I want to take a moment and say that we need your support. The committee to elect Joanna Whaley is the owner of this podcast, and it takes money to either run a campaign, or if it is past election season when you're listening to this, we're always going to be working to raise money for the next thing. So you can go to the show notes or go to Joanna Whaley.com slash donate to support now. And people feel frustrated consistently, that they don't feel their voices are heard. That's why it's so important to elect leaders who understand this and listen consistently. There are some things that we've learned in the middle of our campaign that the people need help with, and we would not have known it without listening.

SPEAKER_05 17:35

So what are some of the issues that maybe you didn't know that you were going to hear from, or maybe you did, but what's stuff that, okay, you know, you talk about affordability and that is crucial in the conversation right now, but what are some of the issues that you hear out there that maybe you didn't expect to hear or are popping up and maybe you wouldn't know on social media?

SPEAKER_06 17:54

There's a couple. I think one of the things that our community asks for is responsive local leadership. You know, many times people will ask something of the city and maybe not hear back, or they will go to their local city council meeting and it's just everyone fighting and they're not getting anything done. And that that's a struggle that that surprised me when I walked into the city council spaces. We saw that all over the place. But I've really been interested in recently, especially with all the chaos with the ACA subsidies. I've been getting calls day after day with confusion because people's premiums are going up, deductibles are getting higher. That's been a new thing. It's been brewing for a while, but it's really starting to hit us home now. So definitely, you know, responsive local leadership, but also some of the chaos that we're starting to see in the healthcare space. We have a high amount of people in our district who rely on ACA subsidized healthcare. And so people are now just foregoing it in general. They're just saying, I can't do this. I can't pay for this anymore. And professionally, you know, obviously I'm trying to change my profession and become a state legislator, but professionally I work in a hospital as a clinical spiritual care provider. And I sit with people all the time who make decisions to die rather than put their family in debt. And it happens all the time, and it's a crime, and we need to stop it.

SPEAKER_05 19:16

One might argue that in the richest country in the world, we shouldn't have that happen.

SPEAKER_06 19:20

One might argue that. One should argue that because we're in a place where we're living in what's called a K economy, and the rich are doing really well. Those who have a lot of money and investment, they're doing really well right now, but the rest of us can't keep up. And that's why I will back there is proposal out there for my care, which is a state version of Medicare for all. If the federal government won't act, I think we need to move forward. Rep Kerry Reinigans has pushed that out in the consciousness in the state, and I will back that as a state rep.

SPEAKER_01 19:50

Um, so one of your top issues is my care, a statewide universal health care policy for Michigan. Can you explain what my care is, why it's necessary, and what's it going to do for Michiganders if we can even get it passed?

SPEAKER_08 20:07

Yes, so my care in the Michigan house right now is House Bill 4407. I introduced it early last year. It's the second time I've introduced it. It would provide healthcare, publicly financed healthcare for all 10 million Michiganders out of the My Care Trust Fund. It would pay for medically necessary expenses, and individuals in Michigan would not have to pay a monthly premium. There would be no co-pays, no deductibles, and no annual life or lifetime limits.

SPEAKER_06 20:34

That was rep Carrie Reingens of the Michigan legislature, who I am backing her plan. Talking about why we need Medicare for all more than ever in this time. I was thankful to be asked that question because so many are struggling. They fear getting sick, and they fear the economy leaving them behind.

SPEAKER_05 21:03

And that K-shaped economy, I know it's a bit of a nerdy term. Very nerdy. I think it's so important to understand what's happening in Detroit and Metro Detroit because we were the crucible, the birthplace of the middle class. Yes. And so we have hurt disappearing. It is disappearing. And we have been hurt the most, especially in communities that were built up by that middle class, by that working class, like the ones that you're seeking to represent.

SPEAKER_06 21:27

Yeah, exactly. And the middle class is having a harder and harder time. Let's say they need to change jobs, or their jobs lay them off. This is a huge problem we're seeing in the middle class, is just layoffs, right? For profit. Companies are using layoff to preserve profit, right? And what's happening is it's getting harder and harder to find the jobs now in that middle class. So, for example, in my profession, I finished a residency at the University of Michigan for my chaplaincy career, and I went to look for a job. Before my residency started, jobs everywhere. It was fine. You know, you're gonna find a job, it's gonna be fine. When I graduated from my residency, there was one full-time job within 100 miles. I got it, thankfully. I'm very thankful for that, but it was the only full-time job in my field. And that's what's happening. And that's where I think we have to have representatives who are focused on pushing back on the worst ideas of corporate behavior that are pushing down and stamping out the middle class. Hey friends, me again. Would you please consider right now going to Joanna Whaley.com slash donate to support the work that we're doing to make sure that we keep the state of Michigan safe for everyone. You can go right now, support this podcast, support the campaign. If you're listening to this during the campaign, or if you're listening to it after, you can support this work. Go to Joanna Whaley.com slash donate. Thanks.

SPEAKER_03 23:06

New tonight, a data center is on the agenda for the Allen Park Planning Commission.

SPEAKER_07 23:11

This is one of many proposed facilities quickly popping up across Metro Detroit. The company's Solstice Data is eyeing land on Enterprise Drive, just south of I-94, and the plan is being met with some pushback.

SPEAKER_03 23:24

Seven News Detroit reporter Brett Cast is in Allen Park with the concerns and what city officials are saying about the project.

SPEAKER_05 23:53

So let's zoom in a little bit locally. One thing that is happening is a lot more talk around AI and data centers in Michigan. And that's striking very close to home for you in your district. I can think back years ago when there was that idea that there was going to be like some sort of studio complex in Allen Park. And now it's a data center idea. So why don't you fill me in on what's going on? Because this has been happening all over the state.

SPEAKER_06 24:16

Yeah, Jared, you're picking at the scabs, and it's painful for those of us in Allen Park, right? Like my parents live in Allen Park. I live in Lincoln Park, which is right next door. So there is a proposal. What is ironic is that where they want to put this AI data center is right in the exact place that they wanted the movie studio back in the day.

SPEAKER_05 24:37

So for people who don't know, what are the approximate zone of that in now? Like what's approximate cross street?

SPEAKER_06 24:42

If you're on 94, you know where the big tire is. There's a big, big, huge tire. That's where they want to put it. Wow. Yeah. So it's right next door to a neighborhood, which is going to be affected by noise. It's right next door to Melvin Dale High School, which is also going to be affected by the noise of this, right? And this is 24-7. They have 112 cooling units. They're going to run it 24 hours a day. Okay. So this is what we're looking at. AI is knocking at our door. But what we're talking about, and we want to, we're talking about the affordability issue. You know, there's a lot of information and misinformation about AI, right, out there, about what people believe that they do, these places, what they do to the uh environment. And there are serious environmental concerns with these places. But what the number one thing that the district is telling me is they don't trust DTE. They do not trust DTE to be a good faith actor in this because we've been here before in our community, especially Allen Park. When the movie theater thing fell through and infrastructure was built to make all that happen, and then the deal fell through. The people of Allen Park have been holding the bag for years and years and years in their taxes, in their utility costs. And we're looking at that again. The people of Allen Park are very nervous about this because they just don't trust that these deals, and we are in what some economists are calling an AI bubble. We want questions answered. If this bubble bursts, what do we do? You know, you've built this entire investment in the city, it's just gonna sit there now, and who's gonna pay for you know all of the investment that goes into it? It's gonna be the citizens.

SPEAKER_05 26:23

Another thought that I had, not just to this particular project, but AI in general, and and this is tie-barring to how things work in the real world. Everyone hyped to the max, right? And even if it exists or it opens or whatever, oftentimes developments and things don't live up to their full potential. And then you have like this zombie walking around. Right. You're right, the zombie development kind of happening. Where is it working? Is it not? How many people is it hiring? I feel like there's a lot of lack of clarity there and a lot of lack of clarity on like, okay, what are the guarantees around paying for this infrastructure? And it worries me as somebody who looks into government accountability, just how much of deals, I don't know all the particulars of this one, but other deals that have been talked about that are just walls of blackout pages. Why is it blacked out? Exactly. This is our stuff, right? It's different if it's between two private entities, but this is supposedly our stuff that we're asked to pay for.

SPEAKER_06 27:22

Right. You know, recently in Celine, there's a huge to-do about AI data setters, and it did come with the distrust of no information. There's a lack of information. You know, the NPSC or the Michigan Public Service Commission is the only person who were allowed to see that. The governor wasn't allowed to see an unredacted version. The attorney general of the state did not get to see an unredacted version of this contract. And anytime someone's not giving you the full information, I would tell my parents if you were on a phone call and they wouldn't give you all the information, it's probably a scam and a hang up. That's what we're worried about. And also, let's look at how it's changed within the last five years, right? Let's look at how many advancements there's been. The technology has changed. So you may check all the boxes of everything the community is asking for, or you know, all the environmental things right now. But when the technology changes in another five years, will we need that infrastructure? And that's things we're worried about.

SPEAKER_05 28:19

That is a really good point because we think about things always. Companies always look to do things faster, better, cheaper. And part of that might be less hardware. Part of that might be needing fewer facilities. I don't know. No, but staff. Less. We haven't we seen this over and over again. Isn't that what AI does? Get rid of jobs? Well, yeah, but we've but we've even seen it in more basic things like manufacturing, where you go to an auto plant today, it's not lines and lines and tons of people anymore. These are technical jobs that require a lot of expertise, oftentimes controlling robotics in factories that sometimes, and I've toured some of them, sometimes they're basically clean rooms.

SPEAKER_06 28:56

Yeah, and that has resulted in my neighbors in my community having to door dash their career now because they can't find a job in a factory that they did for years and years and years, right? It is a it is a terrifying time for those in our economy and who are facing these technological advances.

SPEAKER_09 29:19

Major companies like Microsoft, Walmart, and Business Insider are laying off employees amid the rise of artificial intelligence in the workplace. And business reporter at Axios, Nathan was here.

SPEAKER_05 29:32

Right? Like the future of the people of the district you aim to serve, I don't think wants to be door dashing or dealing with balancing all these jobs. What would you like to see as a solution to help lift people up and push that forward?

SPEAKER_06 29:46

We need to get really serious about some corporate regulation, especially when it comes to hiring practices. I think we need to have some corporate regulation there. For example, I believe, and it's a crazy thought, that you should be able to make a living and build wealth on one job. And that's something we've got to get serious about in our state. You know, we did just have a minimum wage income that's going up in the next year and two years. It's still not enough. $15 an hour is not enough. And it is $13.75 right now as minimum wage in 2026, 2027 goes up to 15 is still not enough to live. But I think what we've got to do is we have to build some strong regulation that is going to regulate the employment system in our state and really make sure that we are putting people over profits. And I think that's something that we've got to get really serious about in our state, building that legislation and working with our corporations to make sure that if you want this sweetheart deal, you want this tax loophole, then we want to see ABC happening and we want to make sure that you're taking care of people over your profits and shareholder value.

SPEAKER_05 30:52

Well, I'm gonna leave the conversation there. I'm sure we'll talk later as more things happen in this race and happen in your district.

SPEAKER_06 30:58

Joanna Whaley, I want to thank my friends at Daily Detroit, uh, host Jair Stairs, uh, producer Cheyenne. I want to thank uh the entire team there at Daily Detroit for all the work they do. Uh the show was hosted and edited by myself here and music as well, uh done by myself. So thank you, and please do me a favor, share the show, like this show, leave a comment, share it with somebody who lives in Allen Park, Lincoln Park, Melvin Dale, or Southgate, or anyone you think would want to support our campaign. Again, thank you for joining us, and we'll see you next time.