Authentically Detroit
Authentically Detroit is the leading podcast in the city for candid conversations, exchanging progressive ideas, and centering resident perspectives on current events.
Hosted by Donna Givens Davidson and Orlando P. Bailey.
Produced by Sarah Johnson and Engineered by Griffin Hutchings.
Check us out on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @AuthenticallyDetroit!
Authentically Detroit
Rapid Fire Political Takes with Guest Host Chase Cantrell
This week Guest Host Chase Cantrell joined Orlando to discuss politics in Detroit, Michigan, and at a National level.
Together, the duo shined a light on critical issues impacting women's health, particularly breast cancer patients. Jenna Wright, co-president of the Shades of Pink Foundation shared insights about the patient journey and the foundation's mission to ease the financial burden for those affected and its goal to raise a million dollars by 2025.
Finally, they turned the focus to Detroit's vibrant political landscape. Navigating the buzz around early voting and potential candidates for the upcoming mayoral race. Analyzing the shifting political scene, they cover everything from the dynamics within city council, to the speculation on Mayor Duggan's re-election plans.
To learn more about Chase Cantrell and his work, click here!
FOR HOT TAKES:
HOW A 'PINK TAX' ON WOMEN CAN HURT THEIR HEALTH, ESPECIALLY FOR BREAST CANCER PATIENTS
SHADES OF PINK FOUNDATION IS DIVING HEADFIRST INTO BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH THIS OCTOBER
Up next, authentically. Detroit welcomes guest co-host Chase Cantrell. But first this week's hot takes from CNN Health and WXYZ how a pink tax on women can hurt their health, especially for breast cancer patients, and Shades of Pink Foundation is diving headfirst into Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Keep it locked. Authentically, detroit starts after these messages in this month. Keep it locked. Authentically, detroit starts after these messages.
Speaker 2:Have you always dreamed of being on the airwaves, whether Detroit, eastside? Engaged Podcast Network, or DEEP for short, is here to make that dream a reality. Located inside the Stoudemire, the DEEP Network offers studio space and production staff to help get your podcast idea off the ground. Doesn't take a whole lot of work to get started. Just visit the Authentically Detroit page at ecn-detroitorg or call Sarah at 313-948-0344.
Speaker 1:Hey y'all, it's Orlando. We just want to let you know that the views and opinions expressed during this podcast episode are those of the co-hosts and guests and not their sponsoring institutions. Now let's start the show. We finally got a piece of the pie. It's so fried in the kitchen the beans don't burn on the grill. Took the whole lot of dry. Hello Detroit and the world, welcome to another episode of Authentically Detroit Broadcasting live from Detroit's Eastside At the Stoudemire inside of Eastside Community Network. I'm Orlando Bailey and I'm Chase Cantrell. Thank you for listening in and supporting our efforts to build a platform of authentic voices for real people in the city of Detroit. We want you to like, rate and subscribe to our podcast on all platforms. Donna is in Baltimore this week, so we decided to welcome back guest co-host Chase Cantrell. We will also have Motor City Match winner and founder of Ari Party Hair, ariel Ari Jones and co-president of Shades of Pink Foundation, jenna Wright-Greeman, here with us. Welcome to Authentically Detroit everybody. We're really happy to have you, chase Cantrell.
Speaker 4:What's up? How have you been? I have been great. It's good to be back.
Speaker 1:It's good to be back.
Speaker 4:Yeah, we're happy to have you back and we're at ECN.
Speaker 1:We are at ECN, inside of the Stoudemire. That's right when it all began. Where it all started. It's been a while since you've been with us. What's going on in your life?
Speaker 4:What's going on in my life. So we will talk more about it in two weeks when I'm on, but beyond that, you know.
Speaker 1:Oh, he's going to be a guest in two weeks, I'm going to be a guest in two weeks Because you know Chase is like I'm always hosting but y'all don't see enough value to have me as a guest.
Speaker 4:That's not the context. Oh okay, I will be back, but yeah, just you know, launching new programs, working at building community value, enjoying life.
Speaker 1:Enjoying life. I love it. I love it. Yeah, I'm happy to have you, really really glad to see you and you ready to get into some hot takes. Let's do it. You got some opinions, all right. This week it's time for hot takes, where we run down some of the week's top headlines in the city of Detroit. But before we get into hot takes, it's a big day for Outlier Media today. It is Because our former managing editor for three years, dr Aaron Perry, has ascended into the role of editor-in-chief, making Outlier Media one of the only organizations within the news ecosystem in the city of Detroit with a black man who's that? That's me, I'm the black man and a black woman who are a son and daughter of the city of Detroit at the helm.
Speaker 4:It is amazing news and I'm so glad to see it.
Speaker 1:It is monumental and we are so excited about it and I want to say congratulations to my colleague and my partner, dr aaron perry. But the final thing that I will say about that, before we get into the real hot take, is that this congratulations is not just a congratulations to aaron perry. It is an ode and honor to the leadership of sarah alvarez and Candace Fortman, because they built something that they knew they would have to give away at one point and they have done an amazing job doing it. It's hard for people to let go.
Speaker 4:It is when you start something you have to be a steward. You can't just hold onto it for 20 years.
Speaker 1:And I am a big believer in building and investing in the bench and recognizing talent and investing in that. Sarah and candace are cerebral, with spotting talent, nabbing them up and investing in them, and then you know, giving your investment uh room to shine. So shout out to both of them. How big is the newsroom now? Oh gosh, we're up 17. Wow, yeah, it's, yeah, a staff of 17. We keep growing. Yeah, let's, let's make sure the uh, the foundation support keeps growing too.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, that's my. That's anybody with money out there. You know they are a non-profit.
Speaker 1:We are a non-profit newsroom and we are the pioneer of the SMS texting service, where residents can text into us and get their critical information needs met instantaneous. Because that's what text message is it's instant messaging.
Speaker 4:I need to give my mom that text number. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Lighten YOLO, making a mental note. Lighten YOLO, chase Cantrell Okay, for real, for real Hot text. Light YOLO, chase Cantrell Okay, for real, for real Hot takes. How a pink tax on women can hurt their health, especially for breast cancer patients. Two new reports show that women are paying what's become known as a kind of pink tax For their health care. They are spending more out of pocket than men and, when it comes to breast cancer, the extra expenses are causing such a significant burden that it may be costing them their health.
Speaker 1:In the United States, women who have health insurance through their jobs pay about $15.4 billion more in out-of-pocket health care costs than men with similar insurance, not including premium costs, according to a new report from the financial services firm Deloitte costs. According to a new report from the financial services firm Deloitte, while women pay about the same premiums as men, the actuarial value of their coverage is about $1.34 billion less, according to the analysis, which looked at more than 16 million people with employer-sponsored health insurance between 2017 and 2022. While the report finds that women go to the doctor and use their benefits more than men do, with women having 10% more health expenditures, their out-of-pocket expenses are still 18% higher, even after removing the high cost of maternity care. Wow, and it is 20% higher with maternity costs. That's insane. Insurance companies seem to be covering a smaller portion of services for women compared to men.
Speaker 1:Breast cancer screenings, for example, can often cost more than many cancer screenings. A separate report published Monday by the Susan G Komen Organization finds the high cost of breast cancer treatment is a significant burden for patients, so much so that it may actually be hurting the success of their treatment. Komen, a nonprofit that helps fight breast cancer, has a program that provides financial assistance to qualified breast cancer patients who are having trouble keeping the lights on due to the high cost of their treatment. The program provided nearly $9.1 million in grants to nearly 16,000 patients from April 2022 through March of this year. To understand who it was helping, coleman took a closer look at what people use the money for Housing, transportation to treatment and utility bills were the biggest, biggest financial stressors, as well as paying for food and medicine. In addition to worrying about their treatment, the report noted that up to 73% of adult cancer survivors also worry about paying for medical costs. Chase Cantrell, what say you? So this?
Speaker 4:is just one example of how systems are not built for everyone. When I was in grad school, I was surrounded by a lot of med students and the women who were going through those programs were some of the first to say just, they were learning how inequitable the system was in real time as they were serving patients and learning how the system worked and as they've ascended into actually being physicians. I know a lot of them that are, you know, fighting, trying to fight against some of the structures that are inequitable. But this is this is not surprising to me, but it has. I mean, women are 50% of our population. It has vast implications for all the people in our lives. If you know, if you have a mother, if you have a sister, an aunt, a daughter, a niece like these are the kinds of things that they have to go through and we as men don't often recognize the kinds of burdens that they carry.
Speaker 1:Do we not recognize it or do we not care?
Speaker 4:some of us don't care, but it's a lot. It's a lot of people who just don't recognize who. These kinds of reports are significant to, to to shed light on these inequities, but a lot of folks aren't asking the women in their lives um, how's your health? What kind of system are you interacting with when you go to the doctor? We're not even thinking about it in that way and again, this shows that women are using the ecosystem in ways that are more than men. We know that men don't go to the doctor enough.
Speaker 3:We already know that.
Speaker 4:Especially black men, especially black men. I've been trying to get my dad to get a physical all year.
Speaker 1:Oh gosh, give him the textile liar number two, right Jeez.
Speaker 4:But no, we need to be asking women in our lives more about how they are experiencing the health system and what we can do to fight for a more equitable system.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I do. I also think that it is a referendum on the systems that we have in place and just how inequity is baked into a lot of these systems, and not only just the medical system.
Speaker 1:right, it's just one example, the insurance, yes, the insurance system, and we can go back to the industry of insurance, the roots of the industry insurance, back to the industry of insurance, the roots of the industry insurance and we know that it was built during the slave trade and insuring property, insuring bodies and all you know, and so just the roots of it. The roots of it are just really intermingled with systems that have been harmful for people, especially women, for a long time. And so the fact that women who are employed because this is a sampling of women who are employed still have, without the maternity costs, higher out-of-pocket expenses, that's crazy, that's just nuts to me. We should be saying something, men. I think it is on us to sit and listen and empathize and then get to work. That's right, not like. Oh, that must be really bad for you. No, like, really.
Speaker 1:You know, I often say this about, you know, these conversations that we're always having about equity and conversations we're always having about diversity and race. White people, get your people. We tell white people to get your people. It's more labor on me to always have to step into the role of teacher, right, and trying to figure out that. No, white people, you can do some of this too, men.
Speaker 4:We can do this.
Speaker 1:We can do this. Did you have something you wanted to add, Jenna?
Speaker 3:You know, all of your comments I completely agree with and it's so refreshing to hear both of you, you know, as men recognize this, just as you're reporting it.
Speaker 3:I think it's so vital that people understand and realize exactly what you reported, that you know women have so much more burden many times with not only the health care expenses, and that's kind of where I you know why I'm here and why I'm thankful I'm here, talking to all of you, you know, in terms of trying to assist with that, because it first takes recognition, I think, by, as both of you were talking about, whether it's men, whether it's you're related to family members, you know, I think, by, as both of you were talking about, whether it's men, whether it's you're related to family members, you know your mother, your sisters, a partner, an aunt, whomever in your community and recognizing that you know women, whether they've got a good job, it doesn't matter what kind of walk of life they may come from If they're going through situations that require not only in the healthcare system but are going to require that much more in terms of out-of-pocket expenses.
Speaker 1:it takes a village to have that knowledge base to start educating other want to read a little bit about you guys and then get into the conversation. Shades of Pink Foundation is diving headfirst into Breast Cancer Awareness Month this October. We're almost through October, guys Launching a series of impactful fundraising initiatives and 75 third-party groups, including local businesses, municipalities, schools and organizations, to support its mission of reducing financial stress for those undergoing breast cancer treatment in Southeast Michigan. Sopf is also launching a Think Pink t-shirt campaign during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, with a portion of every cell supporting breast cancer patients in need across Southeast Michigan.
Speaker 1:Shades of Pink Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit charitable corporation. Its mission is to reduce financial stress for those undergoing breast cancer treatment in Southeast Michigan by providing prompt funding for everyday living expenses. The organization has provided $2.5 million of financial support to help cover the costs of everyday living expenses. The organization has provided $2.5 million of financial support to help cover the costs of everyday living expenses to more than 1,000 individuals and their families since its founding in 2005. Jenna, you are doing the Lord's work. You understand me.
Speaker 3:I'm trying, trying to get to heaven. That's what we're all trying to do so.
Speaker 1:really glad that the listeners were able to hear a little bit about Shades of Pink Foundation. Tell us what this looks like in practice.
Speaker 3:Yeah, thanks again for having me and being able to talk about this organization. I'm really invested and excited about it. I think, kind of segueing from what we were all talking about, right, in terms of women in our lives, whether you're male, female or otherwise and we all know women in our lives that probably have been affected by breast cancer, right? Actually, I was astounded at the statistic, just for here in Michigan One out of eight women in Michigan will be diagnosed with breast cancer, if they haven't already, in any given calendar year. That's a lot. That's a lot Not to mention-.
Speaker 1:I can count at least five on my hand right now who have gone through it or who are still continuing with it right now, of women that I know personally.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I want to go back to something you brought up earlier before I kind of get into why I do what I do and why I'm passionate about this particular organization. I think you brought up a really good point. The fact is, for all these years, whether we're all the same age, a little bit different in age, what have you, what have we grown up? Really around us, right, no matter where you come from, what community? We've seen October's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Carmanos you know, fabulous organization.
Speaker 3:We've heard about the runs, the walks, the pink ribbons right, all of us could say that, regardless of having been involved in anything, that's a great thing. But the point is is, like you said before, you know people just kind of look at it and say, mm, you know people just kind of look at it and say, okay, I know what that's all about, but then don't think, okay, does this affect somebody, maybe close to me? Or even if it doesn't, you know people that we can reach out and really help, right? So what Shades of Pink Foundation does, as you mentioned, was started 20, going to be 20 years ago in 2025, which I'm really excited as well that you had me on to talk about it because our 20th anniversary is next year and our goal is to raise a million dollars in the year. Now, that's not much. Come on, we can do that right.
Speaker 2:I mean we can.
Speaker 3:And really what our organization does is similar to the other organization that you mentioned, I think, is it Coleman?
Speaker 3:Yeah, and we always say our organization is great, especially because we call these other organizations that have very similar functions and purposes, you know, as partners in the journey, right, like I said, it takes a village and if you've got another organization that's doing something similar, have at it fabulous the more you know.
Speaker 3:The merrier, right, but with Shades of Pink, one of the things that we do is try to raise funds.
Speaker 3:Obviously, as a nonprofit, we try to raise funds and work directly with any of the patient outreach coordinators, social workers at these various hospitals, sometimes, frankly, even community centers, right, where we get women that come in that maybe they don't have that health insurance but they have gone to an appointment, they felt a lump or a mass, maybe they've gotten a diagnosis, but they don't know where to go from there in terms of what to do. So take away even the whole insurance aspect of it. A lot of times it's they don't know where to go from there and how they're going to get there and how they're going to get help to try to survive, and so what the organization does is we try to work with the community. You know individuals that we partner with. We try to get sponsorships and get people to donate money, volunteer, have a, have a. You know like we said, a pink out Friday, you know good excuse to have a house party and have people throw money in a fishbowl in my opinion and it goes to a good cause.
Speaker 3:And what we do is we then get those names of those individuals in our community that are willing to share their information. We never me, jenna, I never get to know, for example, if you had five females here that came in and said I need help because I can't keep my lights on, I can't pay for an Uber to go back and forth twice a week for chemo, right, and these are people even, like I said, all walks of life. They could be employed and have a good job. But as we're talking about, you know, the insurance expenses like that that are affiliated with it, many people don't even, you know, don't even think about that, right, like, hey, my car broke down, now I got to take an Uber because I got to get the chemo or radiation.
Speaker 3:So what we try to do is we work with those patient coordinators or social workers or community outreach individuals that have that pipeline of these women that have that need, and then we try to, literally on a weekly and monthly basis, we try to allocate that money. So any money we raise and that's brought in, it's going right back out. And what a good feeling. That is right, because you know it's getting used, and it's getting used wisely, and it's helping the cause for these women to get their care and treatment that they so desperately need.
Speaker 1:Are there any other guidelines for being able to participate in a program like this other than having breast cancer?
Speaker 3:Yeah, great question.
Speaker 3:Not really any other guidelines per se.
Speaker 3:So let's say, on the patient side of the fence, right, it's a matter of if in fact somebody has a need, or they know a family member has a need, maybe the individual themselves lots of right Tons of emotional turmoil and physical and otherwise that go into when you get a diagnosis or you know you're gonna be facing treatment and so forth, and so maybe that individual is just way too overwhelmed to do anything about it or to reach out. But if somebody yourself you know, you know a family member or a friend of a family member that may have a potential need may not be certain of it, but you know of a potential need you can reach out directly to Shades of Pink Foundation. Shadesofpinkfoundationorg is the easiest way On that website. It's got the phone number to our executive administrator, nina Gugajian, who's amazing and immediately can put people, even if it's a friend of a friend of a friend or a family member, to try to see can we figure out if that individual has needs? And again, I want to be real clear needs is relative, right.
Speaker 3:You know, I think a lot of people think this has been my experience thus far. I think a lot of individuals think, as you were talking about before they could be employed and have health insurance, you know, and they think, well, geez, I'm not going to qualify, though, but I know this treatment, the whatever it may be, these out-of-pocket expenses that you were discussing that are 18% higher. I'm not going to qualify? No, not the case at all. It's a matter of just getting your name in there to say I think I'm going to have a need because I'm going to have to allocate some of that monthly income that I have really to these expenses. Now, I'm going to be tight on mortgage or whatever it may be. So that's the first thing. No real guidelines per se. Okay, so, employed, unemployed, depending on your need. People just got to reach out, and even if you're a friend or a family member, you got to have them reach out. Shadesofpinkfoundationorg okay.
Speaker 3:On the other side of the coin, in terms of how can you get involved, right, as you said, it's a matter of not just, you know, being empathetic and being made aware, but can you actually do something? Heck, yeah, you know, the issue is same thing. Go to the website. You'll find a lot of resources there and I mean we've had a ton of people that just say can we do where? Even at our own organization you wear jeans every Friday and if we allow you to wear jeans, you know, if attire, for example, we'll donate five bucks, even a dollar per person for the month of October or all of the fall, or something like that. There's so many different ways that individuals can get involved. It doesn't take writing a million dollar check.
Speaker 3:that would take it, but you get my point.
Speaker 1:We will always take it. Any of us will take it. How is the campaign going? The Think Pink t-shirt campaign How's it going?
Speaker 3:Thanks for asking. It's going really great. Same website you can go on there and find the link to get the shirts. Really cool t-shirts for men or for women. They're all different types.
Speaker 1:Because a very small percentage of breast cancer patients are men Absolutely. Like what?
Speaker 3:Not even 2%, 1%, yeah, I think it's less than 2%, and actually I was going to bring that up, so I'm glad you touched on that to remind me. Yeah, absolutely, are there men that have breast cancer? Absolutely, and could they also be included in this? Absolutely? There and again lies the issue. It's a matter of like, like anything, like the home you know, homeless, um, or food insecure situations that we all are always talking about, um, it's not just women, it can be men as well, and we've got to take away that stigma and shame of it doesn't matter if I have breast cancer and I'm of the male population. Reach out if you have a need we're there to help.
Speaker 1:We're there to help everybody, yeah, and so for the 20th anniversary, you guys are aiming to raise $1 million. Have you already started? Okay?
Speaker 3:Yeah, we have. We've already started Our event that kind of kicks off things usually is at the beginning of October to start Breast Cancer Awareness.
Speaker 1:Month Right while everybody's thinking about it.
Speaker 3:That's right, and so we just had our annual comedy event. It was held in Birmingham and that specifically it's for any and all comers that want to come, but it's actually to thank all of those social workers, community outreach people, et cetera. That really are our liaisons right.
Speaker 1:They're the link that might have an To the population, to the population.
Speaker 3:that's right. No-transcript goal, obviously and I'm very thankful that you had me here is to get the word out, as you said, that it's not just a month thing, you know it's really a year-long thing.
Speaker 1:People can tell you this. A good friend of Chase me and Chase, our friend Claire Nelson is going through this right now to be completely breast cancer-free. She's finally back to work and all of that. But watching my friend go through multiple surgeries, 1,001 doctor's appointments, I can imagine how expensive these things can be and how it's an impediment for you to be able to cover other costs in your life. Can you talk about sort of helping people get rid of the stigma and shame around not being able to cover other costs in your life? Can you talk about sort of helping people get rid of like the stigma and shame around not being able to afford your life when you got breast cancer?
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, great, great point, yeah, and it's exactly what we're doing here today, which, again, I keep saying thank you, because this is how, through groups like you and voices in particular like both of you that's how we get that word out right Is hopefully the community and people are listening, and maybe they don't, you know, get a flyer or pamphlet or look in the newspaper or go online, but they hear you and they respect your voices, they respect your input and your insight and they hear about the fact that you know there's no shame, right, there's no shame in breast cancer, male or female, there's no shame. And, like I said, it doesn't matter what walk of life you come from. A need is a need and you're likely going to have a need as you're going through breast cancer and the entire journey and course and, as you probably know from your own friend, as you mentioned, it's a long course.
Speaker 3:You know, it doesn't matter what stage, even if it's caught early, it doesn't matter, and whether you have to have surgery or non-surgery, it's a long course to try to go through and then say, okay, I'm still going to doctor's appointments or I'm still having scans, you know every so many months, et cetera, and just you know simple things. Like I said, it's not just paying the bills at home. But your friend, for example, just used by way of example you probably don't know all of the other things, maybe it's as silly as it sounds supplements for hair after she has had to have chemo and just trying to get back to feeling normal, and it's little things like that that now become extra expenses that are not silly. It's part and parcel of the journey, right, you know? And so you know it's just.
Speaker 3:It's really important, I think, for these women and men that are affected by breast cancer to know this. Where number one you know if they don't have insurance and they're affiliated at all or can find, you know, a community outreach center, talk to those individuals. They'll put you in touch with somebody, even if it's our organization directly, and maybe they can help as it relates to care issues and treatment issues, directing them but, more importantly, people that may have insurance, whatever type, whatever kind, and they've been diagnosed and they're starting to go through the process or the journey of care and treatment talk to. They're called nurse navigators. I never knew what that was until my mom had cancer.
Speaker 3:You know, I always think of social workers, but it's kind of an outreach of that and they're really great because they're kind of the liaison, like we said, the connection that can say you know that you don't have to, that the individual doesn't have to necessarily volunteer because they might feel a stigma attached to that or a little bit of shame. They shouldn't, but it's human nature. But the social workers or the community outreach individuals that we work with are the ones that can say how are you doing? You know, how are you doing generally right, emotionally, physically but how are you doing with your needs? You know, are your needs being met? No shame in it, and they literally have been taught and educated to have that conversation so that it makes it easier, I think, for individuals to open up about if they have a need and then get them in contact with us.
Speaker 4:So beyond the nurse navigators, are there also support groups that people can participate in to find support in this.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely Great question. So I know not only with our organization. We have our patient contact representatives that are part of our board and part of our organization that can help and they can definitely direct people to the support groups. But I will say just from my general knowledge, as I said, our partners in breast cancer, if you will on that journey, it could be through Carmanos, it could be through all of the different organizations. If you just Google breast cancer organizations in Michigan, especially right now in mid-October, you're going to have a ton pop up right. Pretty much any of those will have somebody. That is a point person that can direct individuals to support groups, literally, as the term implies, whether it's just a meeting group that meets to discuss that. Oh yeah, everybody else has the same needs, believe it or not. Mine may be different than yours, but it's still a need, so they can direct them to that. As I said, shadesofpinkfoundationorg, our website is a great resource to look for support groups and just support in general to try to get that need.
Speaker 1:All right, Jenna, thank you so much for joining us. We will be right back.
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Speaker 1:All right, welcome back to Authentically Detroit. Everyone Sitting next to our guest co-host, chase Cantrell. You know what, chase Cantrell? I'm always interested in your hot political take and you know it's an election year here in the city of Detroit in 2025. There will also be it will also be an election year for the city of Detroit. We are voting for president. This year. We're voting for school board. I actually voted early today. You voted today.
Speaker 4:I did At Northwest Activity Center today I did.
Speaker 1:Okay, northwest activity center oh, that's cool, cool you get. Did you get your passive aggressive uh sticker from the city?
Speaker 4:they changed it though oh, it looks different. It looks different this year, okay, but it's not.
Speaker 1:I voted, did you? No, they're not shaming people, no more.
Speaker 4:I am democracy in the d.
Speaker 1:I voted, oh wow I okay, oh, so that's the voted early sticker.
Speaker 4:Yes that's great. You feel good about it how?
Speaker 1:come you aren't wearing it.
Speaker 4:It was an outfit change. Oh, it was an outfit change. Okay, okay, Gotcha gotcha.
Speaker 1:So you know, Michigan is a swing state, and so what that means is we are seeing a lot of the candidates right. We're seeing Vice President Harris and her run-and-make Governor Walz. We're also seeing former President Donald Trump here, who dat. We're seeing him here an awful lot. How do you feel about being in a swing state? Nolan Finley wrote an op-ed that said we want them to go, or something like that. They need to stop coming here. I know it's Nolan Finley. It's Nolan Finley.
Speaker 4:But no, I'm glad they are coming, and I'm glad they are coming and I'm glad that they're actually doing Substantive meetings when we get to ask them questions. They had a black male forum Last week and some of the questions I mean were Were you there? I was not there, I was not invited. That's not right though.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's the Charlemagne interview.
Speaker 4:Charlemagne the guy yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, okay.
Speaker 1:Okay, so Zeke was there from New Era Detroit.
Speaker 2:Zeke was there. Pastor Ken Locke, eric Thomas Eric.
Speaker 1:Thomas, who's a friend of this show, shout out to Eric.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And they posed really good questions. I was in Mexico so I didn't Relaxing, I'm sorry. I was at a conference, I wasn't really relaxing. I did, I did, I saw some ocean shots, some beach shots I snuck out like that's a twice Okay, but they asked substantive questions of the vice president, of the vice president, and did she answer them?
Speaker 4:She answered them in, you know, very vice president, political way yeah, but so that means that she didn't. Well, no, she did, and I think we're getting closer to more clarity about what a black male agenda would be. So it's not like she avoided the questions, like she did. You know, talk about them head on. Um, yeah, and I think it's it's up to us to continue pushing her. The more she shows up in detroit, the more we can push her.
Speaker 1:That's why I want her to keep coming yeah, all right, your take on, um, uh, the latest endorsements going to donald trump from tommy hearns. And uh, uh, uh, what's the rapper name? Um, in detroit. Uh, what's his name? Trick, trick, I mean. All right.
Speaker 4:So we need to be clear and actually my pastor said this this sunday. We need to be clear and actually my pastor said this this Sunday. We need to be clear that there's this narrative about black men Especially moving closer to Trump. That's not real, it's not real. It's not real.
Speaker 3:It's fake. It's fake news.
Speaker 4:It's totally fake news and we need to, we need to remind people, do you think?
Speaker 1:the Democrats Are buying into that narrative, because we are seeing and I and I saw a clip where kamala harris said I gotta fight for every vote, and I don't disagree with her, I think she does, but we are seeing a concerted effort on part of the democratic party and power structure toward, you know, targeting black men in particular and black men, right behind black women, are the highest demographic base.
Speaker 4:That vote democrat, so they know they know they can't touch black women, so they're not even trying Right Um. Black women are in the 90%, black men are in the 80%.
Speaker 3:We're right behind.
Speaker 4:We're right behind them, right, but they do feel like there's a fracture, that they can. They can, they can try to pick some folks away. Um, I don't think it's going to work because Because we continue to show up for Democratic presidential candidates, but I think it's up to shows like this and voices like yours to continue to remind people that is fake news.
Speaker 1:Black men support the vice president, yeah, terby and Shorters is also like this, isn't real? It's not real, this isn't real. Okay, I want to talk about school board. Yes, so there are 20 something people running for three seats.
Speaker 4:I had to text some friends today, like yo. Who are you voting for for school?
Speaker 5:because you didn't know.
Speaker 4:Well, I I had, I had my short list and I was like okay, I was uncertain between two people. Who are you looking at? So I'm, I mean, I was looking at everybody. Yeah, right, um, so I've worked with Boyd White before. I know him to be a person who is brilliant of integrity, who believes in the people of the city of Detroit and really wants to see an improved education system.
Speaker 1:Boyd White works? In what capacity?
Speaker 4:So he is at Dyke and McGossett? Oh, he's a lawyer.
Speaker 1:He's a lawyer, an attorney. Okay, yeah, he's an attorney, so oh he's a lawyer.
Speaker 4:He's a lawyer, yeah, yeah, yeah, attorney, okay, yeah, he's an attorney. So very smart dude. So I'm looking, so Boyd Jeremiah Steen.
Speaker 1:We love Jeremiah Steen here.
Speaker 4:We love Jeremiah, so texting the Steen Foundation, the Steen Foundation.
Speaker 1:Working on behalf of Gen Z Skilman Presidents Board, yeah, skilman Youth Council, let me, so let me get the title right.
Speaker 4:That's right. He was the youngest person to ever be on the board of trustees for Skillman. There's someone who's I mean, he's a little bit older now, so now there's another young person, but no, just a very smart guy, and he's right that we need Gen Z representation in government.
Speaker 1:Oh goodness, right Like never before Yep, because these young people got something to say right, so never before.
Speaker 4:Yep, um, because these young people got something to say. They have something and they have experiences, just something to say.
Speaker 1:They have good ideas, good idea and they want to.
Speaker 4:They they are doing they are doing, they are doing.
Speaker 1:I think about folks like jeremiah, I think about, uh, angelica williams, I think about jerwan howard. I mean, these are gen zers that ain't asking for permission at all, and I love that they, they shouldn, shouldn't.
Speaker 4:They should just continue doing the work, and what we're seeing with folks like them is that the resources are showing up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, good.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Good, good, okay. So we got to do this all over again next year? We do, because the municipal elections are coming. Yes, it's going to be less voting. It's going to be less money, right, yeah, less text messages asking for money. My goodness.
Speaker 4:I want to be on a do not do not text list because it's like yo, you got my vote, you don't need to. You don't need to keep texting me, no.
Speaker 1:Or I already did. The fundraising professionals will say you asked On that part too.
Speaker 1:It's just like yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm signed up monthly to give to you. That's happened for some candidates. It's like stop asking me for money. Yeah, good, good, we will be voting for mayor in 2025. We'll also be voting for city council in 2025. And I'm wondering from you like what is your temperature on how the race is shaping up? And there have been many rumblings about you entering the race as well. I don't know about many, but there were rumblings. So are you running for mayor of Chase Cantrell? I am not running for mayor.
Speaker 4:You are not running for mayor In 2025. In 2025.
Speaker 2:To be clear.
Speaker 4:So just to talk about that a little bit, right, Like it is a deeply personal sort of decision to run for an office at that level. Right, Like it takes complete dedication to do something like that Not only the campaign, but to be in that position of authority. So you know there were tons of conversations, right, I was meeting with all kinds of people having that conversation and realized that I will be, I'm looking to support a candidate. Haven't found that candidate yet, but it is not my time this cycle.
Speaker 1:So there are some folks who have their hat in the ring. I'm just. You know, fred Durhall Was the most recent to announce.
Speaker 4:Yes.
Speaker 1:I don't think Mary Sheffield has announced. I think she's only formed.
Speaker 4:That's right. She has formed her candidate committee. Yeah, only three people have formed candidate committees. Yeah, right, so that's not an official announcement.
Speaker 3:Right, everyone always couches it in that's.
Speaker 4:Mary. So Mary Fred Durhall and Santil Jenkins.
Speaker 1:Former city council president Santil Jenkins. That's right, all right.
Speaker 4:Yes, a current CEO of Thaw Of Thaw, very important when?
Speaker 1:Christine Beatty works. That's right. Yeah, all right. So what's that face for?
Speaker 4:No, I'm happy for Christine. I'm happy, yes.
Speaker 1:So tell me a little bit about from the current pool of candidates. How are you feeling?
Speaker 4:Well, what typically happens if it is true?
Speaker 1:A potential candidate Right potential candidates what typically happens.
Speaker 4:If it is true, A potential candidate, Right potential candidates what typically happens, you know, if what everyone believes is that Mayor Duggan will not run again, right, that he is looking for a different office, If that is true, when we have these transition periods, there are always 20 plus people who run literally. When Komene Young Sr decided not to run, there was over 20 candidates and, you know, Dennis Archer came out ahead. Same for when Mayor Duggan ran. Wait, but speaking of Dennis Archer.
Speaker 1:He has a son of the same name, a junior, a junior, and I'm hearing his name thrown around. What do you think about that? You think it's?
Speaker 4:I have heard mixed things about whether he will run or not. Okay, so we'll see.
Speaker 1:We don't know if he'll run.
Speaker 4:I mean he would. If he does, I mean he would be someone that the business community would likely support.
Speaker 1:I mean, he's a darling of the regional chamber, but so is Santil Jenkins. I feel like you know a Dennis Archer candidacy and a Jenkins candidacy. It would be interesting, but it's also. It feels like an establishment. They feel like establishment candidates.
Speaker 4:I don't think of Sontiel as being establishment in the same way as Dennis Archer Say. More so she comes from a social worker background. Right, she is leading the kind of organization that is trying to help low-income Detroiters. Right, it's a different approach to the business ecosystem in the city of Detroit, Although she's well-respected I mean, her organization has a huge annual budget, right.
Speaker 1:She's well-respected, I think, in her work. Now Do you think she has to still answer for her Stepping?
Speaker 4:down.
Speaker 1:Her stepping down. Her conduct especially headed into the bankruptcy the vote. You know a lot of residents still are miffed about how things went down.
Speaker 4:So I'm not sure if it's a lot of residents. So whenever I bring up her name, especially among our generation, right, like some people don't know that history or remember, like I was late 20s, early 30s when all that went down and I was here, I mean, I was here too, but I was not necessarily paying attention to that Gotcha. So I have had to go back and actually, nerd that I am, go through the Free Press archives to like go back and see, like all right, what actually did happen back then.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 4:Christine Ferretti, to her credit, wrote a lot about that too, yeah, yeah did happen, and christine ferretti uh, to her credit wrote a lot about that too. Yeah, yeah. So I mean, it's up to you, it's up to podcasts like this and other news sources to ask those questions yeah, yeah, yeah, so it's going to be interesting it already is interesting. Yeah right um who. Who will mayor duggan support when?
Speaker 1:when all this goes down, if he's not running if he's not because he's not said that he has not is not running exactly although there's a new nonprofit that was just formed supporting his candidacy?
Speaker 4:Well, not necessarily his candidacy but putting out information about how good a mayor he has been according to that nonprofit.
Speaker 1:Well, that's what he is. He's a machine, he's even beyond a political machine. He's a comms machine. That's why he hires journalists all the time Chief White took a job he did With the Wayne Integrated Health Network.
Speaker 4:This is a trend of everyone is jumping ship. I keep reminding people.
Speaker 1:Brad Dick took a job.
Speaker 4:Brad Dick just left.
Speaker 1:Who was a group executive? Yes, he's at Wayne State.
Speaker 4:Yep. Donald Rencher went to Hudson Weber Foundation. Donald Rencher went to Hudson.
Speaker 1:Weber, these are all Duggan insiders, department heads, department I mean group executives.
Speaker 4:Yeah, At the top of the top.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and the police chief, yes, they're jumping shit, which is to me an indicator that Duggan will not be mayor.
Speaker 4:that Duggan will not be mayor.
Speaker 1:What do you make of the chief's move? This is probably the most public move on part of anybody in his administration, more than even Brad Dick or Donald Ratcher.
Speaker 4:I think it makes sense. I mean he had the experience to be able to get this position.
Speaker 1:It is something that he cares about, like in the mental health space, right Like I think that knowing that again, all these he's done more on mental health as chief, in terms of trying to figure out how to respond right, which is what we need in the city of Detroit, and we can critique what they've been doing, but at least he he's having the conversation, he's doing it.
Speaker 4:Yeah, he's having the conversation, he's thinking about it. I mean this makes total sense for him, I think. And again many of these department heads will be leaving. Many of these department heads will be leaving, so why not go to a position that makes sense for?
Speaker 1:you. I love doing this rapid fire with you. Okay, so what we have not been able to discuss on the podcast or have him on is Arthur Jemison. Returning to the city of Detroit.
Speaker 4:I am so happy Listen From Boston to run the housing commission the housing commission, the failing housing commission that's been so terrible for so long.
Speaker 1:Yes, and he likes to fix stuff. He likes to fix stuff and he actually does it. He does it. So but he, we ain't heard from him. He ain't done a single single interview. I can't you know what's going on, have you?
Speaker 4:talked to him. I mean, I've shown up to housing commission meetings, so I mean he's there, he's there he's present um and to back up for a second. So when he he went to hud first to work for the president.
Speaker 2:To work for the president he was.
Speaker 4:He was uh an assistant secretary, something something crazy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so he was. So he was high up. Yep dang, we know arthur, but still very humble, which is still we can.
Speaker 4:I could text him right now, he will respond, yeah um, when he moved over to be the planning director of boston. This is when things got really interesting, because I, because I continued to follow his work while he was there and it was a very progressive mayor in Boston Still is a very progressive.
Speaker 1:What's her name?
Speaker 4:She was great Is she still mayor.
Speaker 1:She's still mayor, okay, good.
Speaker 4:We'll Google it, but developers were extremely worried about the things that were being put in place. I say this in this way, that there were things that Arthur wanted to do when he was-.
Speaker 1:Michelle Wu.
Speaker 4:Michelle Wu when he was planning director here. That didn't necessarily happen in the city of Detroit. He was able to do those things in Boston. So I'm excited. I'm excited that he's back. I think that he's the right person to help try to fix the hospital.
Speaker 1:I mean only a crazy man will take that job, or someone who is very, very capable, very capable and cares, so he came. He does care.
Speaker 4:So I teach at the University of Michigan and when he Flex, I mean whatever you know, professor, and before he moved to Boston he was still living in it, he was living in Ann Arbor and he came to speak to my class I thought it was going to be via Zoom. He actually came in person and what he conveyed to my students was why we need people, not only electeds right, everybody wants to run for office but we need people like him who actually believe in government, who will build their careers in government and who actually care about doing the work. The kids they're 20-somethings right, the Gen.
Speaker 3:Zers, the young people, there we go.
Speaker 4:And they're grad students. You know they were grad students at the end of their you know time at U of M, so they're about to graduate. They loved it, they really loved it, like he was inspiring to that, to that group, jimison. Yeah, well, I mean, so someone someone else asked me he's gifted, he's very gifted yeah, someone was putting together a conference and asked me about, about arthur, like can he inspire?
Speaker 4:and I'm like have you met him like absolutely, but it's going to be in a very personal way, personable, quiet yeah, he's not like I say I, I big person.
Speaker 1:I say the same thing about garland gilchrist oh yeah, it's like garland. Uh, he can do television, but his charisma and his charm don't come off on television. You, you, you feel his charisma in person, in his charm, when you experience that's right, it's the same thing for arthur, jemisin yeah yeah, yeah what do you think about what Garland Gilchrist is going to do next?
Speaker 4:I am not sure. Okay, People keep asking me because you know, I know Garland and we haven't had that conversation.
Speaker 1:I had it with him a while ago, but I don't know if that number one I don't have permission to you know.
Speaker 4:Talk about what we talked about, and things are changing in the ecosystem really fast.
Speaker 1:Things are changing really quickly.
Speaker 4:It's not clear where everyone will land in 2025.
Speaker 1:And Sarah, our founder, editor-in-chief at Outlier, sarah Alvarez, just interviewed him last week because I couldn't. She's like you're friends, you can't interview him. That makes sense. It makes sense, but I've interviewed him still and I don't pull punches.
Speaker 3:I ask questions.
Speaker 1:All right, this is great. Is there anything you're thinking about?
Speaker 4:City council as well. Right, so there are city council members who are beginning to fundraise and thinking about what that council will look like with whoever the new mayor is. In some ways, I'm more concerned about that, honestly, like the mayor. The mayor will be whoever they will be, um, but we, we need a council who understands the power of council and can push back on whoever that mayor is so does the current council understand that?
Speaker 4:no, okay, they don't. Um, let me, let me, let me not say that Some of them do right, but there's not enough of them who do to actually create the policies that we need to push his advantage. We have a newish city council, right, people are still learning the ropes, but they have annual retreats and what I have seen from those annual retreats is they have not been able to get a policy agenda together, and this is what year three I mean. You have to have enough of them coalesce around ideas to be able to form some sort of front against what any mayor wants to do. So I haven't seen them do that successfully.
Speaker 1:They're a very friendly body towards the mayor, or a good, healthy dialogue. Yeah. It doesn't necessarily have to always be a front.
Speaker 4:No, but it's a check.
Speaker 2:It should remain a check.
Speaker 1:Yeah and right now they don't really be to always be your front. No, but it's a check.
Speaker 2:It should remain a check.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and right now they don't really be checking Part of it is the district system, which I'm still a fan of.
Speaker 1:But it fragments the power.
Speaker 4:It fragments the power in a way. If you, as city council member, only think that your duty is to your district and not to the full city and I think different council members think about that differently Some think, yes, I have to do things for my district, but I still represent all of the city Is there a job description for a city council person. I mean it's in the charter but it's not. It could be more detailed.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay. When will we have the opportunity to reopen the charter?
Speaker 4:Oh, it's in 2030. Something In 2030? Yeah, okay.
Speaker 1:Alright, chase Cantrell, it's always a blast getting your hot political take. It was fun. It was fun right, we went really quickly. We went really quickly. Listen, if you have topics that you want discussed on Authentically Detroit, you can hit us up on our socials at Authentically Detroit, on Facebook, instagram and Twitter, or you can email us at authenticallydetroit at gmailcom. It is time for shout outs. I'll go first. I'll give you a minute to think about your shout out, shout out to.
Speaker 1:Dr Aaron Perry, who's the new editor-in-chief of Outlier Media. Shout out to Eddie Carrington and the ribbon, cutting at the ribbon, so proud of him and my old hood over there on East Warren and Kaju. Yo, eddie has been steeped over there From start to finish, wanting to do it right, listening, sometimes, taking a licking. Yep, as a developer should, as a developer should, and you know, help firm While making sure that residents also had ownership of that. So congratulations, eddie Carrington. Chase Cantrell, oh, and shout out to my co-host, donna Gibbons-Davidson, who's in Baltimore. Shout out to Donna Having big fun, all right.
Speaker 4:Chase, all right. Shout out to Carlita Williams, who is the founder of mockery zero proof so she is opening up a mocktail bottle shop on the northwest side of the city, six mile in livernois, and you know she is an amazing, amazing tenant in the space that I have, a project that I developed, um, but she's just a wonderful spirit, great energy. She is hitting the ground running, can't wait for her grand opening, which will happen around Thanksgiving, a little bit after Thanksgiving. And also shout out to Mamba, the owner of Baobab Fair, who's doing amazing, amazing things. So, baobab Fair, he has WACA. He is opening a new spot on East Warren.
Speaker 1:Down the street from Eddie Carrington's spot Down the street.
Speaker 4:Lots of stuff happening on East Warren right. We need to bring some of that energy to Six Mile.
Speaker 1:Don't. No, let's figure out East Warren first. No, no, no, we have conversations about Six.
Speaker 4:Mile too, no, we have conversations, but no, he reminds me that, you know, anything is possible in Detroit. You know, had a conversation with him earlier and just hearing all of his stories, despite challenges, it's just like no, this is what we want people to do To dream big and to just put their dreams into reality.
Speaker 1:Yeah, shout out to Mama, we love him. Yes, all right, everybody. We thank you so much For listening and until next time, love on somebody and allow yourself To be loved on Outro Music.
