Meet the Black History Makers of Today
As we celebrate Black History Month this February, dozens of Michigan high school seniors are being recognized for their ability to uplift their peers or their community through academic achievement and positive behavior. Meet the students who won the Black History Makers of Today Scholarship.
5 Detroit sites recognized as historic for role in Civil Rights Movement
DETROIT โ Five places in Detroit have been officially deemed historic for their role in the Civil Rights Movement. The Civil Rights Movement sought to demand equality for African Americans in the North as much as in the South,โ said Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer Martha MacFarlane-Faes. โBy listing these sites, the National Register recognizes Detroitโs significant role in the growth of the movement. Officials say these five sites now join nearly 2,000 existing historic sites in Michigan that are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The newly-selected sites were chosen by a 14-person Civil Rights advisory committee comprised of local historians familiar with Detroitโs Black history, as well as staff members from the State Historic Preservation Office and Detroitโs Historic Designation Advisory Board, officials said.
Remembering the Paradise Theater in Detroit
DETROIT โ For 10 years, Detroitโs Orchestra Hall presented jazz artists under the name Paradise Theater, opening on Christmas Eve 1941. The Paradise hosted renowned jazz musicians, including Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington. The Paradise Theater years ended in 1951 at Orchestra Hall, now home to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Here is its story -- watch the video above. More: Black History Month
Was 2020 really a year of social change?
The year 2020 became a year of social justice movements. Was the call for change growing louder or were more people finally listening? The question that remain unanswered: Will the renewed quest for racial equality evolve into real lasting reforms? Watch the full report in the video above.
Watch: Metro Detroit student roundtable on Inauguration Day, history and the future
DETROIT โ Our future -- the next generation of Americans -- got together with Local 4โฒs Paula Tutman on Inauguration Day. It was a roundtable of more than 30 local students. As we celebrate Black History Month, these students share how they see change and progress happening in our country when it comes to race relations. Experts in our History 4 All special airing during Black History Month say our young people -- our next generation -- are our hope for real change in the future. More: Black History Month stories
Work underway to restore Underground Railroad safe house in Walled Lake
DETROIT โ Community members are coming to together in Walled Lake to help restore this historic house. Watch this inspiring story above. If youโd like to help, contact Greenhouse of Walled Lake: info@greenhouseofwalledlake.com. More: Black History Month section
Underground Railroad in Detroit: Important people, sites you might not know
DETROIT โ Have you ever learned about George DeBaptiste? How about William Lambert? Hereโs a look at some Detroiters who played big roles in the Underground Railroad, and the historic sites in the city (and just across the Detroit River in Canada) that you may never have noticed. Watch the full story above to learn all about it. More: Black History Month section
Detroit Police Chief James Craig discusses his approach to race relations
Nick joined the Local 4 team in February of 2015. Prior to that he spent 6 years in Sacramento covering a long list of big stories including wildfires and earthquakes. Raised in Sterling Heights, he is no stranger to the deep history and pride Detroit has to offer.
Black History Month: Detroitโs top cop has message on overcoming racism
Nick joined the Local 4 team in February of 2015. Prior to that he spent 6 years in Sacramento covering a long list of big stories including wildfires and earthquakes. Raised in Sterling Heights, he is no stranger to the deep history and pride Detroit has to offer.
Take a stroll through Black History without leaving your home
Detroit is an important city in history and especially in Black History. That is where Black Scroll Network steps in. They are providing tours of Detroit that highlight our cityโs importance in Black History. Jordan is a former educator and, through his years of teaching, he realized his students did not know much about Detroitโs history, specifically its important Black History. So he set up Black Scroll Network with that mission, to teach everyone about our cityโs Black History.
Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History celebrates Black history year-round
DETROIT โ Black History Month is just one of the 12 months a year when Black history is celebrated at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit. Learn more about the museum in the video above. If you would like to visit, find more information here: www.thewright.orgMore: Black History Month stories
Historic home to jazz: Bakerโs Keyboard Lounge in Detroit
DETROIT โ Bakerโs Keyboard Lounge is reopening with restrictions in place. Learn all about the history of the place and what it has to offer now -- watch the video above. Bakerโs is situated right along Livernois at 8 Mile Road. More: Black History Month stories you need to learn about
Motown Museum chair on Mary Wilson: โWorld has lost one of the brightest stars in our familyโ
DETROIT โ Motown Museum Chairwoman and CEO Robin Terry called Mary Wilson one of the โbrightest starsโ in the Motown family. โIn this moment of extreme sadness, the world has lost one of the brightest stars in our Motown family. Mary Wilson was an icon,โ reads a statement from Terry. Ballard was replaced by Cindy Birdsong in 1967, and Wilson stayed with the group until it was officially disbanded by Motown in 1977. Touring at the time, Wilson said there was a moment when she realized they had a hit song.
How group of men in Detroit honors Buffalo Soldiers, passes knowledge to kids
DETROIT โ This week for Your Neighborhood, a non profit with a Black History Month lesson. We are in Detroit to learn more about the Buffalo Soldiers. Inside horses and their stables on a piece of land home to the Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Association. โThis is an organization that was created locally about 15 years ago,โ said James Mills with the Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Association. For Mills, the Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Association is a way to keep African American involvement in past wars alive.
Lansing area activists seek to honor Malcolm Xโs family
FILE - In this June 29, 1963, file photo, Malcolm X addresses a rally in Harlem in New York. โI think it would get the city to appreciate Malcolm X and the Little (family) more,โ Edmund Rushton told the Lansing State Journal. Malcolm X was born Malcolm Little in Nebraska, lived in Lansing until 1940 when he was placed in foster homes in Mason. Malcolm X returned to Lansing in 1955 and started holding NOI meetings in Lansing. The Little family lived in three homes in the area prior to Earl Littleโs death, Malcolm X wrote in his autobiography.
WDIV and ClickOnDetroit honor contributions of African-Americans
WDIV-Local 4, the Graham Media Group owned NBC affiliate in Detroit, announced today their continuing commitment to honoring African American achievement through an initiative called Celebrating Black History Month. Anchor/reporter Priya Mann takes us on the Black Scroll Network History Tour and shows us how the tour of important places and people in Black History continues even through the pandemic. AdDevin Scillian, Steve Garagiola, Larry Spruill, and Nick Monacelli also will contribute to Celebrating Black History Month. Co-hosts Jason Carr and Tati Amare will join โLive in the Dโ reporters Kila Peeples and Michelle Oliver in celebrating Black History Month all throughout February. For more information about Local 4 and ClickOnDetroitโs Celebrating Black History Month programming and content, go to clickondetroit.com/blackhistorymonth.
Getting to know Michigan health chief Dr. Joneigh Khaldun
Youโve seen her at the Michigan governorโs news conferences. Youโve read her quotes and youโve followed her insight on COVID-19 in Michigan. But do you really know anything about Dr. Joneigh Khaldun? Local 4 spoke with her a little more this week -- watch the full interview above. She talked about the spotlight thrust upon her when the pandemic swept into Michigan in March 2020.
ACLU, for first time, elects Black person as its president
She succeeds Susan Herman, a professor at Brooklyn Law School who had served as president since 2008. Early in her career, after graduating from Yale Law School, she was a legal fellow at the ACLU in 1997-98. At NYU Law School, Archer is a professor of clinical law and director of its Civil Rights Clinic. AdโThere is no one better equipped, who best personifies or is more capable to helm the future battles for civil rights, civil liberties, and systemic equality than Deborah Archer,โ Romero said. โPresident Trump may be gone but his toxic legacy on civil rights and civil liberties is still very much with us,โ Romero said.
Today in 1963: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. leads massive civil rights march in Downtown Detroit
DETROIT Although one thing Dr. King is known for is his iconic I Have a Dream speech during the March on Washington in August of 1963, he lead a march in Detroit two months prior. Detroits Walk to FreedomThe June 1963 march in Detroit was, at the time, the largest civil rights demonstration in U.S. history, with 125,000 marching down Woodward Avenue. The crowd carried signs and moved in relative silence as tens of thousands more watched from sidewalks and buildings. Inside, public officials, African American business and civic leaders, and dignitaries including John B. Swainson, Congressman Charles Diggs, and Rev. It is estimated that over $100,000 was raised for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), the civil rights organization for which Dr. King served as president.
Detroit is holding weeklong Juneteenth celebration
DETROIT The city of Detroit is holding a weeklong celebration for Juneteenth. Juneteenth honors the day in 1865 when United States soldiers announced the news of the Emancipation Proclamation to enslaved African Americans in Texas. The official anniversary date is June 19. Starting Monday, June 15, the city of Detroit will hold a livestream discussion about civil rights, inclusion and opportunity. The event is set to start at 6 p.m. on Facebook.
First African American International UAW Secretary-Treasurer Ruben Burks dies
DETROIT โ Ruben Burks, the first African American International UAW Secretary-Treasurer, died Monday. Burks also helped the Flint community. In December 2017, Local 598 renamed its union hall Ruben Burks Hall to honor his decades of leadership. โRuben Burks will always be here in spirit,โ said UAW Region 1D Director Steve Dawes. He was full of wisdom and never stopped fighting for active and retired UAW members and all working people.โ
How Tux & Chucks is helping black-owned charities in Detroit
DETROIT โ Jason Appling is walking the walk, literally. He co-founded the annual event Tux & Chucks, which raises thousands every year for Metro Detroit non profits. We sat down with him -- and his cute son -- to talk about the important work he is doing. Watch the interview above. For more information on Tux & Chucks, and CoolSmart Inc., go here.