Black Michiganders have been shaping our state since day one. The impact of Black history extends into every aspect of culture: art, music, science, medicine, sports, and more.
Here, you can find some of the stories of African-Americans that may have been left out of your history book.
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“Ypsilanti is, has been, a center of military service, and the proportion of Black soldiers that served from Ypsilanti in the Civil War is really extraordinary, so to have an additional recognition of that here on Juneteenth is really special,” said Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist. -
State Senator Mallory McMorrow fired back at GOP attacks on LGBTQ community. A new vision for Michigan's first HBCU — and the history behind it. -
For some Black people in the 19th and 20th centuries, "passing" meant living part or all of your life as non-Black. Recent creative works — Lovecraft Country, Passing, and The Vanishing Half — have brought the idea of passing back to the forefront. This month on Stateside, we discuss the life of a Detroiter who passed as white in the '40s and return to historical, pop culture references to passing in America. -
In 1914, Elsie Roxborough was born into a wealthy, Black family in Detroit. But when she died in 1949, her death certificate listed her as white. Her life was rich, curious and at times, troubled, all while attempting a sort of high-wire-act of living multiple lives, between cities and names and races. -
Cultural references to passing have been around for a long time. But recent works like the Rebecca Hall’s film adaptation of Nella Larsen’s book, Passing, have brought it back to the forefront. Today, we talk about the contexts that have caused this narrative to recur across the centuries. -
After closing its doors in 2013, The Lewis College of Business in Detroit is being resurrected by Designer Brands Inc., which invested $2 million into reopening the school. -
A further look at the Russian-Ukrainian conflict with Congressman Tim Walberg and a Ukrainian American scholar. And, the story of the Black woman behind Michigan’s only HBCU, which is about to reopen.
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WGPR was the first Black owned and operated television station in the country. A museum honoring its history sits in the former broadcast studios. -
On today's show, a former US Ambassador discusses the current situation in Ukraine. Plus, hear a conversation on code-switching and how Black Michiganders move between Black and White spaces. -
Metro Detroit is one of the most racially segregated areas in the country. And when you're a Black person from a place like this, you probably learn to code switch at an early age. Today, Black people code switching as they move between majority white spaces and majority black spaces, something that's often necessary in order to get by in the world.
