2026 Eastside Candidate Forum Preview with Jasmine Kaltenbach

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Up next, Authentically Detroit welcomes organizer and labor policy expert Jasmine Kaltenbach to discuss the upcoming East Side Candidate Forum, co-hosted by Authentically Detroit, SEIU Michigan, and the Home Rule Project.
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And of course, what we're reading from the Michigan Chronicle.
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Abdul Al Sayyed and Haley Stevens.
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They're targeting black voters in Michigan's Democratic U.S.
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Senate primary race.
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Keep it locked.
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Authentically Detroit starts right after these messages.
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What's up, Detroit?
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Welcome to another episode of Authentical Detroit.
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We're broadcasting live from Detroit's East Side at the Staddenmeyer inside of the East Side Community Network.
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I'm Sam Robinson.
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And I'm Donna Givens Davidson.
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We want to thank you all for listening in and supporting our efforts to build a platform of authentic voices for real people here in the city of Detroit.
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We want you to like, rate, and subscribe to our podcast on all platforms.
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Today, we have a very special guest, organizer and labor policy expert, Jasmine Kaltenbach, here to discuss the upcoming Eastside Candidate Forum.
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It's co-hosted by Authentical Detroit, SCIU Michigan, and the Home Rule Project.
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Jasmine is a labor policy expert organizer.
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She leads a community labor initiative, the Home Rule Project Michigan, which educates workers and community members on laws that block local organizing.
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She sits on the alumni board of the Gerald R.
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Ford School of Public Policy.
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She lives on the east side of Detroit, as do all of we.
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I rode my bike here today.
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It is hot, but apparently on Tuesday, that's tomorrow.
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It's going to be even hotter over 100 degrees.
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Jasmine, are you staying cool?
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I am with my window AC unit.
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Me too.
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Doors closed every night.
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Yeah, me too.
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I got my unit pumping.
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Um a couple weeks ago when it was 90, or was that last week?
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It was like 90.
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It was like it was so bad.
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Um, I was scurrying down to my basement a lot of that.
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I, you know, kind of wonder, should I just put my mattress in my basement tonight, tomorrow?
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I I don't know.
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Uh but we want to talk about uh this US Senate race that I went absolutely viral over the weekend.
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You saw my Twitter all over on television networks and Twitch streams like Hassan Biker.
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Um the African World Festival was a great place to talk to Haley Stevens voters.
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Uh the attendees skew older.
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And there's a narrative that is becoming sort of, you know, this this reality that older black voters are going to split for Haley Stevens, and younger black voters are gonna split for Abdul Al-Sayed.
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Sort of similar dynamics to what we saw in New York's Merrill race with uh Andrew Cuomo and Zoran Memdani.
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Uh, of course, uh the Twitter just it went crazy.
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I mean, you saw some of the some of the commentary.
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Um, you had all the biggest names in politics Twitter above that tweet of DW and uh Donna was her name, uh, coincidentally enough.
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I told her to go listen to our podcast.
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Uh they told me that they were staunchly against the military operation happening uh by the Israeli government.
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Uh that said that they were not pro-Netanyahu, said they're not anti-Israel, they're not anti-Jewish.
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Um, however, they they really had a lot to say about what was happening in Lebanon, Iran, and in Gaza, Palestine.
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And so you'd think somebody like that would be a shoe-in for Abdul al-Sayed, right?
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No.
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They told me that they're voting for Haley Stevens because they've seen ads on TV that suggest that Obama is behind her campaign.
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Now, Obama did endorse Haley Stevens in 2018 in a in a general election race.
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Uh, that was when she first got to Congress.
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Um, Obama has not weighed in to this race.
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Uh, when you see mailers that say uh, you know, Obama, uh, you know, Haley Stevens was there with Obama during the auto bailout.
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Now that is true.
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Obama has said, Barack Obama has said nice things about Haley Stevens, but not in the context of this 2026 Democratic primary race for the opening U.S.
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Senate seat, which is being vacated by Gary Peters.
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Today, Monday, Gary Peters actually endorsed um Haley Stevens.
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And so it does seem like uh, you know, it's a clear uh uh race in terms of the establishment is fully behind Haley and the progressive grassroots is entirely behind Abdul.
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Right.
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I mean, I think that if you look at the history of how um traditional black voters have turned out in democratic elections, they usually go with the establishment name.
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Um, and sometimes that's not true.
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I remember when um Barack Obama was running for president and he did not necessarily catch on with black voters for a while.
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Um, and you know, it's gonna be interesting to really evaluate what that looks like.
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But in New York, you saw Mandami not really getting black voter support of a certain generation until after um he won the primary.
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Um I'm not surprised by it.
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I don't know if you remember when Joe Biden was running for president and there was a real question about whether or not he was going to be the candidate.
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And in South Carolina, um Jim Kleiburn threw his whole weight behind him and it turned the race for him.
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And so if you are a Democratic voter and you are part of that mainstream establishment base, black voters, older black voters, tend to be your safe place.
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Um people like the devil, they know.
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I know you, I know who you are, you've been into my church, I've seen what you do, and I don't necessarily trust new people.
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Um, but I also think that there is a targeting of ads to certain populations that disturbs me.
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I was talking to one person who was going to vote for Donovan McKinney, and then they read that they got a mailer that said that he um voted to strike down the minimum wage law, and they say, Oh, hold up, I need no more information.
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And so um there's a certain level of counting on senior citizens again to do the safe thing and vote for the person who's there.
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Um that concerns me.
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But I think that as I've said many times over, um older voters are getting older and older and making up a smaller share of the electorate, and younger voters are making up a larger share of the electorate.
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And so you're not gonna be able to continue doing those things and expect to continue having that success in that way.
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If Haley Stevens wins on that basis, and it's very possible she will, um it's probably not gonna happen for a person like her to be able to run a Barack Obama ad.
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And the other thing, the final thing I want to say that is running that Barack Obama ad cuts two ways because there are a number of voters who had their hopes raised and don't trust Obama and felt left down by him.
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And so to a certain extent, that kind of weighs against them.
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I said one more thing, but I do have one more thing in addition to that, one more thing.
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And that is um Governor Whitmer's vetoes last Friday, which I almost I almost had a traffic accident.
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I had my phone up here, and somehow I got a message, and I know I'm not supposed to be reading it, but it popped up and I was like, what?
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And almost hit something, but I um pulled over so I could actually read it and not kill anybody or myself.
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Um it was such a shock to see that defeat.
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And for some people, this was more of the same a mainstream Democrat letting us down.
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And so I think that you have two narratives.
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Do we want to go with change or do you want to stay the road?
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And the question is who wins?
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And then on top of that, you have Islamophobia layered on top of all of that.
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Yeah, I um, you know, Donna, you were at Chandler Park with Abdul Al-Syed.
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You spoke on his behalf, stumping for uh the progressive former Detroit and Wayne County health director.
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I made some news after that event.
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Uh, Abdul has been receiving criticism.
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He has not released his tax filings.
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Um he told me on Friday that he plans to release them this week.
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Uh we made some news with Haley Stevens as well at the Lightup Livernoy event on Saturday over there at the Avenue of Fashion.
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I talked to the representative of Birmingham, Haley Stevens.
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She told me inside of the Times Square suit store that uh on El Sayyed and his support of uncommitted, this is becoming a uh a huge point of discourse whether or not the uncommitted February primary protest against Joe Biden led to Connell Harris's loss.
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Uh I won't get into that conversation right now, but uh Haley Stevens told me on uncommitted.
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Who did that help?
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When you sat out 24, that vote is an important thing.
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People are entitled to use it as they see fit.
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But we also need courageous leaders right now.
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Her campaign has uh messaged uh that El Sayyed supported uncommitted.
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Um you hear it in our communities, right?
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Because it's it's been you know sort of paid to people have been putting money behind that message that Arab Muslim candidates who who backed uncommitted can't be trusted.
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Um and and you know what I've said is I I I voted uncommitted too.
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So, and then I I campaigned, I was in Romulus.
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I campaigned for um uh vice president Harris.
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You can do two things.
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Um, first of all, Harris was not running at the time the uncommitted uh movement started.
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I think people may remember that was Joe Biden who was running at that time.
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And what people were opposing was the genocide taking place in Gaza and the United States spending its money and trying to influence the sitting president at that time to change his foreign policy and stop funding genocide.
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That was the reason many of us voted uncommitted.
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I stand by that, I'm unapologetic for that, but I did not cause Kamala Harris to lose.
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I was out there campaigning with her and standing up for her.
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I want to be clear about something.
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I run East Side Community Network, I'm a podcast co-host on Authentically Detroit as a private citizen.
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I supported Abdul El Sayyid and I support him because I know him as a private citizen, not just as a candidate, but as a human being that I've known for 10 years.
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And I have been um blessed by our friendship.
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I think he is somebody I trust simply because I've seen what he does.
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He is like all candidates, imperfect.
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And so there's things he may or may not do exactly the way I want them, but the way that people are attacking him on messages around anti-Islamism, and you know, he doesn't like women or he's got these ties.
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One of my best friends in politics and somebody I grew up with from the time I was my parents, our parents were best friends, is Keith Ellison.
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And Keith Ellison faced those exact same attacks when he ran for office the first time as a first Muslim member of Congress.
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I would not sit still, I would not be okay with allowing somebody to say that against a friend of mine.
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And I'm really, really um loyal to my friends, right?
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So um he's a friend, he's somebody I support.
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I'm not saying vote for him because he's my friend.
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I'm saying vote for him if you believe what he believes in, but don't believe the mess because um we have a whole lot of dust that's being kicked in people's faces right now, and it really makes me mad.
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And the Obama commercial really made me angry.
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The first one.
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Now, I was actually unable to find that one on YouTube, by the way.
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The first one where it's all Obama speaking, and he's saying vote for her.
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That commercial has since been replaced with something that's a lot more subtle than that first one.
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Do you remember the first commercial?
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It was all Obama speaking, his voiceover, and you didn't hear anything else.
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Um that bothered me.
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And I actually Googled it like, is he supporting her?
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Because this I didn't read that, and he's not.
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Um, I will say this also, though his silence speaks to.
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I know you reached out to him, Sam, and used his office and you asked him for clarification.
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Did you hear anything back?
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Dave Wiegel of the Semaphore uh news organization.
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He used to work for the Washington Post.
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Uh he tweeted this afternoon that Obama's office got back to him.
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They didn't they did not get back to me.
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But um, no, he has not and he has not weighed into the race.
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So Obama's office got back to him and said, we have not endorsing.
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Yes.
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Okay.
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All right.
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Obama's office reiterates to me, and I assume others, not me though, that the former president hasn't endorsed anyone in the race.
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You know, I have never met Barack Obama.
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I will one day.
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But I've never met him.
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Yeah.
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We've been in the same room a few times.
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All right.
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Um, I want to ask you, Jasmine, what do you make of all this?
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Are you on Twitter seeing all this?
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Like, this is overwhelming.
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Like, my Twitter is getting like blown up, like, you know, like I was on the stream, I was on the Hassan stream.
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Like it really does seem like this is the nation watching us.
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This is bigger than Talerico and Jasmine.
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This is maybe not as the Grand Platinum thing, you know, unfolds.
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Yeah, maybe not.
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We're not gonna get that, but this is like capturing our generation in a way that I've never seen an election do that.
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Yeah, um, it's it's really shocking.
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Well, I felt a little bit bad for you.
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Um, you seem to be getting a lot of criticism for reporting words that people were saying from their mouths.
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Yeah, that happens.
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I mean, both both teams have been like mad at stuff that I've tweeted and said, so I just try to keep doing what I think is factual, and when information is presented to me.
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Like, for example, like there's a there's an ink that I need to make a public correction.
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Like, um, I think I had shared something that had implied that Abdul actually publicly endorsed Kamala Harris before Haley Stevens.
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That's not true.
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Haley, the day that Biden dropped and Kamala got in, yeah, shared on her social media with a number of uh union folks that she was endorsing her or that she she would insp, you know, support the Democratic ticket.
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Um, to point out that Obama did not weigh into the race, which you know I have to do in reporting, I'm having to do in a headline, is triggering some of the Haley Stevens supporters who are like, well, if he didn't like it, you know, him and Michelle are so obsessed with their likeness and image.
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If if he didn't like it, he would he would cease and desist it.
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And I just I don't know.
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But because he does he have a history of sending out seizes, I don't know.
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I mean, I don't know.
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I don't know.
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I don't know how much in the mud.
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I've never seen him do that.
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But what do you think money makes this all of this, Jasmine?
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Yeah, I mean, um I don't think it seemed that some people seem up in arms at the suggestion that people are influenced by ads at all.
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Yes, that's a lot and like people are saying, oh, you're you're you're saying that black people can't think for themselves because they're getting influenced by this ad.
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When it's just like this is how voters are influenced by paid for messages.
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That's that's ridiculous.
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Um, you know, one of my one of my best friends, okay, who is an attorney, went to Georgetown um and lived in um lived in the uh uh Haley Stevens Levin district and voted in that race, was influenced by Haley Stevens' ads at that time to vote for Haley Stevens, not really understanding that Levin was the more um was the more progressive candidate and was actually more in line with her values and now regrets that vote.
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And this is a you know highly educated, highly competent, highly intelligent woman.
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And so to say that, oh, and and who, by the way, is very involved in politics and is uh an activist, um, let alone we were presidents of feminism club together in high school.
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So um, so regardless to say that people aren't influenced by ads is a ridiculous statement.
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Every person is influenced by the R.
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Well, I mean, if if you didn't, if they weren't influenced by ads, people wouldn't spend$40 million running them.
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Okay.
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So the suggestion you're not influenced, and you know, I think it's gaslighting.
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I don't even like using that term that often, but I think it's gaslighting when I hear from my friends, and I have many friends, you know, who are supporting Haley Stevens saying things like, oh, this is no big deal, or you know what, he did say those things, great.
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We know he said those things, and we also know that he did not say those things in the context of supporting her in that race.
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And we also know that there are people who are watching it.
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So let's not play, don't, don't, don't play games with our minds.
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It's okay if you're happy that that she did it.
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That's your candidate.
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You're glad she came up with a way to, you know, increase her advantage.
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Just acknowledge that.
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But don't pretend like this is not done to get an advantage.
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And um there's ads that target people, but sometimes things feel manipulative.
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And I don't like it when I feel manipulated.
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And as a voter, I suppose I'm not really influenced by ads because every time I see an ad, I do my own homework and look things up, and I just assume they're lying, but I don't watch television either.
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I don't engage in the kinds of media.
00:19:03.359 --> 00:19:06.880
I see ads on like Twitter because somebody's posted them.
00:19:07.200 --> 00:19:14.799
Um but I think that you know it it just feels like there's not a lot of integrity behind it.
00:19:14.880 --> 00:19:17.920
And I I think it wouldn't it be great if people were running on issues.
00:19:18.400 --> 00:19:19.440
What is she running on?
00:19:19.759 --> 00:19:20.880
What is he running on?
00:19:21.039 --> 00:19:22.079
What are they going to do?
00:19:22.480 --> 00:19:23.359
That's all I want to know.
00:19:23.440 --> 00:19:25.759
I don't want to hear gotcha things.
00:19:25.839 --> 00:19:27.440
Well, he's got money from this person.
00:19:27.599 --> 00:19:32.480
I'm even a little bit over the APEC conversation.
00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:38.640
Because the reality is we're making APEC into the boogeyman.
00:19:39.039 --> 00:19:44.400
APEC is something that is created by the US government.
00:19:44.880 --> 00:19:50.480
This idea, you know, before APEC, the NRA was the boogeyman, or the Koch brothers were the boogeyman.
00:19:51.119 --> 00:19:52.079
It's big money.
00:19:52.400 --> 00:19:55.119
And it's how big money performs and acts in our government.
00:19:55.200 --> 00:20:01.119
And so now it's APEC, and you know, there's people who are going to blame Israel for every ill in the world and his history.
00:20:01.279 --> 00:20:03.279
It's like Israel did not exist, then, guys.
00:20:03.359 --> 00:20:04.799
This is not on Israel.
00:20:05.039 --> 00:20:11.279
And that is not to minimize the significant, singular role Israel is playing right now.
00:20:12.400 --> 00:20:17.680
But the United States does not arm Israel to be nice to Jewish people.
00:20:18.720 --> 00:20:27.119
The United States arms Israel for its own geopolitical purposes to serve as the watchdog and army in the Middle East.
00:20:27.440 --> 00:20:29.359
It arms a government for that purpose.
00:20:29.519 --> 00:20:31.920
It's a military outpost for the United States.
00:20:32.000 --> 00:20:47.279
It's a strong arm in a region where the United States lost power when you had the um the independence of Egypt, the independence of all of these places that were controlled by uh, you know, colonial powers.
00:20:47.359 --> 00:20:50.160
And then they, you know, decided they were going to control themselves.
00:20:50.240 --> 00:20:55.920
And so Israel is the one who is the ally, a military ally.
00:20:57.039 --> 00:21:01.839
APAC serves military objectives, it serves financial objectives.
00:21:02.319 --> 00:21:20.880
And, you know, even like the way that anti-Semite has been weaponized to stop, you know, any kind of conversation makes it difficult for us to have real conversations about whether it's okay to kill people, drop bombs on children in schools and aid workers and journalists and stop people from eating and all that kind of stuff.
00:21:20.960 --> 00:21:21.759
We're not talking about that.
00:21:21.839 --> 00:21:24.400
We're we're we're kind of in this proxy situation.
00:21:24.880 --> 00:21:30.720
And then I have friends who are in politics who say things like, Well, I care about what's happening in Michigan.
00:21:30.880 --> 00:21:32.559
I don't care about what's happening there.
00:21:32.640 --> 00:21:35.119
And I'm like, Well, in Michigan, we have homeless people.
00:21:35.759 --> 00:21:47.759
And if you spend as much money building beds, building homes as we're spending building and exporting bombs to other countries, maybe we wouldn't have this homeless problem.
00:21:48.799 --> 00:21:53.519
We're always dealing with austerity in our city, crumbling roads and bridges.
00:21:53.599 --> 00:21:58.799
And so how our tax dollars are used is a Michigan problem.
00:21:59.359 --> 00:21:59.759
But again,
00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:01.440
APEC is a boogyman.
00:22:01.519 --> 00:22:02.480
It's bigger than APEC.
00:22:02.640 --> 00:22:05.440
APEC is fronting for a whole lot of other groups right now.
00:22:05.759 --> 00:22:12.160
APEC is not the only entity that has an interest in keeping progressives out of office.
00:22:12.559 --> 00:22:16.000
They can all hide behind APEC now because, you know.
00:22:16.720 --> 00:22:17.599
Anyway.
00:22:18.400 --> 00:22:28.480
Well, it is a highly talked about race, and one that you're going to hear on your cable TVs for the next 25 or so days.
00:22:28.559 --> 00:22:29.519
How many days we got left?
00:22:29.599 --> 00:22:30.319
20 something days.
00:22:30.559 --> 00:22:31.599
22, maybe.
00:22:31.759 --> 00:22:33.519
It's 23 a couple days ago.
00:22:33.839 --> 00:22:34.240
Yes.
00:22:34.400 --> 00:22:36.079
Um, well, you count down.
00:22:36.400 --> 00:22:37.920
I'm gonna keep trying to talk to voters.
00:22:38.000 --> 00:22:39.279
That's like the most valuable.
00:22:39.519 --> 00:22:40.000
It's so funny.
00:22:40.079 --> 00:22:48.640
I'm like walking around the African World Fest thinking like, wow, these are the most valuable voters in terms of like journalists across the country would kill to like talk to these people.
00:22:48.720 --> 00:22:49.519
They don't even know.
00:22:49.599 --> 00:22:55.440
Like, I talked to so many people that you know they maybe let me take their picture, but they didn't want to be on video.
00:22:55.839 --> 00:23:06.960
Obviously, the video is what you really that's like the gold, you know, ticket of um having a compelling message or being able to like represent.
00:23:07.119 --> 00:23:08.240
I talked to a number of people.
00:23:08.319 --> 00:23:13.599
You guys can go through that thread um that I made over the two days.
00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:27.359
Um one of the most interesting people, I don't know if you know him, Donna, Dennis Boatwright, he's the director of Center for Pan-African Studies in Detroit, told me that um some of the some of these politicians don't have their own ideas, so they have to use Obama.
00:23:27.839 --> 00:23:52.400
Um he was a guy that, you know, like you, is not a younger black Detroiter, but um I'm I'm I'm interested to see how many um split from from their demographic, how many young black voters are gonna go for Haley Stevens and how many older black voters are gonna go for Abdul Al-Sayed?
00:23:52.640 --> 00:23:58.160
Well, I I have great friends, and I have a wonderful timeline because my timeline is up and down Abdul Al-Sayed.
00:23:58.240 --> 00:23:59.759
I don't have too many Haley Stevens.
00:23:59.839 --> 00:24:04.079
I do have friends who are breaking for Haley Stevens, but I'm gonna tell you that there is a lot.
00:24:04.319 --> 00:24:06.960
Um, we interviewed um the man we interviewed, Dr.
00:24:07.039 --> 00:24:10.480
William Schuster, who was here last week, said, listen, I listened to my son.
00:24:10.559 --> 00:24:14.079
Now he's not black, but he said, My son turns me on to Abdul.
00:24:14.319 --> 00:24:22.079
I think that, you know, it's hard to put us in one box because I think that you're gonna have um different politics from different people.
00:24:22.240 --> 00:24:30.720
Um, my friends who are the most closely aligned with existing political leaders are breaking for Haley Stevenson.
00:24:30.960 --> 00:24:35.680
My friends who are like, hey, listen, we're not happy with the way things are breaking for Abdul.
00:24:35.759 --> 00:24:44.319
And I think it will be interesting by education, by, you know, um geography within the city of Detroit and the state of Michigan.
00:24:44.400 --> 00:24:54.960
But I do think that you are on to something that there's going to be a number of black folks who vote for Abdul simply because I mean for Haley simply because of Obama's ads.
00:24:55.200 --> 00:24:55.359
Yeah.
00:24:55.440 --> 00:24:59.119
Yeah, I talked to him, and uh you can watch the videos.
00:24:59.200 --> 00:25:02.160
They've been watched like millions of times at this point.
00:25:02.400 --> 00:25:09.200
It's kind of crazy the amount of discourse is happening, and it's squarely focused on the fissure between black and Arab communities.
00:25:09.920 --> 00:25:12.079
I was gonna say, there's that fissure.
00:25:12.240 --> 00:25:13.359
It's historic.
00:25:13.599 --> 00:25:15.680
There's mistrust, it's historic.
00:25:15.759 --> 00:25:19.839
I see people saying things about these Arab people want me to vote for them.
00:25:20.079 --> 00:25:27.279
I think it was another candidate who pointed out, you know, they show up on during you know, election season.
00:25:27.680 --> 00:25:33.119
Um, they show up to our communities when they want something for us, but they don't show up when they're gonna do anything for us.
00:25:33.359 --> 00:25:40.559
And that is like really trying to tap into historic long-standing mistrust.
00:25:41.119 --> 00:25:53.519
Um I think, and you know, I feel this way, in 2026, when we are appealing to bigotry to get people supported, um, is really problematic.
00:25:53.680 --> 00:25:54.000
Yeah.
00:25:54.240 --> 00:26:04.160
Um, there are some Arab people who've done things I don't like, but to stereotype an entire There's a lot of black people that do things that I don't like.
00:26:04.480 --> 00:26:04.880
Exactly.
00:26:05.039 --> 00:26:16.079
And to stereotype an entire ethnicity and say these people hate us, these people are all bad, is you know, more of what we get in our nation where we get to point fingers at other people.
00:26:16.160 --> 00:26:22.319
And I I think sometimes we are less forgiving of other ethnicities than we are of white people.
00:26:22.640 --> 00:26:23.759
Because I think so too.
00:26:24.079 --> 00:26:31.920
You know, we why would any black person trust Haley Stevens over Abdel El Sayed based on group behavior?
00:26:32.240 --> 00:26:39.519
There's no reason for it, there's no evidence that white women have been more supportive of black folks in Detroit than Arab men.
00:26:39.839 --> 00:26:41.279
There's just none.
00:26:42.240 --> 00:26:45.279
But again, I don't believe in stereotyping.
00:26:45.359 --> 00:26:47.440
I don't believe that's how we should move forward.
00:26:47.519 --> 00:26:59.279
And the one thing I will celebrate is that young, younger voters tend to be more into multiracial, multi-ethnic coalitions than a lot of older voters are.
00:26:59.519 --> 00:27:06.079
And I think that's what's gonna turn our world around, is when people stop being in their own little groups in their little social media.
00:27:06.319 --> 00:27:06.960
I think so too.
00:27:07.200 --> 00:27:10.400
I think that's why, you know, talk about all these people in their little groups.
00:27:10.559 --> 00:27:14.960
All you people in your groups need to come out and join us um on Saturday.
00:27:15.119 --> 00:27:15.519
Yeah.
00:27:15.680 --> 00:27:17.599
Uh, we're gonna talk about what's going on on Saturday.
00:27:17.680 --> 00:27:22.000
We got an East Side Forum, candidate forum, legislative candidates.
00:27:22.079 --> 00:27:23.839
Uh, we're gonna take a short break.
00:27:24.000 --> 00:27:24.880
We're gonna be right back.
00:27:25.039 --> 00:27:27.279
Keep it locked, authentically Detroit.
00:27:34.240 --> 00:27:35.519
Listen up, everyone.
00:27:35.680 --> 00:27:42.400
The 2026 Eastside Community Candidate Forum takes place at the Staudemeyer on July 18th from 10 a.m.
00:27:42.559 --> 00:27:43.440
to 4 p.m.
00:27:44.000 --> 00:27:51.839
Join us on the 18th at this forum held in partnership with SEIU Michigan and hear directly from candidates in the U.S.
00:27:51.920 --> 00:27:57.599
House, State House, and State Senate elections about the issues shaping Detroit's East Side.
00:27:57.839 --> 00:28:08.960
This forum is the perfect opportunity for residents to ask questions about health care, development, preemption, governance, affordability, and other issues that impact our city's East Side.
00:28:09.119 --> 00:28:14.400
For more details and to register, visit authentically-detroit.com.
00:28:21.599 --> 00:28:22.319
Welcome back.
00:28:22.480 --> 00:28:24.319
You're listening to Authentically Detroit.
00:28:24.400 --> 00:28:29.279
We are going to talk about the East Side Candidate Forum that takes place this Saturday, July 18th, from 10 a.m.
00:28:29.599 --> 00:28:30.559
to 4 p.m.
00:28:30.960 --> 00:28:33.440
ahead of the 2026 Michigan U.S.
00:28:33.599 --> 00:28:40.000
House State Senate primary elections, um, state house as well.
00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:49.680
At this forum uh is being held in partnership with SEIU Michigan residents, we'll hear directly from candidates about the issues shaping Detroit's East Side.
00:28:49.920 --> 00:28:59.599
We hope to unify resident voices on issues that reflect their priorities and give East Siders the opportunity to learn where candidates stand on community priorities.
00:28:59.920 --> 00:29:13.680
Jasmine, I want to ask you, uh, as somebody that just watched the most recent legislative, well, maybe not most recent, but I I understand there has been some forums for uh the district nine candidates.
00:29:13.839 --> 00:29:21.519
Uh there was a forum for the state senate district one candidates with Justin and Abe.
00:29:21.839 --> 00:29:26.480
Um we're hoping to uh not have any arguments in the parking lot.
00:29:26.640 --> 00:29:32.720
However, if candidates want to do that, they are more than welcome to uh just wait until I have a camera in front of your face.
00:29:33.039 --> 00:29:36.640
Wait, wait till Sam is rolling and then Yeah, no.
00:29:36.799 --> 00:29:40.319
Um I mean I I didn't just I didn't just watch that debate either.
00:29:40.480 --> 00:29:44.960
I uh you know contributed to the to the planning and other things.
00:29:45.200 --> 00:29:47.279
Um yeah that And talk about that.
00:29:47.359 --> 00:29:52.319
I mean bring us in an inside because I know afterward there was some people that were upset and everything.
00:29:52.799 --> 00:29:53.759
Yeah, yeah.
00:29:54.000 --> 00:30:01.359
Well, um, you know, it felt like uh like a less than collegial, you know, environment a little bit.
00:30:01.839 --> 00:30:08.400
This is at the love building in Core City last month building uh between Justin and Unmanu and Abraham Ayash.
00:30:09.440 --> 00:30:18.480
Yeah, um I funny enough, due to the you know organizing responsibilities I I had at that event, I didn't watch every single moment of it.
00:30:18.720 --> 00:30:19.039
Yes.
00:30:19.279 --> 00:30:35.039
Um but um yeah, you know, it seems like uh it's it's it becomes tough when one candidate attacks another candidate, then that candidate has to respond, and it kind of just opens the can of worms to the back and forth attacks.
00:30:35.279 --> 00:30:45.279
Yeah, so that was um that was you know unfortunate to see, which is why, you know, we love to set ground rules and do candidate agreements, which we did do, but um, I guess it wasn't very effective.
00:30:45.680 --> 00:30:47.359
Well, I think it's moderators too.
00:30:47.599 --> 00:30:47.920
Yes.
00:30:48.079 --> 00:30:53.680
Um because you know, we've done it, and we we had the mayor, mayoral form here.
00:30:54.319 --> 00:31:01.279
We had one um when all of the nine people were running for 13th congressional district a few years ago, they were here.
00:31:01.599 --> 00:31:02.319
Yeah, I remember that one.
00:31:02.480 --> 00:31:03.119
That was a good one.
00:31:03.440 --> 00:31:07.039
Yeah, we try to keep it focused on issues, right?
00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:09.119
Shout out to Camau and Dana, though.
00:31:09.200 --> 00:31:11.279
They did a good job of moderating the debate, I thought.
00:31:11.599 --> 00:31:14.240
Yeah, but you have to you have to step in.
00:31:14.640 --> 00:31:15.920
Well, you have to like cut people off.
00:31:16.079 --> 00:31:18.400
Like you have to say, nope, nope, nope, we're not gonna do that.
00:31:18.640 --> 00:31:20.960
Yeah, we have to cut off the mics.
00:31:21.119 --> 00:31:22.640
Let's just be really honest, okay?
00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:23.599
The mic goes off.
00:31:23.680 --> 00:31:26.079
You're not going to be allowed to continue doing that.
00:31:26.319 --> 00:31:30.960
And there's ways to do it, but um, and I'm not meaning to attack anybody.
00:31:31.200 --> 00:31:38.720
We've asked one of the things that we don't do is we don't ask different questions of different candidates because that opens the door for some of that.
00:31:38.960 --> 00:31:39.119
Yeah.
00:31:39.279 --> 00:31:43.039
Um, same questions for everybody, and we don't even mention APAC, right?
00:31:43.119 --> 00:31:46.079
We're asking about specific policy proposals.
00:31:46.240 --> 00:31:48.160
Where do you stand on this issue?
00:31:48.400 --> 00:31:56.559
Because we're really trying to get the conversation redirected to what people will do in office and how they think and how they plan on leading.
00:31:56.720 --> 00:32:07.440
And so I'm hopeful that our forum will, you know, be the kind of forum where, regardless of whatever individual feelings we may have towards candidates, people should not know that.
00:32:07.680 --> 00:32:07.920
Right.
00:32:08.160 --> 00:32:10.960
When we are facilitating that conversation.
00:32:11.200 --> 00:32:13.279
Everybody gets equal time to speak.
00:32:13.440 --> 00:32:25.920
And, you know, if there's rules, violations, we may have to think about what happens if somebody repeatedly, you know, uh, we may just say that we're you're you're we'll skip over you.
00:32:26.240 --> 00:32:26.480
Right.
00:32:26.559 --> 00:32:31.759
But you know, authentically Detroit listeners don't get it twisted with what you're hearing here.
00:32:31.839 --> 00:32:34.160
It will still be an interesting and fun event.
00:32:35.440 --> 00:32:36.640
Oh, oh no, no, no.
00:32:36.720 --> 00:32:44.480
Let me say this the events are really fun and they're interesting because people can really hear what people are going to do.
00:32:44.960 --> 00:32:52.319
I don't think it's fun to be in a room where people are not answering questions and just attacking each other with sound bites.
00:32:52.480 --> 00:32:52.720
Right.
00:32:52.960 --> 00:32:57.039
Um, for me, it's fun, and maybe it's just because I'm a policy wonk.
00:32:57.200 --> 00:32:58.240
I want to know what you're gonna do.
00:32:58.319 --> 00:33:00.480
I want to know what your thoughts are about these things.
00:33:00.640 --> 00:33:05.759
When I hear people trading barbs, I get frustrated because you're not getting at the answers.
00:33:05.920 --> 00:33:14.079
And I feel like a lot of candidates are trained to you ask them a question, and I'm gonna pivot to this answer, even though that's not the question you ask me.
00:33:14.160 --> 00:33:22.000
I've seen it on um Sam's um Instagram or on Twitter, I've seen it in different places where people have just decided this is what I'm gonna say.
00:33:22.240 --> 00:33:22.400
Right.
00:33:22.559 --> 00:33:26.880
But when you set it up where you're asking questions, and hopefully they're interesting questions, right?
00:33:27.039 --> 00:33:32.079
Hopefully we're saying things like, Does government have a duty to protect people from environmental harm?
00:33:32.720 --> 00:33:35.759
And if so, do you support these policies?
00:33:36.000 --> 00:33:37.440
That's the kind of stuff I want.
00:33:37.519 --> 00:33:51.839
So I think if you're coming, please come with the expectation that you're gonna learn something about where people stand and possibly even learn something about some of the issues that we go into a little bit of detail explaining so that you know, yeah.
00:33:51.920 --> 00:33:56.480
I mean, it's it's the intent is to keep it positive.
00:33:56.720 --> 00:33:58.720
We've gotten really good feedback in the past.
00:33:58.960 --> 00:34:00.319
People say this is really good.
00:34:00.480 --> 00:34:02.480
I learned a lot with the mayoral forum.
00:34:02.799 --> 00:34:05.920
I don't know if you remember when Charlie Leduff had that forum last year.
00:34:06.480 --> 00:34:08.480
Oh my goodness, it was crazy.
00:34:08.719 --> 00:34:12.559
It was um people were screaming at each other, saying terrible things.
00:34:13.519 --> 00:34:16.880
The question was, are any of these candidates even capable of being mayor?
00:34:17.519 --> 00:34:28.159
And that becomes a really bad look for Detroit because people start thinking that our leaders don't have the capacity to, you know, respond.
00:34:28.320 --> 00:34:34.960
But I feel as though, especially in that interest instance that Leduff created some of that.
00:34:35.440 --> 00:34:38.639
Well, you know, that's the kind of personality he is, a little bit.
00:34:39.360 --> 00:34:43.199
But yeah, I yeah, that was manufactured, that didn't have to be that messy.
00:34:43.440 --> 00:34:49.360
Also, like he was just so biased for and against certain candidates in that whole thing.
00:34:49.599 --> 00:34:55.039
And like, first of all, fat James Dixon, like, why would he ever be anywhere?
00:34:55.280 --> 00:34:56.800
So that's my take on that.
00:34:57.039 --> 00:34:58.880
I mean, you know, so let's be positive.
00:34:59.039 --> 00:35:03.280
It's gonna be fun, it's gonna be interesting, it's gonna be a long day for us, but not everybody else.
00:35:03.360 --> 00:35:12.400
And we'll put the schedule up earlier this week so people can know when to come to see which races, because some people are not going to commit to six hours on a Saturday, right?
00:35:12.559 --> 00:35:19.920
But if you want to know when we're going to have each race, then you'll be able to pick and choose when to show up, when to leave.
00:35:20.000 --> 00:35:24.960
We will be serving lunch, we will have refreshments, and what's the lunch?
00:35:26.559 --> 00:35:27.440
It's a surprise.
00:35:27.599 --> 00:35:29.599
It's going to be soul food.
00:35:29.920 --> 00:35:31.599
Oh, come on down then.
00:35:31.760 --> 00:35:33.199
We will have a soul food lunch.
00:35:33.280 --> 00:35:33.840
It'll be good.
00:35:33.920 --> 00:35:35.039
Okay, it'll be tasty.
00:35:35.199 --> 00:35:37.119
I'm excited about the food.
00:35:37.360 --> 00:35:45.039
Um, so I think we're gonna have ribs and oh my gosh, chicken and sweet potatoes and greens.
00:35:45.360 --> 00:35:45.840
Oh my gosh.
00:35:46.079 --> 00:35:49.440
I'm gonna get before then, I'm gonna get a Chick-fil-A breakfast.
00:35:49.599 --> 00:35:50.079
Oh my goodness.
00:35:50.239 --> 00:35:54.159
And some the whole day, I'm just gonna be loaded with food and calories.
00:35:54.480 --> 00:35:59.599
So we we want people to enjoy themselves, and we'll put more about that out as well.
00:35:59.920 --> 00:36:02.239
Um, I want to thank you, Jasmine.
00:36:02.800 --> 00:36:03.519
No, of course.
00:36:03.599 --> 00:36:10.239
I want to thank you for um having me on the podcast, but also um for wanting to partner on this forum.
00:36:10.480 --> 00:36:19.519
I've been doing quite a few forums in Detroit, did one in Lansing, and I've found it's something that the community is really interested in.
00:36:19.760 --> 00:36:37.039
But um there's not always a lot of organizations that are willing and mostly able to devote the time and the energy, the money for the live stream, the money for the food and the thoughtfulness into um getting all these questions and all the candidates together to actually make it happen.
00:36:37.119 --> 00:36:48.000
And it's sad to see so many of these races where forums aren't happening and where the community isn't really getting to compare candidates side by side, or there's forums that aren't really publicized and people don't know about.
00:36:48.159 --> 00:36:57.280
So I've been really happy to be able to do forums in Detroit and and elsewhere to I mean, especially for these races that are gonna be, we know, decided in the primary.
00:36:57.360 --> 00:36:57.760
Yeah, you know.
00:36:57.920 --> 00:36:59.920
So, you know what we were planning on doing a forum.
00:37:00.000 --> 00:37:12.239
Yeah, didn't have um plans for how we were gonna pay for it, and then you reached out and you brought a little money, and I want to set the record straight because I'm not sure people understand that our forums are self-funded.
00:37:12.719 --> 00:37:15.440
So the funding you bring, the funding we bring, we put them together.
00:37:15.760 --> 00:37:16.880
Candidates do not pay.
00:37:17.119 --> 00:37:17.679
Oh, of course.
00:37:17.920 --> 00:37:22.079
This is not financed by anybody outside of our organization and yours.
00:37:22.159 --> 00:37:23.519
Can you talk about your organization?
00:37:23.840 --> 00:37:24.880
Yeah, I'd love to.
00:37:25.039 --> 00:37:28.320
So I work for the Home Rule Project.
00:37:28.559 --> 00:37:44.719
We are a nonprofit that focuses on educating and empowering community members to make decisions in their own lives and also um to influence and have democratic say over, especially their own local governments.
00:37:45.039 --> 00:37:59.599
So um, not as many people know about this, but uh the Michigan State Legislature throughout the years has taken a lot of power away from local governments, emergency management obviously being the number one blaring red example of that.
00:37:59.679 --> 00:38:12.159
But there's also a lot of other things, you know, whether it's local housing laws, plastic ban, ban, um, plastic bat, plastic ban bans, um, local tobacco laws, um taxation.
00:38:12.480 --> 00:38:13.360
Taxation.
00:38:13.760 --> 00:38:32.079
Um, and then important to a lot of the SCIU members that I work with, local control and any union member, um, anyone working um and and struggling to make it local control over labor laws and labor standards, and particularly particularly in a city like Detroit, where so much economic development happens.
00:38:32.320 --> 00:38:45.519
Um it's uh because of state law that the city has all this power to give money away and less power because it was taken away by the state to actually hold these developers accountable as compared to other cities in America.
00:38:46.000 --> 00:38:48.239
So um, you know, it's a good campaign question.
00:38:48.639 --> 00:38:49.199
Spread the awareness.
00:38:49.360 --> 00:38:50.880
Well, that's a good campaign question.
00:38:50.960 --> 00:38:56.639
I I I I'm in asking it, adding it in my mind because it's so important for us to really think.
00:38:56.800 --> 00:39:04.239
Even when you look at the tax foreclosure law, the tax forclosure, property tax for closure law, the terms are dictated by the state.
00:39:04.400 --> 00:39:04.559
Right.
00:39:04.719 --> 00:39:07.360
And then local municipalities carry it out.
00:39:07.440 --> 00:39:10.079
But you know, that's problematic in so many ways.
00:39:10.239 --> 00:39:18.719
I think it's important for us to look at the way the state sometimes handcuffs the cities to sort of neoliberal policies.
00:39:19.199 --> 00:39:22.000
So in those instances, I say that's bad.
00:39:22.480 --> 00:39:29.039
However, I wish states had rules around environmental protections that had teeth.
00:39:29.199 --> 00:39:32.800
I wish there were federal rules around environmental protections that had teeth.
00:39:32.880 --> 00:39:50.960
And so while I'm not in favor of you know, the one thing, and that is taking about taking away power for local governments to make decisions, I do know that local rule has also been used to justify uh school discrimination, right?
00:39:51.119 --> 00:39:53.519
Um, you know, separate but equal, all of that.
00:39:53.599 --> 00:39:58.239
And sometimes the federal and or state governments have to step in to enforce civil rights.
00:39:58.400 --> 00:40:07.760
And so how do you balance the whole need for protecting people and civil rights and sometimes even protecting our natural resources?
00:40:08.000 --> 00:40:08.159
Yeah.
00:40:08.400 --> 00:40:12.880
How do you balance that against the need for people to have a say over day-to-day?
00:40:13.199 --> 00:40:18.159
Yeah, that's that's a question that really goes to the heart of the issue.
00:40:18.400 --> 00:40:22.639
Um and there's a conversation that's being had about this nationally.
00:40:22.800 --> 00:40:25.679
I mean, data centers are one example of that, right?
00:40:25.840 --> 00:40:32.239
If a township wants to approve data centers, um, you know, who are we to say that they can or can't do that?
00:40:32.400 --> 00:40:46.639
I think um where where this is happening national happening nationally, where people are coming down on it, and where to draw that line is um it they call it um abusive preemption.
00:40:46.880 --> 00:40:53.679
So preemption, think prevention when the state is preventing local governments from doing what they um would like to do.
00:40:53.840 --> 00:41:03.519
Um we're not in favor, and I don't think I don't think many people are in favor of complete um local control over every single solitary issue.
00:41:03.679 --> 00:41:08.719
You shouldn't have local control to hurt your neighbor, to hurt your community, to hurt your state.
00:41:08.880 --> 00:41:26.639
Um, to but um if you want to set standards at the local level that are higher than the state, if you want to set standards at the state level that are higher than the federal government, um there should be a level of uh leeway given to people, especially if there's strong local organizing and strong local movements to do things like that.
00:41:27.039 --> 00:41:27.599
Completely agree.
00:41:27.760 --> 00:41:27.840
Yeah.
00:41:28.000 --> 00:41:36.400
I just think that it's an interesting conundrum that we find ourselves in because some of us are like pressing for more federal oversight over some things.
00:41:36.639 --> 00:41:36.800
Right.
00:41:37.039 --> 00:41:44.719
But it feels as though what we want is our government to be more impactful in fighting for rights and protections.
00:41:45.119 --> 00:41:45.679
Jasmine.
00:41:46.239 --> 00:41:53.360
And what are a lot of what's happening at the state level is our government protecting corporate interest and not individual rights.
00:41:53.519 --> 00:41:54.639
Do you see that?
00:41:55.760 --> 00:41:56.239
Yes.
00:41:56.480 --> 00:42:06.639
Um, and in fact, um the way that we frame um, the way that we frame a lot of the work that we talk about, we talk about home rule and corporate rule.
00:42:06.800 --> 00:42:09.280
Michigan cities and villages have home rule powers.
00:42:09.360 --> 00:42:14.079
Those are powers in the state constitution that when they incorporate as cities and villages that they have.
00:42:14.239 --> 00:42:23.119
Um, but too often the legislature and Lansing is taking those home rule powers away and instituting what we call corporate rule instead of home rule.
00:42:23.360 --> 00:42:26.239
And um, you know, that's that's not acceptable.
00:42:26.400 --> 00:42:40.079
Michigan is one of the states um where there's been a fair bit of it, but um it's actually far worse in states like Texas and states like Tennessee, um, where they have those, you know, trifecta governments that can pass a lot of legislation.
00:42:40.480 --> 00:42:47.119
I was gonna ask, what uh were your conversations like when Democrats didn't have a trifecta when they controlled all branches of government?
00:42:47.199 --> 00:42:57.840
Um I understand that these issues um were central to a lot of advocates and and folks that spent time with you know leaders like Joe Tate.
00:42:58.239 --> 00:42:58.400
Yeah.
00:42:58.800 --> 00:43:00.079
What was their response?
00:43:00.559 --> 00:43:02.079
Yeah, that's a great question.
00:43:02.239 --> 00:43:08.159
Um I mean, I certainly wasn't the one having conversations with uh Joe Tate or people in leadership.
00:43:08.320 --> 00:43:25.360
Um that being said, some of the concerns that um advocates heard in the legislature last time around were, you know, we don't want to create a patchwork of laws, and that's what local control means is um regulations are different in different, you know, parts of the state.
00:43:25.679 --> 00:43:32.159
I struggle with that as a valid reason, to be honest with you.
00:43:32.400 --> 00:43:36.159
Um, I think that we see a lot more instability at the state level.
00:43:36.320 --> 00:43:55.760
We see a lot more instability at the federal level, and uh at the local level is where we actually have a chance for some more continuity of governance and of laws if people are able to, you know, get those, get that power, get the money they need, um, and um, you know, get the the rules that they need to um in order to act legislation.
00:43:55.840 --> 00:43:57.519
So that I struggle with that.
00:43:57.679 --> 00:43:59.760
Um, I also struggle with it because, you know.
00:44:00.159 --> 00:44:08.000
Know in Minnesota, for example, this is a state with uh a lot less preemption than Michigan, and um they seem to have cities too.
00:44:08.159 --> 00:44:12.159
So um, you know, I I struggle with this this patchwork argument, but that was what it was.
00:44:12.320 --> 00:44:22.079
But I mean, I really think um it's not the it's not the small businesses that are um you know pushing back um in favor of preemption laws.
00:44:22.159 --> 00:44:26.639
It's the larger corporate actors who um should be less concerned with the patchwork anyway.
00:44:26.800 --> 00:44:28.719
So they have the staff to handle it.
00:44:29.039 --> 00:44:29.280
All right.
00:44:29.440 --> 00:44:31.280
Well, that's that's good information.
00:44:31.440 --> 00:44:44.719
When you talk about small businesses, I feel like in Michigan and probably elsewhere, small businesses get swept up into, you know, large corporate interest, you know, through chambers of commerce and the way things are framed.
00:44:45.119 --> 00:44:52.000
Um, I was um part of an effort that 42 Fort was part of to invest in my kids.
00:44:52.159 --> 00:44:52.559
Oh, yeah.
00:44:52.800 --> 00:44:58.559
And the way that it was framed, it was like small business owners are at risk of losing everything.
00:44:58.719 --> 00:45:00.960
And we know that they were not being targeted.
00:45:01.119 --> 00:45:08.400
How do you um begin to educate small businesses to help them understand their interests are not always aligned with some of these large businesses?
00:45:08.719 --> 00:45:10.079
Yeah, that's a great question.
00:45:10.239 --> 00:45:33.440
I mean, um, you know, one of the great many ironies of working in politics is that so often um in the state level, and I saw this time and time and time and time again, you have actually large businesses, large business groups passing laws and regulations in Lansing to basically create monopolies for themselves.
00:45:33.519 --> 00:45:36.639
Uh, and this is at the expense of small businesses.
00:45:36.960 --> 00:45:41.679
And um that is stuff that happens every day in the legislature.
00:45:41.760 --> 00:45:47.119
That's how they make their own markets through their lobbying and their capital and their influence.
00:45:47.440 --> 00:45:59.280
Um, and many times small businesses are used as a um facade for, oh, you know, it's going to hurt small businesses, and that's why, you know, we have to do this thing or that thing.
00:45:59.519 --> 00:46:02.159
Um when that's that's just not really the case.
00:46:02.320 --> 00:46:05.760
I mean, I think, I mean, how do you how do you overcome that?
00:46:06.000 --> 00:46:13.280
Um, that's I feel like that could be, you know, one of the questions of the, one of the questions of the day.
00:46:13.440 --> 00:46:17.119
I've I um really do feel for, you know, small business owners.
00:46:17.280 --> 00:46:21.599
I have some in my family and friend group, um, it's really hard to do that work.
00:46:21.679 --> 00:46:22.719
There's a lot of burdens.
00:46:22.800 --> 00:46:29.039
I mean, healthcare um alone is um, you know, really difficult thing to get taken care of.
00:46:29.199 --> 00:46:49.760
But um I think uh, you know, hopefully, hopefully with time, I I have to believe in the cycles of it all and that there will be a point where um, you know, things will be, you know, so monopolistic that more and more people will actually um, you know, see how some of these things are playing out.
00:46:49.840 --> 00:46:50.880
But yeah, I really don't know.
00:46:51.360 --> 00:46:51.519
Yeah.
00:46:51.760 --> 00:46:56.559
So what is your hope for this um forum that we're hosting and the other forums you're investing in?
00:46:56.639 --> 00:46:59.039
What are you hoping people walk away with?
00:46:59.360 --> 00:46:59.840
Yeah.
00:47:00.079 --> 00:47:10.079
I'm hoping people will walk away with more than what's written on attack mailers or, you know, nasty Facebook or Twitter comments or whatever.
00:47:10.239 --> 00:47:19.440
I hope, you know, for those who are able to come in person, they'll see these candidates in the flesh and hear their voices and look into their eyes and see who they can trust.
00:47:19.519 --> 00:47:28.559
Um, they'll see what candidates are responding to the question, which candidates are navigating around the question, which candidates are okay with saying if they don't understand something.
00:47:28.639 --> 00:47:33.360
Um, which candidates, if you're listening, it's okay if you are confused about something.
00:47:33.599 --> 00:47:38.639
Probably there's people in the audience who are too, you know, so it's it doesn't hurt to sometimes admit that.
00:47:38.800 --> 00:47:50.079
Um so I think I hope that um people walk away with a better grasp on um, you know, who's honest and who's um fighting for them and um who's prepared to tackle these issues, hopefully.
00:47:50.559 --> 00:47:52.239
How important is this election?
00:47:52.320 --> 00:47:58.000
I've heard people say, they say it every time, you know, this is the most important election of your lifetime.
00:47:58.239 --> 00:48:07.360
Um I actually heard somebody say that this might be the last election for a few years because of what's happening at the federal level.
00:48:07.519 --> 00:48:09.119
How do you evaluate that?
00:48:09.679 --> 00:48:12.880
Well, I certainly hope that person is wrong.
00:48:13.760 --> 00:48:20.079
I hope to have many, many more opportunities to vote and and to vote in a real way in an in a in a way that has an impact.
00:48:20.239 --> 00:48:33.039
Um yeah, I mean, I don't know that this is the most important election, you know, of uh of the next, you know, in the next two years, but um I think this is a really important time.
00:48:33.280 --> 00:48:37.440
Michigan had a democratic trifecta and lost it.
00:48:37.679 --> 00:48:52.000
Um we have um, and so this is and and there were some steps made towards the end of that trifecta um, you know, in governance and among the Democratic caucus that really disappointed a lot of people.
00:48:52.159 --> 00:49:02.159
And so I think this is a chance for Michiganders to elect people who aren't going to do that, um, and to uh potentially elect some people who can really govern.
00:49:02.320 --> 00:49:09.119
And that isn't just that isn't just who's the governor, that's who are all of the individual members of this caucus.
00:49:09.199 --> 00:49:11.119
And many of those races are decided in the primaries.
00:49:11.199 --> 00:49:14.559
Many of the leadership, especially elections, are decided in the primaries.
00:49:14.639 --> 00:49:16.239
Who's gonna be on the leadership team?
00:49:16.480 --> 00:49:20.719
So um I think this is a really important election for that.
00:49:21.119 --> 00:49:21.440
Yeah.
00:49:21.599 --> 00:49:31.840
Now, what you see though is that I remember when um we had the governor and the secretary of state and attorney general are all standing up, girl power, whatever it is we were doing, right?
00:49:32.079 --> 00:49:34.960
And now there is not that same kind of alliance.
00:49:35.360 --> 00:49:36.400
The girl power is crumbling.
00:49:37.119 --> 00:49:45.599
You know, listen, the the the buffs are off of, you know, in the leather jackets, and we are now like fighting each other.
00:49:45.840 --> 00:49:50.480
How is that a good thing or is it bad to see that much infighting?
00:49:50.880 --> 00:49:52.719
Well, the infighting is interesting.
00:49:52.880 --> 00:50:05.840
I really think it's mostly happening because Whitmer is a lame duck, and um, I think this infighting has probably been happening behind closed doors for much longer than it's been happening out in po in in front of everything.
00:50:06.000 --> 00:50:13.920
I I would I would think that voters are would be suspicious of people who got along 100% of the time on every single issue.
00:50:14.079 --> 00:50:15.840
I think that's one of the things they're frustrated by.
00:50:15.920 --> 00:50:16.800
So I don't know.
00:50:16.880 --> 00:50:22.880
I at the very least, it's keeping them on Twitter and keeping them in Sam's replies, some of this infighting.
00:50:23.119 --> 00:50:24.559
But um It is crazy.
00:50:24.639 --> 00:50:31.440
Like, do you see how like Denzel got his stuff blown up after my like I like started a discourse?
00:50:32.320 --> 00:50:35.760
It's not the first time, but like that might have been the funniest.
00:50:35.920 --> 00:50:45.039
Not the first time, different kinds of but like the national discourse, because you start local, like infighting all the time just by tweeting anything, uh like about parking lots downtown or whatever.
00:50:45.280 --> 00:50:48.880
Um me and Donna like to argue about the parking lot situation.
00:50:49.519 --> 00:51:00.719
But I know, but um the national discourse, you get like the worst people ever, like in the just different people that I think are the same people, like Chris Evans or Trey Eason.
00:51:00.960 --> 00:51:04.159
I know those are two like people with 500,000 followers each.
00:51:04.239 --> 00:51:05.280
We're like, what's the difference?
00:51:05.360 --> 00:51:08.000
One's conservative, one's uh you know, a leftist.
00:51:08.320 --> 00:51:10.239
Um it is really funny.
00:51:10.320 --> 00:51:13.519
It's overwhelming to like people, yeah.
00:51:13.840 --> 00:51:16.719
It's overwhelming to be in the center of it on the outside, it's not.
00:51:16.800 --> 00:51:17.760
I'll be honest with you.
00:51:18.320 --> 00:51:21.440
Um, you know, and I because I rarely, you know, I really tweet.
00:51:21.599 --> 00:51:23.440
I mean, sometimes I retweet.
00:51:23.519 --> 00:51:26.639
It's usually I'm just looking for information about what people think.
00:51:26.800 --> 00:51:29.920
But I think Michigan's a bellweather state.
00:51:30.000 --> 00:51:41.039
People are trying to see if Michigan goes progressive, the rest of the nation is in trouble because Michigan is such a solidly, you know, middle of the road state.
00:51:42.079 --> 00:51:44.880
A purple state, a state that doesn't seem to take a lot of risk.
00:51:44.960 --> 00:51:48.719
I mean, sure you have Rashida um and Shree.
00:51:49.199 --> 00:51:58.559
But um, but you don't seem, you know, you don't have the same kind of progressive um uh power building that you have in other states.
00:51:58.880 --> 00:52:06.239
It feels like, you know, New York is sort of in the lead, the coast are leading it, and now we're s is gonna, does it come to middle America?
00:52:06.400 --> 00:52:10.719
Um and again, I think sometimes you put too much on one election.
00:52:11.280 --> 00:52:31.280
Um what we do know is this Abdel El Sayyid ran for governor um a few years ago, and he, regardless of how this race turns out, whether he becomes the senatorial candidate and then senator, he's a lot more electable, he's a lot more well received now than he was the last time when he ran for governor.
00:52:31.440 --> 00:52:33.039
We know that for a fact, right?
00:52:33.599 --> 00:52:36.400
Um so it's it's interesting.
00:52:36.800 --> 00:52:51.039
I think it's interesting to see Denzel McCampbell now sitting on city council and he and Gabby, you know, sort of having this coalition with Letitia, and they all consider themselves DSA City Council members.
00:52:51.519 --> 00:52:54.159
Um it's gonna be an interesting race.
00:52:54.880 --> 00:53:02.000
Some disappointments I think are always going to be, you know, disappointment is inevitable.
00:53:02.239 --> 00:53:11.440
You want people to think like you and agree with you, and there are people who legitimately don't want to see that kind of change.
00:53:11.599 --> 00:53:17.039
There are people who legitimately don't want to see um our politics blown up.
00:53:17.199 --> 00:53:18.800
I think that's what they said in the free press.
00:53:18.960 --> 00:53:23.360
Our politics will be blown up, or do you just want to keep things as they are?
00:53:24.559 --> 00:53:27.280
Blown up is a little, is a little bit, come on.
00:53:27.440 --> 00:53:33.039
I think there's a lot of people whose lives are blown up every day by the consequences of this government.
00:53:33.119 --> 00:53:50.079
And so, you know, I I don't have so much uh sympathy for, you know, um, you know, whether it's politicos or, you know, opinion columnists or anybody who um thinks that electing a different kind of candidate is going to blow everything up.
00:53:50.239 --> 00:54:00.400
I mean, um, you know, it's not like any of these candidates are uh that we're talking about in Michigan anyway are nearly as controversial or crazy as, you know, the current president in office.
00:54:00.559 --> 00:54:04.320
So it's just uh it's just a different type of narrative.
00:54:04.480 --> 00:54:19.280
But I mean, let's remember though that um if um not voting Harris or Trump were running together, um, you know, the three of them not voting would have beat Harris and would have beaten Trump, there's a lot of apathetic people out there.
00:54:19.440 --> 00:54:21.679
Um, and that was part of Trump's success.
00:54:21.760 --> 00:54:26.320
And they're not apathetic because they don't care about anything.
00:54:26.480 --> 00:54:32.320
Um they're apathetic because they've they've given up um because of you know how they see things and what's what's happened to them.
00:54:32.480 --> 00:54:37.280
And so um, you know, someone talking about things in a different way has the potential to move some of those people.
00:54:37.599 --> 00:54:39.280
Yeah, I hate to use the term apathetic.
00:54:39.360 --> 00:54:40.079
I get what you're saying.
00:54:40.400 --> 00:54:51.760
Of course, but I think really there's people who are just disconnected and who don't really disengage, they don't trust that anything they do is gonna change things, and it's not like they're crazy.
00:54:52.000 --> 00:54:55.920
No, it's like I voted for these people and nothing changed.
00:54:56.079 --> 00:55:00.079
I voted for this person and nothing changed, and then people are told to wait.
00:55:00.639 --> 00:55:04.000
Well, be reasonable, you can't expect things to change.
00:55:04.079 --> 00:55:24.159
But the one thing we know, and I think we're kind of in this level of denial to some part uh in some parts of the culture, but the world has shifted, the United States has shifted so significantly since doge and Donald Trump that we're not just gonna be able to go back to normal.
00:55:24.960 --> 00:55:29.920
If and when Trump ever leaves office, I'm supposed I'm guessing he's not gonna live forever.
00:55:30.559 --> 00:55:47.599
If and when his uh revolution or whatever he's trying to do goes away, you're still gonna have to, you know, um uh clean up all that gold paint all over the White House, and you're still gonna have to, you know, remove that cement and grow some grass again and maybe plant some new cherry trees.
00:55:47.679 --> 00:55:49.440
I mean, certain things have to happen.
00:55:49.519 --> 00:55:51.199
The EPA has been gutted.
00:55:51.519 --> 00:55:53.920
You're gonna have to have rebuild the EPA.
00:55:54.159 --> 00:55:56.400
The CDC has been gutted.
00:55:56.559 --> 00:55:58.000
You're gonna have to rebuild that.
00:55:58.480 --> 00:56:06.639
Our agency, you know, the the knowledge base or the institutional memory that we have has been uh, you know, shred shredded.
00:56:06.800 --> 00:56:09.360
And on the one hand, that's terrible.
00:56:09.519 --> 00:56:15.360
And on the other hand, uh none of these institutions worked particularly well for everybody.
00:56:15.840 --> 00:56:20.960
Like, okay, our housing HUD is not what it used to be, but HUD still left a lot of people homeless.
00:56:21.599 --> 00:56:27.199
The EPA is not what it used to be, the EPA still allowed a lot of people to be poisoned and allowed wanted to take place.
00:56:27.519 --> 00:56:33.920
So my question is do we want to go back to the way things were or do we want to imagine something better in the future?
00:56:34.239 --> 00:56:36.800
And can we come together with our imaginations?
00:56:36.960 --> 00:56:40.079
And better is not gonna happen with the same old people.
00:56:40.159 --> 00:56:44.880
We're gonna need to have different thinkers there now or the next cycle.
00:56:47.440 --> 00:56:50.880
Well, you are going to get some different thinkers in there.
00:56:51.039 --> 00:56:55.199
Um, Donna, let's go over and Jasmine.
00:56:55.440 --> 00:57:01.119
Who what races are we gonna hear from over the weekend on Saturday, July 18th?
00:57:01.280 --> 00:57:06.239
We are going to, of course, hear from Donovan McKinney.
00:57:06.480 --> 00:57:15.039
He is running for the 13th District uh congressional house seat, which currently is represented by Sri Tanadar.
00:57:15.440 --> 00:57:18.400
Sri has not committed himself to coming here, is that correct?
00:57:19.119 --> 00:57:21.599
Sri has not um responded to anything.
00:57:21.840 --> 00:57:25.519
Sri refuses to debate um Donovan.
00:57:26.400 --> 00:57:34.719
Um I think that Donovan's starting to call him out, but I think what Sri has decided instead is to um tell a bunch of lies.
00:57:34.960 --> 00:57:42.960
And um you know, the thing is when you base root your campaign in untruths, the last thing you want to do is have to defend it with a debate.
00:57:43.679 --> 00:57:46.320
So we're gonna hear from Donovan McKinney.
00:57:46.559 --> 00:57:48.000
Um that's the 13th U.S.
00:57:48.079 --> 00:57:48.639
House District.
00:57:48.800 --> 00:57:56.960
The 11th State House District has a very compelling race between uh Mary Sheffield-backed Kimberly Fisher.
00:57:57.119 --> 00:57:59.840
That is the daughter of Renata Miller.
00:58:00.159 --> 00:58:14.960
Um Michael Howard is the McComb County Commissioner who is um self-described a bit more conservative than your typical 30 young, 30-year-old um up-and-coming, newly elected black politician, I guess.
00:58:15.119 --> 00:58:22.719
Um, Christana Anderson is a um um serial candidate.
00:58:23.440 --> 00:58:34.800
She ran in um the third city council district against Scott Benson, was Scott Benson's only opponent last time around.
00:58:35.039 --> 00:58:41.679
Um you remember Russ Ballant has is actually the guy that's come closest to defeating Scott Benson.
00:58:42.000 --> 00:58:50.320
Um we are kicking it to the ninth House District that is currently represented by Joe Tate.
00:58:50.480 --> 00:58:52.400
The 11th is currently represented by Donovan McKinney.
00:58:52.480 --> 00:58:54.639
McKinney, of course, is running for U.S.
00:58:54.880 --> 00:58:56.719
House, and so his seat will be vacated.
00:58:56.960 --> 00:59:01.760
Kimberly Fisher or Michael Howard are expected um to compete in that race.
00:59:01.920 --> 00:59:13.840
The ninth um House District is a um three-way, I believe, um four-way, I believe it could be five candidates.
00:59:14.079 --> 00:59:24.000
It's Rick Silva, it's Tony Mua, Arthur Harrington, Anthony Eed, the third state Senate district.
00:59:24.159 --> 00:59:26.880
Oh my god, there are a ton of candidates.
00:59:27.039 --> 00:59:31.360
Why are there so many candidates running for the third state senate district?
00:59:31.440 --> 00:59:42.000
We got Corey Hall, Kimberly Hill Knott, Adam Ollier, Tony Reeves, Ebony Taylor, John Conyers the third, uh Latanya Garrett, uh Gary Hunter question mark.
00:59:42.400 --> 00:59:43.360
Gary Hunter's for sure.
00:59:43.679 --> 00:59:43.840
Yeah.
00:59:44.000 --> 00:59:47.119
Um I learned that me and Gary Hunter are our Somerset neighbors.
00:59:47.280 --> 00:59:47.440
Oh.
00:59:47.920 --> 00:59:48.559
Yeah.
00:59:50.800 --> 00:59:52.079
Um who else?
00:59:52.159 --> 00:59:54.719
Who where is Eddie and Matthew Stafford running?
00:59:54.800 --> 00:59:56.159
Is that also the ninth?
00:59:56.400 --> 01:00:03.760
Um Eddie Kabinsky and Matthew Stafford, not to be confused with the uh former Detroit Lions quarterback.
01:00:04.320 --> 01:00:13.039
Um of course, Abraham Ayash and Justin Unwenyu are running in the first A Center district that we were just talking about.
01:00:13.119 --> 01:00:27.119
Um there is a sort of candidate forum slash debate slash parking lot video that I manufactured that already happened, and so we are not expecting to see Justin Unwenu, but I will continue to text and call him every day and say, Justin, come to our candidate forum.
01:00:27.199 --> 01:00:29.840
Justin, come to our candidate forum, Justin, come to our candidate forum.
01:00:30.159 --> 01:00:31.440
Did you mention Willie Burton?
01:00:31.679 --> 01:00:32.320
Oh my god.
01:00:32.400 --> 01:00:35.760
Did I did I forget to mention that Willie Burton's also a candidate in the ninth?
01:00:36.239 --> 01:00:36.960
And he will be here.
01:00:37.280 --> 01:00:39.199
Willie, oh man, is he gonna be here?
01:00:39.920 --> 01:00:40.480
Yes, he is.
01:00:40.639 --> 01:00:41.360
How do you know that?
01:00:41.599 --> 01:00:42.719
Because he emailed me.
01:00:43.039 --> 01:00:44.159
And he said he's gonna be here.
01:00:44.559 --> 01:00:49.920
Um did not think I invited him, uh but it was an email, his registered email is not the one he uses.
01:00:50.079 --> 01:00:50.239
Right.
01:00:50.400 --> 01:00:51.360
So we were able to clear that up.
01:00:51.599 --> 01:00:54.960
So Willie Burton um is such an interesting candidate.
01:00:55.119 --> 01:01:00.400
You know, there are people running as a progressive, there are people running as a pragmatic progressive.
01:01:00.639 --> 01:01:03.599
That's Arthur the progressive isric Silva.
01:01:03.760 --> 01:01:08.639
You know, Willie Burton, how would you describe his his political in the liquor stores?
01:01:08.719 --> 01:01:11.360
Like he's just on the ground, on the streets, on the bus.
01:01:11.599 --> 01:01:15.199
He is like one of the most interesting figures to me.
01:01:15.440 --> 01:01:23.760
Because he has he never campaigns, he never raises money, but he gets votes, and how he does it is literally gorilla marketing.
01:01:24.000 --> 01:01:30.079
It's literally going into liquor stores or just standing around at the bus stop and being like, vote for me, I'm one of you.
01:01:30.239 --> 01:01:30.480
Yeah.
01:01:31.039 --> 01:01:31.599
Very compelling.
01:01:31.840 --> 01:01:37.519
I do want to point out, um, and I know we've talked, I don't know if we've talked about this, it's very controversial.
01:01:37.679 --> 01:01:39.840
We are supporting five races.
01:01:40.159 --> 01:01:41.519
Many, many candidates.
01:01:41.679 --> 01:01:47.199
We're basing our communications on email addresses that are registered with the state of Michigan.
01:01:47.440 --> 01:01:50.719
If we have the wrong email address, it doesn't mean we don't want you there.
01:01:50.880 --> 01:01:57.440
It means that you um somehow did not um we we somehow got the wrong email address.
01:01:57.599 --> 01:02:05.280
I want to make sure that we don't leave anybody off because people, it's a really, really emotional time right now when people get upset.
01:02:05.440 --> 01:02:17.760
And so um I want to make sure that we once again go through the list of candidates that have confirmed to me, and I talked to quite a few of them and have had lots of very interesting conversations.
01:02:18.000 --> 01:02:19.679
Um, Donovan McKinney, U.S.
01:02:19.760 --> 01:02:32.400
House 13, Abraham Ayish, Senate, State Senate 1, State Senate 3, John Conyers, the third, Latanya Garrett, Corey Hall, Kimberly Hill Knott, Adam Ollier, Gary Hunter, Toina Reeves, and Ebony Taylor.
01:02:32.559 --> 01:02:34.719
State Senate House State House 9.
01:02:35.119 --> 01:02:37.760
I forgot about Daryl Irvin in the 9th House district.
01:02:37.840 --> 01:02:39.679
He's also campaigning actively, but he's not showing up.
01:02:40.000 --> 01:02:42.079
No, he did not respond, but that doesn't mean he won't be here.
01:02:42.239 --> 01:02:43.760
Willie Burton a message.
01:02:44.000 --> 01:02:49.760
Willie Burton, Anthony Eat, Arthur Harrington, Tony Moore, those are the ones who and Rick Silva.
01:02:50.079 --> 01:02:52.800
And then State House 11, we have almost a full house.
01:02:52.880 --> 01:03:00.239
Cranstana, Gina, Brown Anderson, Kimberly Fisher, Michael Howard, Ebony, Eddie Kabushinski, and Matthew Stafford.
01:03:00.480 --> 01:03:02.960
Um, so um we have a lot of candidates.
01:03:03.360 --> 01:03:04.960
Matthew Stafford's gonna be here, everybody.
01:03:05.280 --> 01:03:06.559
Get your calm, please.
01:03:06.800 --> 01:03:07.840
I mean, meet and greet.
01:03:08.159 --> 01:03:10.320
He is he is not a football player.
01:03:10.719 --> 01:03:11.599
Not this one.
01:03:11.840 --> 01:03:14.239
Um, but yeah, this is it's gonna be fun.
01:03:14.480 --> 01:03:17.039
And once again, I want to be clear.
01:03:17.440 --> 01:03:20.719
We want every candidate from every race to show up.
01:03:21.119 --> 01:03:23.199
We are not screening out candidates.
01:03:23.280 --> 01:03:25.199
We have no interest in doing that.
01:03:25.519 --> 01:03:36.159
This is going to be set up for the exchange of ideas for people in our community to learn what candidates stand for, and we want you all here.
01:03:36.480 --> 01:03:49.199
So even though each human being is going to vote, who has the opportunity to vote in this, you know, in this room, and many other people will, that's not going to show up in our um conversation on Saturday.
01:03:49.360 --> 01:03:54.320
Our conversation on Saturday is gonna be all about the candidates for the people who are there.
01:03:54.480 --> 01:04:00.639
Um, we're going to record this and it's going to be live streamed and also replayed in our podcast station.
01:04:00.800 --> 01:04:02.480
So I hope people join us.
01:04:02.559 --> 01:04:03.760
I'm looking forward to this.
01:04:03.840 --> 01:04:05.199
And I also want to say one more thing.
01:04:05.360 --> 01:04:08.400
We're not asking the same old questions everybody's been asking.
01:04:08.480 --> 01:04:23.199
So be prepared for some different questions from different perspectives based on our work in this community and also the work of the SCIU because SEIU members have had an opportunity to contribute their questions to this dialogue.
01:04:24.800 --> 01:04:31.920
And I want to invite everybody that has been, you know, blown up my Twitter, come on down and watch some candidates talk.
01:04:32.000 --> 01:04:34.320
Uh, people that tell me I want to get more into politics.
01:04:34.400 --> 01:04:36.559
That's like the one thing that our peers will tell us.
01:04:36.639 --> 01:04:43.519
Like, they'll know that we work in a political space and they'll be like, I want to get more into politics, but like they'll never do anything to put themselves closer to it.
01:04:43.760 --> 01:04:45.039
So, like, here's your opportunity.
01:04:45.119 --> 01:04:45.920
Like, I'm gonna be here.
01:04:46.000 --> 01:04:48.960
You're not gonna be the only person, like you don't, you know, it's like, oh, I don't know anyone.
01:04:49.119 --> 01:04:50.480
Like, you know me.
01:04:50.800 --> 01:04:52.320
They know Jasmine.
01:04:52.559 --> 01:04:53.760
They definitely know Donna.
01:04:54.159 --> 01:04:54.320
Right.
01:04:54.480 --> 01:04:56.079
And if you don't, let's get to know them.
01:04:56.239 --> 01:04:56.400
Right.
01:04:56.559 --> 01:05:08.559
Uh, if you guys have topics that you want to discuss in Authentically Detroit, please hit us up on our socials at Authentically Detroit on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or visit our website, authentically-detroit.com.
01:05:09.360 --> 01:05:09.679
Okay.
01:05:10.320 --> 01:05:12.559
Uh, time for shout-outs.
01:05:12.880 --> 01:05:15.599
Donna, we always start with you with shout-outs.
01:05:15.679 --> 01:05:17.360
Jasmine, you're gonna give us a shout-out too.
01:05:17.440 --> 01:05:23.920
Just anything or anyone that you feel is worth shouting out on our program here.
01:05:24.239 --> 01:05:26.480
I want to shout out candidates for office.
01:05:26.880 --> 01:05:32.320
Whether I support you or I don't support you, it takes a lot to run for office.
01:05:32.480 --> 01:05:34.719
It takes a lot to put your name out there.
01:05:35.039 --> 01:05:39.760
Um, you're making yourself vulnerable to attacks, to all kinds of things.
01:05:40.079 --> 01:05:45.920
And um, we can't have a democracy without people willing to put their names forward.
01:05:46.079 --> 01:05:50.880
And so many people stepped up to the plate and said, I want to do it, right?
01:05:51.360 --> 01:05:57.039
And in November, one of the candidates who's running for the race this year will be chosen.
01:05:57.280 --> 01:05:59.760
Shout out to you for taking the risk, opening.
01:06:00.159 --> 01:06:10.960
Yourselves up and I hope whoever gets elected, those who are running for office will come together around the next person in office to make sure that our government improves.
01:06:12.320 --> 01:06:12.800
Yes.
01:06:12.960 --> 01:06:14.159
Shout out to candidates.
01:06:14.239 --> 01:06:17.280
Shout out to the people that work for the candidates that I talk to every day.
01:06:17.519 --> 01:06:27.440
Um, I feel like I might have shout out to you guys all already, but you know, I know that you guys don't always like me because I may I get people in trouble a lot.
01:06:27.679 --> 01:06:30.480
There was one time where I talked to a Duggan, I'll just share this story.
01:06:30.559 --> 01:06:37.360
I talked to a Duggan uh canvaser, like a petition signature gatherer, and he was like, Yeah, I mean it's not as easy anymore.
01:06:37.440 --> 01:06:38.800
Now he's an independent.
01:06:39.119 --> 01:06:53.599
And I learned after the NAACP Freedom Fund dinner, I learned that um Duggan had actually called that staffer to be like, do not talk to media about how hard it is.
01:06:53.920 --> 01:07:05.519
Because of course, as he dropped his campaign for governor, a part of the undercurrent narrative was was he even able to raise to gather enough signatures?
01:07:05.840 --> 01:07:14.480
And in Detroit, where he was supposed to have his you know huge base of people friendly to him because of his his uh mayoral tenure.
01:07:14.639 --> 01:07:23.840
You know, I had a canvaser tell me that it was a compelling message that many people shared on Twitter, but of course, it got the individual who told me that in trouble.
01:07:24.079 --> 01:07:26.000
I try to What was the compelling message?
01:07:26.079 --> 01:07:26.639
I'm sorry.
01:07:26.880 --> 01:07:37.760
It was that he he he it was harder to gather signatures for he said he's gathered signatures for Duggan in years past, but it's this was the most difficult time that he's had because he had left the Democratic Party.
01:07:38.559 --> 01:07:44.639
Um I know a lot of the staffers that I work with don't like me when I tweet them out in video or photo.
01:07:44.800 --> 01:07:58.480
I did that over the weekend with a Haley Stevens and an Abdul Al-Sayed staffer that were friendly bantering argument in the parking lot, not parking lot, but on the street outside of a store on Livernoy during the light up Livernoy event.
01:07:58.719 --> 01:08:00.960
Um really interesting stuff.
01:08:01.039 --> 01:08:06.400
And the they both agreed, they're you know, hashing it out over their their bosses.
01:08:06.480 --> 01:08:14.079
They both agreed, you know, we we can disagree and you know still be cordial or something.
01:08:14.400 --> 01:08:18.880
Two black women, um one from Detroit, one not.
01:08:19.840 --> 01:08:24.399
Um but yeah, guys, I just it's so fascinating.
01:08:24.560 --> 01:08:38.319
And like on the other side, you have you know, people trying to make some of these staffers, comms, people, spokespeople for these candidates into like their own celebrity, like the celebrityfication of the person that works for the political candidate.
01:08:38.399 --> 01:08:42.479
The celebritification of a political candidate at all is just kind of like weird to me.
01:08:43.199 --> 01:08:52.800
But it is how we are moving into this sort of soap opera online, you know, Twitch stream culture that we view our politics.
01:08:53.279 --> 01:08:54.239
It's always been like this.
01:08:54.479 --> 01:08:54.640
Yeah.
01:08:54.800 --> 01:08:55.840
You know, it's so interesting.
01:08:55.920 --> 01:09:01.600
When you read in the 19th century, some of the races where people are calling each other out.
01:09:01.760 --> 01:09:04.399
You know, there's this tendency to think that everything's new.
01:09:04.560 --> 01:09:09.600
We have Twitter now, but people had newspapers then, and other ways that they um perpetuated.
01:09:09.840 --> 01:09:11.600
You know, there's always been high drama.
01:09:11.760 --> 01:09:13.439
These are people who get to represent you.
01:09:13.520 --> 01:09:14.960
There's high drama in that.
01:09:15.119 --> 01:09:16.159
What do you think, Jasmine?
01:09:16.319 --> 01:09:17.680
Who are you calling shouting out?
01:09:18.000 --> 01:09:41.760
Yeah, um, I want to shout out my um actually my favorite moderator from the last debate and my favorite moderator at every debate that I or not every not debate, excuse me, last candidate forum and every candidate forum, which are the SCIU members um who get to ask their questions directly of the candidates, even if they're not necessarily, you know, politicos, podcast hosts.
01:09:42.079 --> 01:09:44.159
I thought you were gonna say Rick Elbin of Wood TV.
01:09:44.560 --> 01:09:46.640
Like literally, I was like, yeah, he did a good job.
01:09:48.000 --> 01:09:48.319
Yeah.
01:09:48.479 --> 01:10:06.560
So um, no, but at the at the last debate, um, you know, um uh a buddy of mine, Deontay, got to ask the candidates directly, you know, what they thought about the state giving away tax incentives to, you know, companies that go and create poverty jobs that are hard to survive, um, survive within.
01:10:06.640 --> 01:10:07.840
I think it takes a lot of courage.
01:10:08.000 --> 01:10:14.000
Not it takes it's one step, um, Sam, like you said, to actually go to one of these forums, to actually go to one of these events.
01:10:14.159 --> 01:10:21.600
It's an entire thing directly to build up the courage to ask candidates, look them in the eye um about something that's impactful to you.
01:10:21.760 --> 01:10:24.159
So shout out to uh Deontay.
01:10:24.399 --> 01:10:24.960
Yeah.
01:10:25.840 --> 01:10:28.319
Well, that's a pretty good shout out.
01:10:28.479 --> 01:10:36.159
Deontay, shout out to you, shout out to everybody that shows up to these events and wants to involve themselves in the political arena.
01:10:36.560 --> 01:10:48.640
Um, we want to thank you guys every single week for joining our little Authentically Detroit arena and supporting all that is the Authentically Detroit Podcast Network.
01:10:48.880 --> 01:10:57.680
We are trying to build a platform of authentic voices for real people in the city of Detroit.
01:10:58.159 --> 01:11:03.039
Please like, rate, and subscribe to our podcast on all platforms.
01:11:03.279 --> 01:11:04.800
I will see you guys Saturday.
01:11:04.880 --> 01:11:10.159
My birthday is Sunday, and so I'm celebrating my birthday Saturday almost at this candidate forum.
01:11:10.319 --> 01:11:11.039
See you there.
01:11:11.199 --> 01:11:12.079
I turn old.
01:11:12.319 --> 01:11:12.800
See ya.
01:11:13.520 --> 01:11:14.079
Thank you guys.