Amir Locke was shot to death by police early Wednesday morning. He was sleeping on a couch in his cousin’s small apartment in St. Paul when the SWAT team came in shouting. They were looking for someone else. Amir Locke was 22. He is another young black man who will be buried by his parents.

Michigan is facing unprecedented attacks on basic democratic processes. Right wing forces are launching new attempts to undermine public education, public health, and voting rights. These latest attacks are coming in the guise of direct democracy, using well-financed petition drives to bypass a vote of the people and the veto of the governor.

This week Puerto Rico emerged from the largest governmental bankruptcy in history. The restructuring of $120 billion in debt and pension obligations overshadowed the excruciating Detroit experience of $18 billion. Beginning as the Detroit bankruptcy was drawing to a conclusion, much of what the people of Puerto Rico faced had been refined and developed in Detroit.

The Republican Party has not believed in democracy for a very long time. The Democratic Party, in spite of its rhetoric, has not provided much defense. Elite politicians have never been the driving force for expanding democratic ideals. They have been forced into it by mass mobilizations that challenged their power and profits.

Almost everyone agrees we are at a dangerous moment. One year after an armed mob stormed the capitol, the future of democracy is in question. A recent CBS News/YouGov poll found that 66% of Americans believe “democracy is threatened.”

This is the season when the rhythms of the earth move from deep darkness to light. It is a season that humans have celebrated through the centuries as a time of turning, a time of reflection and of celebration for the capacity of the earth to renew. For many of us, this year is one where the weight of darkness sits heavy.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has come to Detroit. In keeping with its origins, it came to the city as an” invitation only” gathering. And, as it has in most places, either in its favored meeting spot of Davos, Switzerland, or cities around the globe, it was met with vigorous protests. In Switzerland, the protests of its annual gathering have become so costly the government withdrew much of its support in response to public pressure.

Limestone and contaminated soil crashed into the Detroit River for the second time in two years. Detroit Bulk Storage once again violated permits and stored limestone too close to the water’s edge. As a result, the weight of the material put pressure on the earth and collapsed the soil under, sending rock and into the river.

A week after a Wisconsin jury acquitted Kyle Rittenhouse of murdering two people and shooting a third at a protest against police violence, another jury found the organizers of the violent far right rally in Charlottesville, Va. in 2017 liable for more than $25 million in damages to 9 people injured at the event. The group included four people who where hurt when Heather Heyer was killed by James Fields, one of the defendants. Fields is already serving a life sentence for Ms. Heyer’s death.

The jury in the Kyle Rittenhouse case announced he was “not guilty” of killing Anthony M. Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum or of shooting Gaige Grosskreutz during the 2020 protests against police violence in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The core of the defense was that Rittenhouse was “allowed to use deadly force, even if he provoked the 25 August attack,” if he “reasonably believed” it was necessary to prevent his own death.

This week the Michigan State House joined the effort to ban the teaching of ideas attributed to Critical Race Theory in public schools. By a vote of 55 to 0, lawmakers approved a bill to ban teaching “implicit race or gender stereotyping” in K through 12 schools. In a contentious session, Democrats refused to vote on the bill because those who wanted to speak against it were not allowed to do so.

Mike Duggan was reelected mayor for a third term, garnering 75.6% of the votes cast. Headlines called this victory a” landslide.” This was no “landslide” or mandate for Duggan’s leadership. Rather, this “victory” is a sign of an enormous failure on the part of Duggan, the City Clerk and much of the corporate leadership that backed them. Only 18% of those eligible to vote went to the polls. That means Duggan’s ” “mandate” rests on less than 14% of the voting population. Most people did not vote, let alone for Duggan.

This election brings far too many familiar faces to the council and city hall. They remind us that there is a lot of work to be done to move us toward a more just city.

Next week Detroiters go to the polls to elect a mayor, city clerk, council and police commission. There are also important proposals on the ballot, including one that would allow direct control by voters to enact ordinances and allocate the money for them, Proposal S. Also, Proposal R would create a task force to explore reparations for Black Detroiters related to housing and economic development and Propose E would legalize the therapeutic use of some plant/fungi based drugs.

As Detroit settles into Fall, predictions are for a wet, warm season. For many of us, this shifting weather means an increased chance of flooding. Roads quickly become impassable, sewerage backs up, and our drinking water suffers from toxic run offs of all sorts. We are still recovering from spring and summer downpours that cost us at least $140 million.

On Thursday the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan announced its request for the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate the Taylor Police Department because of the “ongoing pattern and practice of excessive force.” They also indicated that “the particularly brutal treatment of several African Americans raises concerns about possible racial discrimination.”

October is often a cruel month in Detroit. It is the time of foreclosures for overdue taxes and land sales through public auction. This year, an unprecedented efforts by public and private groups will make tax evictions less likely. Wayne County officials are trying to avoid foreclosures on occupied homes and the Stay As You Pay program is designed to exempt people who are struggling with finances from property taxes. Still officials say somewhere between 18,000 and 25,000 homeowners are at risk in Wayne Country of losing homes.

More than a decade has passed since John Hantz announced his effort to create a vast urban farm on Detroit’s east side. The original idea was to develop the world’s largest urban agricultural business, combining traditional farming methods with indoor hydroponics. This was to be augmented by agro-tourism and, ultimately, a global innovation center. The plan promised 15 to 20 jobs in the first year, and 250 within the decade. Hantz was prepared to invest $30 million over 10 years. In defending his ideas in April of 2010, Hantz explained his motives. Farming is “land extensive” he said. Detroit “cannot create value until we create scarcity, and large scale farming could begin to take land out of circulation in a positive way.”

The official announcement by James Craig of his candidacy for Governor was surrounded by controversy. Craig was unable to deliver his scheduled speech on Belle Isle as more protestors than supporters gathered to shout him down. He managed to say he was running for governor before he ran off to the more secure Icon Building to meet with reporters and formally declare his intentions. By all accounts the speech and interaction with reporters was less interesting than the colorful denouncements of Craig on Belle Isle.

In a move that surprises no one, James Craig, the former police chief of Detroit, is set to formally announce his candidacy for the office of governor of Michigan this week. Almost immediately after indicating he was running on Fox news, big republican support started flowing in his direction. Most notable are the efforts of former Governor John Engler who is behind the “We Need the Chief” PAC formed to collect cash for the effort.