The Economic Club of Grand Rapids will be hosting their 37th annual dinner on June 2nd at DeVos Place in downtown Grand Rapids.
The annual dinner always features guests speakers who are part of the Capitalist Class, whether they are business people, politicians, academics or celebrities. Those who attend the Econ Club’s annual dinner are also members of the GR Power Structure and those who carry significant class privilege.
On June 2nd, there are two guests speakers, former President Bill Clinton and former President George W. Bush. In addition, the Econ Club will be giving out some awards, which includes the Slykhouse Community Leadership Award that will be given to the DeVos family. The Slykhouse award is named after George J. Slykhouse, the person who founded the Economic Club of Grand Rapids in the 70s.
What is instructive about this event is the narrative that the Econ Club provides regarding Clinton, Bush and the DeVos family, which you can find here. I think it is worth providing a counter-narrative, since the Econ Club treats all of these people as honorable individuals that have made the US a great country.
Bill Clinton – The Econ Club narrative about Bill Clinton focuses on his post-Presidential activities, especially his foundation. Even this aspect of Clinton’s life is a glowing review of his accomplishments.
It is instructive that the narrative created around former President Clinton doesn’t say anything about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, which was extensive. More importantly, the only thing it says about Clinton’s presidency is that it “led the U.S. to the longest economic expansion in American history, including the creation of more than 22 million jobs.”
The question is always economic expansion for who? According to the Economic Policy Institute 43,600 jobs had been lost or displaced in Michigan – and about 700,000 in the United States – due to the rise in the trade deficit with Mexico alone since NAFTA was enacted in 1994.
During the Clinton Presidency there was a growing movement against globalization that culminated in the WTO protest in Seattle in 1999, along with the growing militant environmental movement. In addition, the prison industrial complex grew during the Clinton years, where Black and Brown people were disproportionately incarcerated, which was complimented by the 1994 Crime Bill (which increased police funding) and the 1996 bill Clinton sign that fundamentally ended welfare.
On the foreign policy front, Clinton continued to provide billions to Israel, maintain the economic blockage against Cuba, began the expansion of NATO, sent the US military to Haiti, bombed Sudan and the former Yugoslavia, attacked Somalia, and bombed Iraq regularly, along with imposing economic sanctions on Iraq, which resulted in the deaths of 500,000 Iraqi children. 60 minutes reporter Lesley Stahl asked, “We have heard that a half a million children have died… That’s more than died in Hiroshima. And… is the price worth it?” Albright responded: “I think this is a very hard choice, but the price—we think the price is worth it”.
George W. Bush – The Econ Club narrative included comments like this – “As Commander in Chief, President Bush worked to expand freedom, opportunity, and security at home and abroad.” This same narrative continued with a sanitized version of history during the Bush years, stating:
Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, President Bush responded with a comprehensive strategy to protect the American people and wage a global war on terror. His administration built global coalitions to remove violent regimes in Afghanistan and Iraq that threatened America, liberating more than 50 million people from tyranny. Recognizing that liberty and hope are the best alternative to the extremist ideology of the terrorists, he provided unprecedented American support for young democracies and dissidents in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and elsewhere. President Bush also launched global HIV/AIDS and malaria initiatives that have saved millions of lives, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.
Wow, this version of history is from an imperialist framework, where the US does no wrong. The truth is that after 9/11, 2001, the Bush Administration used the so-called war on terror to engage in state terrorism, bombing Afghanistan and occupying it for more than two decades, despite the fact that Afghanistan had nothing to do with 9/11, 2001. Then in 2003, under false pretenses, the US invaded Iraq, killed more than 1 million people, including Saddam Hussein, re-wrote Iraq government policy and secured Iraqi oil for the global oil cartels. See the book, War Without End: The Iraq War in Context, by Michael Scwartz.
The Bush Administration has continued to provide billions in military aid to Israel and Saudi Arabia, continued to economic blockade on Cuba, continued to demonize Iran, expanded US military bases in Colombia and promoted economic and political warfare against Venezuela.
On the domestic side the Bush Administration, with Congressional approval, adopted the USA Patriot Act, which gave power to the federal government to increase domestic surveillance, to lock up people of Arab descent or those who identified as Muslims, and criminalized dissent, even non-violent protests. Under the Bush Administration the Department of Homeland Security was created, which also included the creation of Immigration and Custom’s Enforcement (ICE), which was designed to criminalize and terrorize immigrants.
Lastly, the cost of the Bush Administration’s so-called War on Terror meant that domestic spending was cut significantly, thus widening the wealth gap and seeing more and more people subject to poverty.
DeVos family – The Econ Club continued to sanitize a narrative around the most powerful family in West Michigan. They write:
Together, second generation DeVos family members lead transformative enterprises and ignite community investments across West Michigan. Their leadership spans managing the family’s professional office, RDV; guiding Amway, a global leader in direct selling, with their partners the Van Andel family; and driving growth through OA Private Capital. Through RDV, their individual offices and businesses, and family foundations, second generation DeVos family members support organizations and leaders who believe in the power and potential of people. Their impact spans education, arts and culture, philanthropy, entrepreneurship, health care, civic initiatives, and community development.
Since 1970, the family has devoted more than $2 billion to philanthropic grants, championing public-private partnerships, fostering community engagement, and investing in the places where neighbors live, work, and serve—especially Grand Rapids.
Again, nothing but a glowing review of the DeVos family by the Econ Club of Grand Rapids. This of course is in no way surprising, considering who makes up the membership of the Econ Club. However, if you wanted a more honest assessment of the DeVos family you could check out my 830 page document entitled, We’re Rich and We Do What We Want: A DeVos Family Reader.
The short version of my response to what the Econ Club has to say about the most powerful family in West MI is this. The DeVos family, which initially made its wealth from the pyramid scheme company called Amway, which blends devotion to Capitalism and Christianity.
The DeVos family has been the largest contributor to the Republican Party in Michigan since 1990 and is increasingly a major contributor to candidates in Grand Rapids and Kent County, candidates who embrace the ideological framework of the DeVos family.
Besides buying politicians the DeVos family controls a great deal of the economy in Grand Rapids, through their extensive list of corporations, assets and investments. The DeVos family has also created or been an integral part of many organizations that have also influenced economic, political, social and cultural realities in Grand Rapids, such as the GR Chamber of Commerce, the Right Place Inc., the West Michigan Policy Forum, the Acton Institute, Grand Action 2.0, local colleges and so much more.
Lastly, the DeVos family uses their foundations to fund conservative political, economic and religious groups/organizations that also seek to impose their will on the general public. The Econ Club claim that the DeVos family is very philanthropic is misleading, since most of their foundation money has gone to the religious right, thinks tanks, universities and anti-Public Education groups, with a much smaller amount going to social service or charity-based groups.
If people want a more detailed analysis of what the DeVos family is involved in then please attend a 2 Part workshop I am doing on May 17 and May 31st at Fountain Street Church. Details at this link.
On Friday, Rep. Hillary Scholten released the following statement on her Facebook page:
I’m relieved my Republican colleagues have come to their senses and allowed us to fund critical DHS programs, including TSA, FEMA, CISA and the Coast Guard, while we continue to negotiate much-needed reforms to ICE and CBP. This is a HUGE win for us. But let’s be real – we could have, and should have – done this months ago! Let’s get down to work on implementing much needed reforms to ICE. I won’t vote for another penny to ICE until those reforms are in place.
While some people might be celebrating this statement by Rep. Scholten I am not fooled into think that she is a champion of immigrant justice. On the contrary, as I have written about previously, Rep. Schoten has voted in favor of several critical bills that have essentially criminalized immigrants, such as the Laken Riley Act. More importantly, there are three solid reasons why Rep. Scholten’s state about ICE and the Department of Homeland Security is deeply problematic.
First, up until the current Trump Administration, Rep. Scholten had no problem funding ICE and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) during the Biden Administration. During the Biden Administration ICE and CBP were arresting, detaining and deporting immigrants. The largest difference is that under the Trump Administration ICE has a much larger budget and has hired lots more agents. Since ICE was created in 2003, ICE has always terrorized immigrant communities, which has included the Bush, Obama, Biden and Trump Administrations.
Second, since the Democrats do not have a majority in the House, voting against any issue that the Republicans are putting forth is not really an opposition vote. It might appear as an opposition vote, but this brings us back to my first point about Scholten voting for DHS programs, including ICE and CBP.
The third issue – which is interconnected to my other two points – is important in that Rep. Schoten is making it clear that she will vote for funding of ICE and CBP if there are “needed reforms.” The so-called reforms to ICE and CBP are really about making white liberals feel better about those two agencies. Here are the so-called reforms that Rep. Scholten and her fellow Democrats are calling for:
- Requiring a judicial warrant to enter private property (as the Constitution’s Fourth Amendment already requires) – this sounds nice, but ICE tactics have been to wait til people they are after leave their house/apartment and then apprehend them and send them to a detention center.
- Verification of non-citizenship before detention and banning racial profiling and profiling based on job, language, and accent – again, this sounds nice, but immigrants from the global south have been racially profiled ever since the US passed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882. US immigration practices is rooted in racial profiling and simply verifying non-citizenship will not stop ICE from racial profiling.
- Prohibiting immigration enforcement officers from wearing masks and requiring them to wear ID and body-worn cameras – this is all about optics and does nothing to stop ICE from terrorizing immigrants. Making ICE have badges and not covering their faces makes white people feel better, but will do nothing to prevent ICE from arresting, detaining and deporting immigrants.
- Prohibiting arrests at hospitals, schools, daycares, churches, polling places, and courts – a nice sentiment, but why limit ICE from arresting immigrants at just these locations? Terrorizing immigrants at their homes, their workplaces or when they are out shopping and going to the pharmacy are equally cruel. Again, this demand is about optics and makes white people feel better about ICE .
- Allowing states to investigate potential crimes committed by DHS and to sue DHS over detention conditions, and requiring state coordination for large-scale operations – This isn’t a bad idea, but how will this be enforced? Also, we know that local police are cooperative with ICE all around the country, so will people/communities be able to sue local police departments for assisting ICE in their terrorizing of immigrants?
- Safeguards including immediate access to attorneys for detainees, allowing states to sue DHS for violations, and unlimited congressional access to ICE facilities – also not a bad idea, but why didn’t Democrats demand this during the Biden and Obama Administrations? Immigrant detainees were being mistreated and many of them died under those administrations as well.
- Prohibit tracking and databases of individuals engaged in activities protected by the First Amendment – Again, these activities have happened under Democratic Administrations, plus government surveillance of people in the US has been happening for a very long time regardless of who sits in the White House.
- Codification and enforcement of a use of force policy – Use of force policies by ICE and local law enforcement always protects the cops. This is why groups like Cosecha and GR Rapid Response to ICE use the phrase – ICE and Cops go hand in hand. The carceral state has always used the threat of force to manage populations, especially BIPOC populations, so simply codifying use of force policies will provide even greater legal protections for ICE and local cops.
We don’t need to return to the “good old days” of ICE, the pre-Trump ICE, especially since ICE was created to criminalize and terrorize immigrants. You can’t reform state carceral violence, not matter what agency we are talking about. Instead, we have to take the following steps to fundamentally change the so-called immigration crisis.
- Provide all undocumented immigrants a clear path to obtaining legal status.
- Abolish ICE, which is exactly what immigrant-led groups and immigration focused groups are calling for. Here are some those groups – Mijente, United We Dream Network and Movimiento Cosecha, Other groups calling for the abolition of ICE are: ACLU, American Friends Service Committee, NAACP, Amnesty International, Detention Watch Network and CASA.
- US Foreign Policy needs to drastically change, since so much of US military spending/intervention and economic policies, like NAFTA, have been part of the root causes for the displacement of so many people, especially from Latin America.
Until we adopt make these three strategies, we are going to continue to criminalize immigrants, engage is white supremacist/xenophobic practices, and rely on state carceral violence to deal with immigration. We also need to stop being fooled by the rhetoric of politicians like Rep. Scholten that do not practice authentic solidarity with those being targeted by ICE.
We are roughly two months away from the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. The GR A250 group, which is significantly influenced by the DeVos family, is gearing up for the anniversary celebration and doing everything possible to dictate the narrative around the nation’s founding.
The GR A250 group is using a series of events in the coming months to make sure that people don’t talk about the fact that the US was founded on settler colonialism, genocide and slavery.
On May 11th, the GR A250 group is sponsoring a session on celebrating the history of inventions in the US, followed by a conversation on what it means to practice courageous citizenship on May 19th. In that session the organizers want to get people to not be so divided, but there is no evidence that this will mean coming to terms with a honest assessment of US history.
On May 20th the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum is hosting a workshop entitled, “Defund the Police”, which will involve leaders from across perspectives on this topic. I seriously doubt that this will involved the very groups that have been demanding defunding the police in Grand Rapids, such as Defund the GRPD, the Comrades Collective or ACAB. “Through a structured process, participants will explore differing viewpoints, identify shared values and uncover areas of agreement that can inform future collaboration.” Sounds like a highly managed conversation that will steer people away from the Movement for Black Lives call to Defund the Police.
Then on May 30th there will be a “one-day civics camp to prepare middle school and high school youth to join the American adventure as active citizens.” This event will take place in the DeVos Learning Center, which will include “guest speakers”, even though none of these guests are named.
More importantly the GR A250 group is offering a class entitled, the Meaning of Happiness in America’s Founding. The first question that comes to mind for me is who does or is going to feel happiness when learning about the founding of this country?
This class is based on a book by Jeffery Rosen who is the president of the National Constitution Center. It is instructive to note that Doug DeVos, one of the leaders of the GR A250 group, is also a trustee of the National Constitution Center. Not only that, but Doug DeVos has contributed $10 million to the National Constitution Center between 2022 – 2024 from his foundation.
The conclusion is that the most influential co-founder of GR A250, Doug DeVos, has personally given $10 million over a three year period to the National Constitution Center (NCC), where DeVos is also a trustee and has invited the former President of the NCC to facilitate a class on how the founding of the US is akin to happiness. This is some slick Orwellian shit indeed.
Yesterday, an estimated 250-300 people showed up to participate in the 9th annual May Day march for immigrant justice organized by Movimiento Cosecha.
The energy was high despite there being a chill in the air. People gathered at Garfield Park greeting old friends and making new acquaintances. Eventually Cosecha organizers began to teach people a series of chants that would be used throughout the march, along with a rundown of information on safeties, street medics, those acting as police liaisons and those driving vehicles with supplies and offering rides to those who needed a break. Like most actions people are generally unaware of all the meetings, conversation and prep time it takes to make these kind of actions happen.
I am always amazed by the courage and commitment of the Cosecha organizers, their constant calls for immigrant justice, their demands to have the city and county adopt sanctuary policies and the call to abolish ICE. Cosecha organizers deserve our respect and solidarity.
Just before the march started a GRPD cruiser pulled into Garfield Park. A single officer exited the car and was met by some of the police liaisons. The cop asked the usual questions, like “will you be marching”, “what is the route”, and “ can I speak with the organizers.” No information was given. The cop then said the if people do march that they needed to stay on the sidewalk, since walking in the streets would be “unlawful.”
It is always instructive to hear how the state frames what is unlawful and what is lawful. Currently, it is lawful for ICE to arrest and detain people, causing family separation and family trauma for immigrants that are undocumented. However, immigrants marching in the streets demanding dignity, respect and permanent protection for all 11 million undocumented immigrants is unlawful?
Just before 1:00pm the march got underway and within the fist block we saw GRPD cruisers on side streets just off of Burton St, keeping an eye on the march and making sure that we did not disrupt business as usual. In fact, throughout the march there were about 6 different GRPD cruisers that followed the march, leapfrogging side streets and trying stay ahead of the game since they had no idea what the route was.
The march route itself was deliberate and well planned. For the first time Cosecha organizers decided that the march route would be determined based on locations in the SW part of Grand Rapids where ICE had abducted immigrants – one on S. Division near the railroad tracks, one on Century SW along US 131, and a 3rd location in front of a small, locally owned store on Burton Street SW. In many ways this was the most powerful aspect of the Cosecha organized march, since it provided concrete examples of how ICE is terrorizing immigrants in Grand Rapids at space they we have all passed by, spaces that can now remind us of how state violence will destroy families and terrify entire communities.
The march eventually made its way back to Garfield Park where people celebrated the May Day action by sharing food that the community provided and building community that can sustain us in this fight. I was proud to be a part of the action and to celebrate the people that made it possible.
Where the hell were the white allies?
A day after the No Kings rally in Grand Rapids in late March, where thousands showed up, I wrote the following:
It is imperative that allies, especially white allies, show up on May 1st this year in large numbers to support the demands of the immigrant communities, Movimiento Cosecha and those being targeted by ICE.
We just saw thousands of people show up for the No Kings rally in Grand Rapids, so it would be fabulous if people showed up to the May Day march. It is vitally important that those of us who call ourselves allies show up now and not wait for Grand Rapids to become another Minneapolis. Immigrants in this community are being arrested, detained and deported and have been since 2003, when ICE was created.
Yes there were some white allies who showed up to the May Day march organized by Cosecha, but it was a paultry number compared to the No Kings event. So where were the white allies who were mad about what ICE was doing in Minneapolis earlier this year? Where are all of the white allies who were so outraged over the ICE shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti? Where were the white allies who started holding marches in downtown Grand Rapids in February calling for ICE out of this city? Where were the white liberal groups, the Indivisible groups, the politicians and political candidates who claimed to oppose ICE?
This is the only big annual event that Cosecha organizes so where the hell were the white allies? You can’t claim to be opposed to ICE, to want ICE to be out of Grand Rapids or to abolish ICE if you don’t showed up for those who are the primary target of ICE. I am so over white liberals and their bullshit excuses. If you what to practice immigrant solidarity you need to show up for immigrants and follow their lead!
GRIID will be facilitating a two part Grand Rapids Power Analysis workshop in May at Fountain Street Church
For anyone who reads my blog you know that for years I have been monitoring, investigating and writing about what I call the Grand Rapids Power Structure.
I have been doing this kind of work for years because I believe that it is vitally important to understand which families, organizations and institutions wield economic, political and social power in Grand Rapids and what that means for this community. I also believe that for those engaged in social change and social movement work it is critically important to have a robust Grand Rapids Power Analysis, since the Grand Rapids Power Structure is likely to be one of the major reasons we can not achieve social justice and collective transformation in this community.
The workshop is in two parts, with Part I being on May 17th and Part II on May 31st at Fountain Street Church. In Part I, I will be presenting slides and analysis on the Grand Rapids Power Structure. You can find the current version of the slides here, but I will be updating many of these slides and adding new ones for the 2 part workshop.
In Part II, I will be looking at how we can organize and resist the economic, political and social power that the Grand Rapids Power Structure has in this city. This will be the first time that I have had the opportunity to talk about how we can engage in collective resistance to the Grand Rapids Power Structure.
Both of these session will take place at Fountain Street Church and are free to those who attend. Each of the sessions are 90 minutes long and will take place on Sunday, May 17 and Sunday, May 31st, starting at 2:00PM.
The two part workshop is being offered through the Social Justice Committee at Fountain Street Church and SPARC – Solidarity Progress Action Resistance Collective.
“In any case, the hidden hand of of foundations can control the course of social change and deflect anger to targets other than elite power.”
– Joan Roelofs, Foundations and Public Policy
Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation
GRIID has always begun our Foundation Watch work by looking at the foundations associated with the most powerful family in West Michigan, the DeVos family. Last week I posted an article on the Dick and Betsy DeVos Foundation, and today I am focusing on the Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation, which has been one of the largest in West Michigan. Doug DeVos is currently one of the CEOs of Amway, along with operating Continuum Ventures LLC, which is their investment management company. According to the Candid website, in 2024, the Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation contributed $10,462,588,00 leaving them with $66,723,450.00 of funds left in their foundation account.
The Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation made contributions to dozens of entities in 2024, but there are some clear categories of groups they contributed to, such as the Religious Right, Think Tanks, Education-centered groups, and social service entities, to name a few. Below is a listing of each from these categories, with a dollar amount and a brief analysis.
I also include groups that are DeVos owned or created, along with liberal non-profits. With the liberal non-profits, we believe that funding from foundations like the DeVos family foundations is a form of hush money. When we say hush money, we mean that these entities will not publicly challenge the system of Capitalism, the wealth gap, structural racism and other systems of oppression, which the DeVos family benefits from and perpetuates through their own political funding.
However, before I get to how they distributed their foundation funds for 2024, I think it is important that the Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation paid three DeVos-owned entities and two independent businesses to manage how their foundation money was used in 2024. Highlighted groups are DeVos groups.
- RDV Corporation – $483,259
- RDV Staffing Inc. – $209,780
- Highland Group of Grand Rapids – $131,262
- Ottawa Avenue Private Capital – $125,322
- Datawise Consulting LLC – $100,000
Religious Groups
- Bethany Christian Services – $117,000
- Christian Leaders Ministries – $50,000
- Crossroads Bible Church – $100,000
- Degage Ministries – $25,000
- Guiding Light Mission Inc. – $10,000
- Keystone Community Church – $125,000
- Life International Inc. – $30,000
- Luis Palau Association – $150,000
- National Christian Foundation West Michigan – $213,800
- Pregnancy Resource Center – $30,000
- Young Life Central Grand Rapids – $25,000
These religious groups practice varying degrees of conservative politics, which fit into the ideological framework that the DeVos family is committed to. For instance the Pregnancy Resource Center is an anti-abortion group, while Bethany Christian Services is anti-LGBTQ.
Far Right Think Tanks and Pro-Capitalist groups
- Grand Action Foundation – $325,000
- Mackinac Center – $125,000
- National Constitution Center – $1,325,000
- Philanthropy Roundtable – $25,000
- The Seminar Network/Stand Together – $1,000,000
These Think Tanks influence public policy in individual states, like the Mackinac Center for Public Policy does here in Michigan. The Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation also funds Grand Action 2.0, which promote policies that use millions in public dollars for private projects that the DeVos family benefits from in Grand Rapids. The Seminar Network Inc. is part of the Koch family ultra-conservative network.
Business entities
- Arts Marketplace at Studio Park – $244,080
- Construction Allies in Action – $100,000
- Strategic Workforce Solutions – $150,000
These groups all benefit business interests.
Political Organizations
- Ada Township – $1,000,000
- Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. – $25,000
- Gerald R Ford Presidential Foundation – $500,000
Education-centered groups
- Calvin University – $320,000
- First Steps Kent – $75,000
- Grand Rapids Christian Schools. – $30,000
- Grand Rapids Public Schools Foundation – $125,000
- Living Stones Academy – $87,250
- Potters House – $50,000
- Purdue Research Foundation – $5,175,000
- Rehoboth Christian School Association – $100,000
- Wake Forest University – $250,000
- Vela Education Fund – $100,000
Half of the Education groups that the Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation contribute to are conservative Christian Schools. Some of the other groups are a mechanism to insert influence in the Grand Rapids Public Schools, such as the Grand Rapids Public Schools Foundation and First Steps Kent bring a religious component into the GRPS.
DeVos-owned, created or connected groups
- Corewell Heath Foundation – $270,000
- Grand Action Foundation – $325,000
- Grand Rapids Initiative for Leaders – $30,000
Groups receiving Hush $
- Access of West Michigan – $20,000
- Baxter Community Center – $40,000
- Boys and Girls Club of Grand Rapids – $50,000
- Children’s Healing Center – $105,000
- Heart of West Michigan United Way – $325,000
- KCONNECT – $162,500
- Literacy Center of West MI – $25,000
- Oakdale Neighbors – $22,000
- Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services – $250,000
- Public Museum of Grand Rapids – $250,000
- Safe Haven Ministries – $70,000
- Urban League of West MI – $142,000
- YMCA of Greater Grand Rapids – $500,000
These groups all provide some sort of social service – people fleeing domestic violence, those who are housing insecure, people with disabilities, adoption and immigration. There are root causes to all of these issues, but these groups are not likely to address root causes and larger systems of oppression. When the DeVos family foundations make contributions, this will increase the likelihood that systems of oppression will not be addressed by these groups.
Foundations rarely make contributions without strings attached. The Doug and Maria DeVos has a long history of funding far right and religious right groups, which GRIID documented 10 years ago when we started this project. Lastly, it is worth noting that the Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation, like all of the DeVos family foundations, compliments the campaign contributions they make to further impact public policy and promote their religious and capitalist ideologies.
Twenty Five years ago this week people from Grand Rapids participated in the anti-Free Trade Area of the Americas protest in Canada
Just days after the anti-IMF/World Bank protest in downtown Grand Rapids, some 15 local activists traveled to Quebec City, Canada, to participate in the hemispheric resistance to further economic austerity measures being made into policy at the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Summit.
The FTAA summit was an attempt to create a trade policy, similar to NAFTA for the entire Western hemisphere. Labor groups, indigenous communities, environmentalists, anarchists and other members of civil society converged on Quebec in April of 2001 to say no to the heads of state that were meeting in the old part of Quebec City, in an area that was completed walled off to the public.
During those few days in Quebec City, those in power did everything they could to prevent a shutdown of their meetings. They put up a 10-foot fence around the summit venue; several thousand cops beat back protestors; and the cops used tear gas and water cannons on the unarmed crowd. In fact there was so much tear gas used that the heads of state that were meeting had to evacuate the building they were in, since tear gas was coming in through the ventilation system.
We later found out that the tear gas guns they were using were a new prototype, which allowed them to launch tear gas canisters further than expected, which caught those protesting off guard. I remember filming hear the fencing and witness the Medieval Black Block that had constructed it’s own catapult to launch stuff animals at the cops. I distinctly remember this since while I was filming I got knocked on my ass by a water cannon.
The thousands of FTAA protestors who traveled to Canada hosted their own summit, with workshops and sessions to craft their own economic plan for the Americas. Erica Freshour, one of the activists from Grand Rapids, said, “The corporate media hasn’t been reporting on the real issues of the anti-globalization protests. They are too focused on violence that may or may not have occurred, instead of talk about labor, environmental and human rights issues that people are fighting for. This is why we need an independent media.” Here is a video created by some of those from Grand Rapids who participated in the anti-FTAA protests in Canada in 2001.
It took another 4 years of resistance against the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), but it was eventually defeated in 2005. This defeat came at the hands of the organized resistance, not because of politicians.
Unfortunately, the anti-globalization movement came to an abrupt halt on September 11, 2001, when planes were flown into the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Many of the same people who had built connections and strategies in this movement redirected their energies to resisting the US military occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Grand Rapids City Commission meeting dominated by demands to adopt 6 sanctuary policies as activists shut down the commission chambers
One a night that was filled with irony and poor facilitation, during the last public comment period the primary topics were GRPD collaboration with ICE and Flock cameras.
I counted at least 21 people who spoke about the 6 sanctuary policies that Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapid Response to ICE have been demanding over the past 15 months. People talked about ICE terrorism in Grand Rapids, how the GRPD has been not only cooperating with ICE, but stoping people from attempting to interfere with ICE attempts to arrest and detain immigrants.
Other people spoke about public safety, about harm reduction, about supporting immigrant families and addressing the use of Flock cameras and how that type of surveillance systems puts everyone at risk.
The last person to speak read a statement on behalf of GR Rapid Response to ICE (see below) and when they finished the statement about 40 people stood up hold an enlarged photo of a GRPD officer collaborating with ICE to detain an immigrant, along with alternating chants “ICE and Cops go hand in hand” and “get the Flock off my block.”
After the activist refused to leave and continued to disrupt the City commission meeting, Mayor LaGrand decided to adjourn the meeting.
Statement by GR Rapid Response to ICE
As a volunteer organizer with GR Rapid Response to ICE, I, along with thousands of other people have been asking the City Commission to adopt the six sanctuary policies since January of 2025.
Since that time ICE has caused tremendous harm and separated hundreds of immigrant families living in Grand Rapids. We know this because we work directly with these families to provide Mutual Aid. We also know that ICE has attempted to arrest and detain many more immigrant families, but because of the work GR Rapid Response to ICE does, which is to disrupt the violence that ICE perpetrates, there have been fewer family separations and less family trauma.
By adopting the 6 sanctuary policies this commission would essentially be adopting harm reduction policies.
Unfortunately, since January of 2025 we have heard that adopting these sanctuary policies it would make Grand Rapids a target, we have also heard that there are likely pro-ICE people who haven’t communicated with this commission. We have also heard from the Mayor that he didn’t want to give immigrants a sense of false hope, and at other times we have heard that the city is already meeting some of these demands. Then at a recent commission meeting the Mayor said that even if they wanted to sign a 287g agreement city lawyers have told him that they couldn’t legally sign a 287g agreement. GR Rapid Response to ICE even sent an Email to the Mayor to provide some concrete evidence that signing a 287g agreement was not possible, but to date the Mayor has failed to respond to this simple request.
We have also heard from this commission that the GRPD is not collaborating with ICE, but we have witnessed on numerous occasions that they have, such as when a GRPD officer showed up at the same time as ICE to arrest and detain Byron Martinez, which we have on video that shows the GRPD officer directly assisting ICE. Mayor LaGrand has said repeatedly to let him know if GRPD is violating policy and directly cooperating with ICE. Countless community members have and he’s done nothing. But moreover, current policy has giant loopholes in that there are exceptions for “emergencies and supporting public safety”.
Now, we are fully aware of the fact that adopting the 6 sanctuary policies will not eliminate ICE violence in Grand Rapids, but we do believe that if the City of Grand Rapids doesn’t cooperate with ICE in any way and the GRPD doesn’t interfere with our efforts to prevent ICE from arresting and detaining immigrants that there will be less harm done by ICE in Grand Rapids.
Therefore, we are asking you once again to adopt these 6 sanctuary policies, to adopt these harm reduction policies, to practice immigrant solidarity and to be on the right side of history!
Rick DeVos and his family have been coming for you and your children for a very long time
Rick DeVos, the son of Dick & Betsy DeVos, recently shared on X some video of the Cosecha action at Long Road Distillers. However, DeVos shared it from the Grand Rapids Businessman Facebook page – the Grand Rapids Businessman was formerly known as Commies of Grand Rapids and is a MAGA-like page that hates on people.
Here is the language from the Grand Rapids Businessman post:
Grand Rapids anti-ICE activist group, Movimento Cosecha, protests inside Long Road Distillery owned by Mayor David LaGrand and former commissioner John O’Connor.
The group was led by paid activist Jeff Smith and demands Mayor LaGrand adopt sanctuary city status.
One clarification on the GR Businessman language is that Movimiento Cosecha is not demanding that Mayor LaGrand adopt sanctuary city status, rather to adopt 6 sanctuary policies which will prevent the City of Grand Rapids from sharing information or allow the GRPD to cooperate with ICE.
More importantly, Rick DeVos adds his own commentary in his sharing of the action at Long Road Distillers, saying:
“You only have to read a tiny bit of revolutionary history to realize that even when you’re nominally on the side of these lunatics they will eventually come for you.”
My initial response to this is, so Rick how much revolutionary history have you read? Do you think that Rick DeVos is referring to the history of the French Revolution, the Algerian Revolution, the Cuban Revolution or perhaps the Bolivarian Revolution. It’s impressive that Rick found time to read up on revolutionary history while he has been busy doing projects like ArtPrize or figuring out ways to expand his wealth through Wakestream Ventures.
The more important aspect of Rick’s comment is the part that says, “even when you’re nominally on the side of these lunatics they will eventually come for you.”
People with the kind of power and privilege that Rick DeVos has will always refer to those who oppose injustice as “lunatics” since you always have to demonize people you don’t agree with. Second, Long Road Distiller co-owner Jon O’Connor can yell fuck ICE, but he doesn’t give a shit about the fact that in Grand Rapids ICE has been arresting and detaining immigrants since 2003 and he as a former GRPS School Board member and former Grand Rapids City Commissioner did nothing to prevent ICE from terrorizing immigrants. In fact, O’Connor was a City Commissioner when a GRPD Captain called ICE to tell them to arrest Jilmar Ramos Gomez, a former US Marine and US citizen. So Rick, Jon O’Connor is not now and has never been nominally on our side.
Then there is the matter of Rick DeVos saying “they will come for you.” What exactly does he mean here? If he means that people will confront injustice and challenge systems of power and oppression, then that will absolutely happen. However, those of us who are fighting oppression aren’t coming for those with power and privilege, at least not the way that Rick DeVos and his family has been coming for people.
The DeVos family has contributed to the election campaigns for Donald Trump in 2016, 2020 and 2024. During President Trump’s first administration and 16 months into his second administration the federal government has been coming for people and their children, which includes:
- Arresting, detaining and deporting immigrants causing lots of family trauma and economic hardship.
- Adopting economic policies that have made it hard for working class families to survive in the system of Capitalism that Rick DeVos and his family has made billions off of.
- Adopting anti-trans policies that has lead to physical violence against those identifying as trans, along with emotional harm, discrimination and other horrendous consequences from adopting anti-trans policies.
- Increasing the US military budget with continued support of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians, an assault against Iran, kidnapping the President of Venezuela and his family, etc.
The DeVos family has also been the largest contributor to the Republican Party in Michigan since 1990. This has resulted in attacking labor unions in Michigan, undermining public education in Michigan, providing further tax breaks for the Capitalist Class, reducing Government funded safety nets, and providing billions in public money for developers to expand their wealth.
Rick DeVos and his family also hides hundreds of millions of dollars from being taxed in their foundations and then re-directs that money to far right think tanks, the religious right and to other entities that support their ideological stance on numerous issues. You can read about all of this in 830 pages of the DeVos Family Reader.
Rick DeVos wants people to think that he and his family have high moral standards, but the truth is that the DeVos family has been coming for you and your children for decades and that they are exponentially more threatening to your well being than immigrants dancing and demanding and end the ICE terrorism in Grand Rapids.
Cosecha’s direct action on Friday confronts business as usual politics and West Michigan Nice
“We do not need allies more devoted to order than to justice. I hear a lot of talk these days about our direct action talk alienating former friends. I would rather feel they are bringing to the surface latent prejudices that are already there. If our direct action programs alienate our friends … they never were really our friends.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
It has been rather instructive to see all of the responses on social media after the Cosecha action at Long Road Distillers last Friday.
There have been reactions from conservatives, MAGA fanatics, and those who embrace a white supremacist and pro-ICE ideology. These reactions have all been predictable and expected.
The reactions I find most instructive are those that are coming from liberals and so-called progressives. These responses have been littered with phrases like “this is not the way to protest”, “going into the business to disrupt was disrespectable” or “if you want to protest, do it outside.”
Engaging in disruptive tactics has long been part of social movements. Here are just a few examples:
- Black people who were enslaved didn’t protest, they would burn the plantation owner’s home, sometimes kill the white people in charge of those who were enslaved or simply fled the plantation in an act of self-liberation. Those who freed themselves didn’t go to the local city council to plead their case, nor did they seek help from the sheriff. In fact, the local laws and the local sheriff supported slavery and even sent men to catch those who had freed themselves.
- Workers have used the tactic of occupying the business they worked at to demand better wages, working conditions or the right to form a union affecting the ability of the business to make money. The 1936-37 Flint Wildcat Strike is a great example, which taught other workers to use the same tactic, even here in Grand Rapids.
- During the Civil Rights Movement people would disrupt businesses through boycotts (like the Montgomery Bus boycott) or by disrupting businesses by engaging in lunch counter sit-ins to protest segregation.
- Anti-War movements have also engaged in boycotts or occupied businesses that were profiting from war.
- The South African Anti-Apartheid movement also disrupted businesses that were profiting off of the apartheid system in South African. Those involved also boycotting business and disrupting businesses as I have documented locally.
- Environmental Justice movements have also occupied businesses and disrupted their ability to make a profit, like in the case of groups like GreenPeace, the Sunrise Movement, Extinction Rebellion and Rainforest Action Network.
Therefore, the Cosecha action Friday at Long Road Distillers is using a tactic that movements all around the world have used for the past 2 centuries.
However, there are plenty of people who would not be convinced by the fact that disruption is a standard tactic for social change. Some people might argue that the Cosecha action disrupted the patrons who were at Long Road Distillers. However, what we know is that not one customer left during the action, and many of the patrons took flyers from people taking part in the action. People didn’t leave until the own showed up and started yelling at people and tell them to get the fuck out.
Other people might say that the Cosecha action only alienated people from their cause. Again, there was no evidence that this was the case for the people who were present during the action. The white supremacists and pro-ICE people on social media were never going to be an ally to this movement, plus there were plenty of people who either wrote favorable comments or hit the like button in support.
What Movimiento Cosecha actions often do are to polarize people, which is to get them to think about an issue and then choose a side. With polarization you can get people to think about something that they have not really thought much about before. In addition, you often can get people to not only agree with you, but get them to decide to be involved in the movement. If they are already involved in the movement, a polarizing action might get then to decide to become more involved and even be willing to take risks for the movement.
This is exactly what happened with the Cosecha action at Long Road Distillers. The action used a disruptive tactic at a business that is part owned by Mayor LaGrand to potentially impact his ability to make money, especially since he has not agreed to adopt the demands from Cosecha. People were also potentially polarized during the action, along with the polarization that has happen during in person conversations and because of the information shared on social media.
Now, not everyone has to agree with Cosecha’s use of Direct Action tactics. However, just because you don’t agree with them, people shouldn’t be undermining the important work that Cosecha does. I don’t find hold signs as a terrible effective form of resistance, but I will never tell people to not do it. The same should apply with Direct Action tactics. Cosecha’s goal is to fight for immigrant justice and to abolish ICE. If you support these goals, even if you don’t agree with all of the tactics, please stop discrediting those doing this work.
I agree with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. when he said, “If our direct action programs alienate our friends … they never were really our friends.” Hasta La Huelga!
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy 