Monitoring Wealth & Power: Updates to the DeVos Family Reader

For more than 4 decades now, I have been monitoring and writing about the most powerful family in West Michigan, the DeVos family.

For anyone who follows the GRIID site, you know that I regularly make posts that focus on the DeVos Family or make connections to the DeVos family an their billions.

I have had people over the years say to me that I must really hate the DeVos family. My response to that statement is usually something like, “I am compelled to write about and investigate the DeVos empire, since they more influence on West Michigan politics than other person or family.” I also acknowledge a certain level of contempt that I have for the DeVos family, since I believe that no one can acquire the level of wealth that they have, without exploiting people and influencing public policy. I also believe it is criminal for anyone to be that rich, while so many are living in poverty.

For several years now we have been compiling articles on the DeVos family, from a variety of archival sources, from print Indy media and online Indy media, as well as articles we have posted on GRIID.

The DeVos Family Reader includes the following sections:

• Introduction
• Early Critiques of DeVos/Amway
• DeVos Family, Elections and Money
• DeVos Family and West MI Politics
• DeVos Family Foundations
• West MI Media and the DeVos Family
• ArtPrize
• Betsy DeVos Watch

The most recent additions to the DeVos Family Reader are updates on their family foundations, 2020 election funding and various DeVos created projects like AmplifyGR. You can download the 597-page DeVos Family Reader by going to here.