Personal reflections on the movie Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Spy, Assassin – From resisting Hitler to resisting Trump
“The church is the church only when it exists for others. To make a start, it should give away all its property to those in need. The church must share in the secular problems of ordinary human life, not dominating, but helping and serving. It must tell people of every calling what it means to live in Christ, to exist for others. It will have to take the field against the vices of hubris, power-worship, envy, and humbug, as the roots of all evil. It must not underestimate the importance of human example (which has its origin in the humanity of Jesus); it is not abstract argument, but example, that gives the word emphasis and power.”
-Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers from Prison
Last night I watched the new movie Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Spy Assassin. The movie resonated with me on many levels, partly because I used to identify as a Christian, but more importantly, the film centered on the issue of how to confront evil.
The film’s construction jumps back and forth between the time that Bonhoeffer was a prisoner of the Nazis, to critical moments in his life, moments that formed the person who would eventually be seen as a threat to the Nazi Party. In all of the scenes where Bonhoeffer was in prison, he was always writing in a notebook he had with him. What Bonhoeffer was writing was what eventually became one of his most famous books, Letters and Papers from Prison.
There are beautiful scenes with his family, particularly as a boy, where he is playing with siblings, but then his older brother has to join the German army and fight in WWI. Dietrich’s brother doesn’t come back, as he was killed in the war.
Another critical section of the film deals with the years Bonhoeffer spent in the US, specifically at Union Theological Seminary, where he met an African American named Albert Fisher. Fisher introduces Bonhoeffer to a jazz club in Harlem and then to a Black church. Bonhoeffer was deeply transformed by these experiences, which are captured in an excellent article entitled, BONHOEFFER’S HARLEM RENAISSANCE.
With a rejuvenated faith, Bonhoeffer returns to Germany just as the Nazi Party has begun to gain massive national support. There is an interesting scene, where Bonhoeffer’s bishop is preaching and is referring to the church as the Nazi Church, the Reich Kirche. Bonhoeffer is shocked by this and confronts his bishop.
Shortly after this scene Bonhoeffer is now delivering a sermon in the same church, with several Nazi officers present and he preaches the the beatitudes, but Luke’s version, which also includes phrases like, “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.”
The film does a fairly good job of looking at the complicity of the Christian Churches, with the majority being either silent or taking an active part in the Nazi Party.
Woe to you, from Luke’s beatitudes – clergy and Nazi officers get up and walk out because of what Bonhoeffer is saying, which is to denounce the church’s allegiance to the State. If you want to explore in more detail how the German Church was complicit with the Nazi Party, see Betrayal: German Churches and the Holocaust, and The Third Reich and the Christian Churches.
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Spy Assassin also includes the formation of what became known as the Confessing Church. The Confessing Church brought together clergy and regular Christians to take a clear stance against the Nazi Party and Adolph Hitler. They did this with what is know as the Barmen Declaration.
Bonhoeffer was identified as a threat to the Nazi Party with his endorsement of the Barmen Declaration, as were many other Germans. Because of this, several seminarians joined Bonhoeffer in a somewhat clandestine school that was created, known as the Finkenwalde seminary, which lasted from 1935 – 1937, when it was burned to the ground by the Nazi Party.
With his life being threatened Bonhoeffer is encouraged by other members of the Confessing Church to go to back to the US, to tell them what is happening under the Nazi Party. Bonhoeffer goes, but is only in the US for a brief time, since he decides to go back to Germany and be part of the resistance.
Shortly after Bonhoeffer returns, he is arrested and imprisoned by the Nazi’s because of his role of raising funds that were used in the plot to assassinated Hitler. In his last days in prison, which was bombed, the Nazis moved Bonhoeffer and the other prisoners to a different sight, where they hang him.
Overall the film is good, even though it was not totally historic, plus in some areas I wish they would have focused more on the larger Confessing Church movement, which Bonhoeffer was a part of. I would encourage people to watch this excellent documentary about Bonhoeffer, which will help fill many of the gaps that the Hollywood film doesn’t address sufficiently.
What is past is present
It was hard for me to not think about the courage of Bonhoeffer and the Confessing Church, which was a clear reaction to the horrors of the Nazi policies. At the same time it is hard for me not to think about current political climate in the US, especially with the incoming Trump Administration. Now, I don’t equate Trump with Hitler. However, I do recognize the authoritarian aspects of Trump and the people around him.
When I look around my own community of Grand Rapids, I think about the kinds of draconian policies being adopted in this city and the possibility of it becoming much worse. Then I think about whether or not there is anything resembling the Confessing Church in Grand Rapids. In my estimate, there isn’t, even with some of “progressive” churches.
There are movements and movement groups in GR, that have both a moral and political framework that is comparable to the resistance of authoritarian structures and systems in this community.
If we think about the possible mass deportation promises of the Trump Administration, then Grand Rapids will be faced with some serious choices. The church community currently does little to resist the the white supremacist practices that impact Black and Brown communities. There are few churches that dare to question or publicly challenge the US role in the current Israeli genocide of Palestinians. In fact, one could argue that the religious communities in Grand Rapids have, by enlarge, been silent on state violence, the growing wealth gap, the current climate crisis, the housing crisis and the blatant transphobia within this city.
It will be very interesting to see if Grand Rapids will respond to the impending mass deportation plan of the Trump Administration. How many churches will declare themselves a sanctuary, how many of them will join Movimiento Cosecha and GR Rapid Response to ICE to in mobilizing people to resist any and all anti-immigration practices of the incoming Trump Administration and the likely cooperation of Grand Rapids and Kent County officials.
Or will we, like Bonhoeffer and the Confessing Church resist authoritarianism in this community? Will people in this city participate in the upcoming training by GR Rapid Response to ICE being held on January 18th at Fountain St. Church? Will people in Grand Rapids come to the march that Movimiento Cosecha is having on January 20th, the same day as Trump’s Inauguration? Let us look upon these moments and realize that we have to act or we could regret for the rest of our lives that we were silent and complicit in the harm that could be done against our fellow community members in Grand Rapids.
Rep. Scholten votes with the Republicans to further criminalize the undocumented immigrant community
On Tuesday, the House voted to pass a GOP-led bill to require detention of undocumented migrants charged with certain crimes.
The bill that passes in the House is known as the Laken Riley Act. The legislation is named after a Georgia student who was killed last year while she was out for a run. An undocumented migrant from Venezuela was convicted and sentenced to life without parole in the case that reignited a national debate over immigration and crime.
The bill requires detention of migrants, including those who have been permitted to seek asylum in the U.S., if they have been accused of theft, burglary or shoplifting, according to an article from The Hill.
According to a CBS news story, “The legislation also includes a provision that would empower state attorneys general who claim their state or its residents have been harmed by immigration policies to sue the Department of Homeland Security.”
These provisions are clearly designed to attack the undocumented immigrant community. Think about it. Why do we need this legislation, when there are plenty of laws on the books that will charge people with shoplifting or theft, regardless of one’s immigration status.
Scholten and the Democrats
3rd Congressional Rep. Hillary Scholten was one of 48 Democrats that voted with Republicans to pass this legislation, which once again demonstrates how Democrats also embrace more draconian policies regarding immigrants, especially undocumented immigrants.
Scholten’s vote should come as no surprise to those who don’t have partisan blinders on. GRIID deconstructed a Scholten political ad in October of last year, which clearly showed that Scholten wants a more militarized border. One thing I said in that article was, “what Hillary Scholten and the Democratic Party is doing is adopting a slightly milder version of what Trump wants to do regarding immigration policy.”
Some news reports are saying that the Laken Riley Act might have a harder time passing in the Senate. However, in a recent CNN story they included a comment from Michigan Senate Democrat Gary Peters who told CNN that he plans to vote for the Laken Riley Act. Asked why, Peters said, “border security and keeping Americans safe.”
What is really at issue here is that politicians want us to buy into the idea that we should fear immigrants – especially undocumented immigrants – and equate immigrants with increased crime.
Fortunately, the facts can dismantle the mantra of “undocumented immigrants are criminals.” The National Institute of Justice wrote in September of 2024, “An NIJ-funded study examining data from the Texas Department of Public Safety estimated the rate at which undocumented immigrants are arrested for committing crimes. The study found that undocumented immigrants are arrested at less than half the rate of native-born U.S. citizens for violent and drug crimes and a quarter the rate of native-born citizens for property crimes.”
The American Immigration Council compared crime data to demographic data from 1980 to 2022, the most recent data available. The data showed that as the immigrant share of the population grew, the crime rate declined. In 1980, immigrants made up 6.2 percent of the U.S. population, and the total crime rate was 5,900 crimes per 100,000 people. By 2022, the share of immigrants had more than doubled, to 13.9 percent, while the total crime rate had dropped by 60.4 percent, to 2,335 crimes per 100,000 people. Specifically, the violent crime rate fell by 34.5 percent and the property crime rate fell by 63.3 percent.
The Migration Policy Institute wrote in October of last year, “A growing volume of research demonstrates that not only do immigrants commit fewer crimes, but they also do not raise crime rates in the U.S. communities where they settle. In fact, some studies indicate that immigration can lower criminal activity, especially violent crime, in places with inclusive policies and social environments where immigrant populations are well established.”
In an NPR story from March of 2024, it states:
Some of the most extensive research comes from Stanford University. Economist Ran Abramitzky found that since the 1960s, immigrants are 60% less likely to be incarcerated than U.S.-born people.
In a Brennan Center for Justice article from May of last year, they write: “When looking specifically at the relationship between undocumented immigrants and crime, researchers come to similar conclusions. Numerous studies show that undocumented immigration does not increase violent crime; research examining crime rates in so-called sanctuary cities also found no discernable difference when compared to similarly situated cities without sanctuary policies. One study that focused on drug crimes and driving under the influence found that unauthorized immigration status was associated with reductions in arrests for those offenses.”
One last example is from Reuters in September of 2024, where they did a fact check of a political ad from 2024, shown here on the right. Reuters writes:
“There is no evidence to suggest undocumented immigrants are responsible for 4,000 U.S. deaths every year, contrary to social media posts sharing the unsubstantiated statistic. There is no nationwide data on crimes committed specifically by undocumented immigrants, but research shows they do not commit crimes at a higher rate than native-born Americans. “We know of no national statistics on the numbers of deaths committed by unauthorized immigrants,” Michelle Mittelstadt, communications director of the Migration Policy Institute think tank, said in an email. Despite the lack of official data, there is significant research demonstrating “unauthorized immigrants commit crimes at lower rates than the U.S. born,” Mittelstadt said.”
This is the political climate we are facing with the incoming Trump Administration that wants to engage in mass deportations. It doesn’t seem like the Democratic Party is going to put up a fight on this matter. In fact, their actions demonstrate that they are endorsing the horrendously xenophobic anti-immigration platform that the Republicans are pushing.
I want to end this post with the words of Greg Grandin, historian and author of numerous books, including The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America. Grandin wrote these words just after the 48 Democrats voted with Republicans to pass the Laken Riley Act.
“Democrats falling over themselves to give Trump a big early win, thinking that in six years, voting yes on this monstrous bill is going to yield more political benefit than standing up and articulating a moral alternative now. If this keeps up, the political system is going to move so far to the right, all without the Hitlerite coup resistance liberals and MSNBC historians have been fear mongering about for a decade. All that wasted energy that could have been put into a building a populist, forward looking alternative to trumpian brutalism.”
Why is WOODTV8 providing a platform for a White Supremacist and founder of the American Patriot Council to talk about January 6th 2021?
On Monday, January 6th, WOODTV8 did a story about the attempted insurrection in Washington, DC in 2021.
The story is uncommonly long for a local TV news story, running a full 3 minutes and 31 seconds. What is even worse, is the fact that WOODTV8 contacted Ryan Kelley, someone who participated in the January 6th, 2021 insurrection, thus providing him a platform for justifying his role in the 2021 insurrection.
The WOODTV8 reporter, Meghan Bunchman, talked with Kelley at length and only referred to him as a former Michigan Gubernatorial candidate. The reporter did acknowledge that he was convicted of participating in the attempted insurrection and that he did 60 days in a federal prison.
However, what the WOODTV8 reporter did not say, was that Ryan Kelley is the founder of the American Patriot Council and a known White Supremacist. I first began reporting on Kelley and the American Patriot Council in early 2020, after they began organizing protests at the Lansing State Capital. Kelley was often a speaker at these protests, which were designed to oppose the Lock Down order put in places by Gov. Whitmer. At most of those protests, there were numerous heavily armed men who showed up, where on one occasion these armed men were allowed to enter the State Capital. What follows is a rundown of the stories I have written about Ryan Kelley and the American Patriot Council.
In April of 2020, Ryan Kelley and the American Patriot Council were involved in the protest at Gov. Whitmer’s home and they were the lead organizer for the large protest at the Lansing State Capitol a week later.
In May of 2020, the American Patriot Council and Ryan Kelley organized a rally at Rosa Parks Circle in Grand Rapids. I did two stories about that rally, which I attended. The first story was done right after the rally, and a second story where I identified some of the more high profiled people at that rally.
In the summer of 2020, Ryan Kelley and other members of the American Patriot Council showed up as counter-protesters in Allendale, Michigan after civil rights activists were calling attention to a Civil War Statue that was favorable to the Confederate Army. Ryan Kelley then led a rally in October at the same sight in Allendale, but this time roughly 75 civil rights people showed up to protest the American Patriot Council rally.
Here are a few more articles on Ryan Kelley and the American Patriot Council.
Founders of the American Patriot Council were involved in the January 6th Siege at the US Capitol
Ryan Kelley: Campaign Finances, COVID denial and other falsehoods
I just sent an Email to WOODTV8 reporter Meghan Bunchman and I encourage you to do the same. It is unacceptable to provide Ryan Kelley so much airtime and not even question or challenge his role in the American Patriot Council, his promotion of White Supremacist ideology, and his participation in the January 6th attempted insurrection. Meghan’s Email is meghan.bunchman@woodtv.com.
GRIID end of the year in Review: Part IV – Documenting the work of Social Movements in 2024
In Part I of the GRIID Year in Review, I wrote about the media watchdog work I do and how the local news reported on critical issues in Grand Rapids for 2024. Part II of the GRIID Year in Review focused on monitoring the Far Right in West Michigan.In Part III, I provided an overview of GRIID’s monitoring of the Grand Rapids Power Structure. Today, I want to look at my reporting on Social Movements in Grand Rapids for 2024.
I have been tracking the work of Grand Rapids-based social movements since the 1980s, which led to the creation of the https://grpeopleshistory.org/ and my book, A People’s History of Grand Rapids. I also write about local social movements because I believe that more than any other factor, social movements are what creates lasting changes and creates more possibility for collective liberation. For anyone who closely studies history, social movements, uprisings and revolutions are what causes real social transformation, not elections and not the status quo.
Palestine Solidarity
There were numerous social movements that were active in 2024. One of those movements was organizing around the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestine and the genocidal campaign being waged by Israel. In early January there were some creative banner drops in the downtown area of Grand Rapids. A week later there was an action at a local military contractor, which is also owned by an Israeli company. Then in late January, activist held an action outside of the residence of the Grand Rapids Catholic Bishop, demanding that he call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
In late February, Vice President Kamala Harris came to Grand Rapids, so organizers showed up to confront her and the Biden Administration’s unconditional support for Israel. In March, I wrote about Calvin University’s faculty that was calling for the school to divest from companies operating in Israel. The very next day I did an interview with one of those professors.
In May, organizers with Palestine Solidarity Grand Rapids disrupted a Kent County Democrats annual fundraiser, since the Democratic Party has not called for a ceasefire in Gaza, nor an end to US military sales to Israel. In October, Palestine Solidarity Grand Rapids organized an action at a Zeeland-based corporation, which also makes parts for bombs that the Israeli military is dropping on Palestinian civilians.
Comrades Collective
Policing in BIPOC communities continued to be a focus of resistance in 2024. The Comrades Collective organized two events for the 2nd anniversary of Patrick Lyoya’s murder by the GRPD. First, there was a candlelight vigil held in front of the Kent County Court House in early April, which was followed by a march a few days later. In both actions the family of Patrick Lyoya participated.
The march that was held on April 6th saw a significant amount of GRPD presence and harassment. Even though the march was non-violent, the GRPD arrested the safety car driver and impounded their car. In addition, weeks after the action, two BIPOC activists were contacted by the GRPD and told that they were being charged with bogus offenses. GRIID interviewed both of the activist charged, the first on May 6th and the second on May 20th.
Later in April, the Michigan State Police repeatedly ran over a Black man in Kentwood, prompting swift outrage. The Comrades Collective offered crowd safety at several demonstrations, plus they released their own statement on the police murder of Samuel Dajon Sterling. Then in May, because of all of the GRPD repression against movement groups in Grand Rapids, I wrote about piece about the criminalization of dissent. Lastly, after some 14 months after the Comrades Collective submitted a FOIA request regarding GRPD surveillance of those seeking justice for Patrick Lyoya, I wrote a summary of the FOIA documents and posted all of them on the GRIID site.
Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union
The housing crisis has been front and center in the minds of many people, but rarely do those in power talk about the skyrocketing rental costs, how exploitation by landlords is the norm, nor the daily realities of what it means to be a tenant. GRIID documented numerous actions that the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union (GRATU) organized in 2024 beginning with the assembly they held in April, with nearly 100 people in attendance. A few weeks after the tenant assembly, GRATU organized an action at the home of a landlord, because the landlord was threatening eviction.
In May, GRATU members went to Lansing to be part of a statewide protest at an annual gathering of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. A few weeks later, I wrote about how GRATU members supported a tenant who was evicted, thus demonstrating tenant solidarity.
In September GRATU supported another tenant who was being threatened by their landlord, with another action at the home of the landlord. In October GRATU signed on to a letter being sent to Gov. Whitmer with demands to pass 9 specifics bills that would greatly benefit tenants living in Michigan.
GRATU took the lead in organizing a campaign to deny the $565 million tax incentives that the DeVos/Van Andel development project was seeking. GRATU went back to Lansing for a protest at the State Capitol, where they gave the State Legislature a 30 day notice to pass tenant rights legislation. Finally, just before the Thanksgiving holiday, GRATU members and Movimiento Cosecha members organized a protest outside of the home of Democratic State Senator Winnie Brinks.
Movimiento Cosecha
Movimiento Cosecha has been organizing for immigrant justice since 2017 and GRIID has been documenting their work the entire time. In 2024, Movimiento Cosecha was still working to win driver’s licenses for those that are undocumented. For their annual May Day action they went to Lansing and did a disruptive action outside of the State House Chambers. In October, Cosecha members went to a Livingston County Commission meeting to call out the commissioners, which had passed a resultion just weeks before, a resolution which gave the Sheriff’s Department the freedom to detain anyone who was undocumented.
Because of the 2024 elections, where both the Democrats and the Republicans fought to see who could have a more repressive immigration policy, Cosecha took the opportunity to talk about how both parties have not benefited their communities. After Trump was re-elected, where he promised to engage in mass deportations, Cosecha began holding larger community meetings to get people signed up to do anti-deportation work.
Movimiento went back to Lansing because there was still an opportunity to win driver’s licenses for the undocumented community. Their action was to engage in a hunger strike in the State Capitol building and pressure State Legislators to pass the Drive SAFE bills during the lame duck session. Unfortunately, on the last possible day for the State House to vote on the bills, they didn’t even have a quorum to vote.
There were numerous other groups involved in movement work, such as a GRPS student union demanding better pay for teachers, a newly created group called the Grand Rapids Pullover Prevention, plus many of the autonomous organizations in Grand Rapids held a press conference to collectively make a statement that regardless of who gets elected, their work would still be necessary.
Of course, much of the behind the scenes work that social movements doesn’t gain the same amount of attention, but it is clear to me that whatever real and lasting changes that will occur, it will be because of the work of grassroots, community-based movements that are committed to system change.
Interview with Jose Guadalupe Jimenez Jr on his new film to be screened at the Wealthy Theater on January 15
GRIID – You have been involved with Movimiento Cosecha GR during the first Trump Administration. What made you decide to be involved in the immigrant justice movement?
Jose – I am the son of two immigrant parents from Moyahua, Zacatecas, Mexico. I feel a deep sense of pride in being their son, as they moved here to better their lives. It would be dishonorable not to fight for immigrant rights because it could very well be my parents who need that support.
I moved to Grand Rapids in 2017, about a little more than a year into 45’s presidency. I felt that my skills in filmmaking could help people who look like me, talk like me, and have similar experiences to mine.
The biggest catalyst that made me want to take action against injustice was watching the footage of the Standing Rock conflict over the Dakota Access Pipeline. Seeing blatant white supremacy in action, treating Native Americans with such dismissal and disrespect, physically hurt me. One of my biggest regrets is not jumping on a plane to help in some way.
I believe that no one can be illegal on stolen land.
GRIID – You were involved Movimiento Cosecha GR when they began the End the Contract Campaign and when the Jilmar Ramos Gomez was sent to an ICE detention facility. For you, what about Jilmar’s case most impacted you, and why did you decide to make a film about what happened to him?
Jose – I really saw myself in Jilmar’s situation. I’ve been detained at the border multiple times before. I was filming a documentary series following famous Latino Athletes, and one of them was Mexican futbol star who played for the professional team in Tijuana. I would drive from Los Angeles to TJ by myself. For three weekends straight, border patrol sent me to secondary inspection each time. They’d search my car from head to toe, making me feel like a criminal. I thought to myself, “Do they not keep records of who crosses the border?”
Finally, I asked the agent inspecting my car, “Is this always going to happen when I cross the border?” He revealed that there was another Jose Guadalupe Jimenez, and apparently, he had quite the rap sheet. I asked if I looked like the guy, and he said no. Apparently, the other Jose is 4’11” and 150 pounds, while I’m 5’11” and 230 pounds.
A few months later, my wife and I were invited to a wedding in Buffalo, New York. We thought it would be a great opportunity to visit Toronto and see Niagara Falls. We flew to Toronto and rented a car to drive to Buffalo for the wedding. When we arrived at the US border, the agent saw my passport, and bing—a mini version of me popped up on his computer. He immediately ordered me to turn off the car, step out, and told my wife to stay put.
This was a rental car, so I was low-key scared someone might have left something in the trunk. Then, four border patrol agents with assault rifles arrived and escorted me into the building in front of a line of cars. I tried to joke around with the officers, but they were all business. They escorted me to a separate glass door and told me to wait until they could verify my identity.
Thirty minutes in, without any contact with my wife or the officers, I went up to the desk where an agent sat. I explained that this always happens when I cross the border and mentioned what the agent in Tijuana had told me about the other guy’s record. I asked if there was anything I could do to expedite the process. The agent replied, “You should change your name.” At the moment, I didn’t think much of it, but later, I felt angry. Why should I change my name? I love my name; it’s my dad’s name. I bet they let John Smith or Daryl Johnson in without any problems.
I’m not trying to equate what happened to me to what happened to Jilmar Ramos-Gomez, but it did sting. What happened to Jilmar was egregious, horrible, a shame, embarrassing, and insulting. If you google FUBAR, what they did to Jilmar should be a top search result.
It felt like this was exactly what Movimiento Cosecha said would happen. It was the evidence we kept presenting to the county commissioners.
I couldn’t stop thinking about how they treated him despite having his passport in his pocket, his Real ID, and being a veteran. It made me think, “How much more do you want from us?” It really drove home the point that it was never about being legal or “illegal” or having the right documents. It just proved to me that it was always a racial issue.
I felt like I had to tell his story or else no one else would.
GRIID – During a Cosecha community meeting, you said that it would be difficult to impact federal policy, but that people can influence and change things at the local level. Can you say a little bit more about what you mean?
Jose – What I was trying to convey is that sometimes we fall into 47’s mental game and fear tactics, which can make people feel powerless to make a difference. 47 will continue to be a racist today, tomorrow, and forever and I can’t change that. Changing policy on a national level is extremely difficult. However, after witnessing what Cosecha did here in Grand Rapids—showing up to county and city commission meetings month after month—and after what happened to Jilmar, proving what the community has been saying for months, it became easier, and dare I say, necessary for the sheriff to change the department’s policy detainers from ICE. I don’t think we would have seen that change so quickly without the pressure. I feel given the history of local law officials and politicians, I feel they would have tried to make it seem that Jilmar’s near deportation was an extraordinary occurrence. This then gave ICE no choice but to not renew its contract with Kent County. I realized that if every city did what Cosecha did, we could achieve real positive change.
I didn’t mean to ignore 47 completely, but I feel if we focus locally, we can effect change nationally.
GRIID – You are screening your film in January 15th at the Wealthy Theater here in Grand Rapids. After the film there will be a panel discussion about how to deal with the incoming Trump Administration’s threat of mass deportations. Do you see your film as a catalyst to move people to get involved in resisting deportations?
Jose – I hope so. At the very least, I feel the film will wake people up to the fact that the chess pieces for mass deportation are already set. I don’t think it will involve people being put on trains and rounded up like cattle or knocking on doors to see if people are speaking Spanish, as they did in the 1930s with the Mexican Repatriation Act and the 1950s with Operation Wetback. Not saying that isn’t a possibility, but I think the administration will try to really take advantage of local law enforcement to do their dirty work for them. There are plenty racial sheriffs and politicians are itching to deport not only Undocumented folks but anyone that might look or sound like us. We already know that they are going to increase participation in the 287(g) program, which deputizes sheriff’s departments to enforce immigration law. We are going to see detainers continue to racially profile Latinos like they did with Jilmar. It’s up to us to ask our local officials—in our case, the GRPD Chief, the new Mayor, the City Manager, and the city and county Commissioners, and our neighbors—”Are you going to treat us with dignity and respect, or are you going to be complicit and let them deport us?”
GRIID – Are you planning any future public screenings and how can organizations best contact you if they want to show your film in the future?
Jose – Nothing concrete yet. I think it’s really important that people see the film. I am open to screening it around Michigan, and hope organizations reach out to screen the film. I would send an email to at hola@josegjimenez.com if people are interested.
I also plan on submitting to film festivals to increase the reach of the film and make sure other cities across the country know Jilmar’s Story, know the community’s story.
GRIID end of the year in Review: Part III – Monitoring the Grand Rapids Power Structure
In Part I of the GRIID Year in Review, I wrote about the media watchdog work I do and how the local news reported on critical issues in Grand Rapids for 2024. Part II of the GRIID Year in Review focused on monitoring the Far Right in West Michigan. Today, I want to provide an overview of GRIID’s monitoring of the Grand Rapids Power Structure.
I have been writing about the Grand Rapids Power Structure for the past couple of decades. I write about this structure because I believe it is important that we understand what they do and what that means for the rest of us. I also believe that if we are ever to achieve any lasting sense of collective liberation, then the Grand Rapids Power Structure must be dismantled.
The Grand Rapids Power Structure was extremely active in 2024, which is why I decided to update my 2018 ten part series, since the local power structure is always evolving. You can read the 2024 ten part series by going to this link, which is Part X, but has all of the other 9 parts linked in that article.
The Grand Rapids Power Structure played a significant role in the 2024 Elections, specifically local and state elections. In October, after the quarterly campaign finances were made public, I wrote about whom the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce was funding, which candidates took money from the Real Estate industry, the GR Mayoral race, the Grand Rapids City Commission races, how DeVos money dominated Kent County candidates, and how DeVos and other members of the GR Power Structure were buying state races. I also wrote about how members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure spent nearly half a million dollars to pass a ballot initiative to increase the hotel taxes as a way to fund downtown development projects.
Another way that the GR Power Structure leverages their wealth is in development project, where they get the State and local governments to use massive amounts of public money that will ultimately expand the wealth of those in the GR Power Structure. In February, I wrote about how so-called community engagement functions as part of the GR Power Structure’s strategy regarding the soccer stadium. Later in February, I wrote about how the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) was using public taxes to fund the Amphitheater.
In March, I wrote about how the Meijer family expanded their wealth in 2024, from $15 billion to $16.5 billion. Later in March, I wrote about how Grand Action 2.0 was proposing apartment complexes that would be adjacent to the Amphitheater and the soccer stadium, but that the hundreds of millions in public money should be used for such projects.
In April, the City of Grand Rapids decided to prioritize more public money for developers and the GRPD, which I wrote about. In late May, I then wrote about how the Grand Rapids City Commission unanimously voted to give $318 million towards the Grand Action 2.0 apartment complexes for the Amphitheater and the Soccer Stadium.
In August, I wrote about a recently created group called Thrive and Prosper, which is essentially a front group for members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure. As I do every year, I posted numerous articles about the Foundations of several members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure beginning in mid-August, which you can access here.
Beginning in late September, I wrote several posts about a massive development project involving the DeVos and Van Andel families. This massive downtown development project, it was later revealed, had been in the works for several years, but the public only found out about it in September of 2024. This project was also requesting $544 million in tax incentives. In October, the Grand Rapids DDA approved this project and later that month, and the Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority unanimously approved the $544 million subsidy. In November, there was a public hearing on the DeVos/Van Andel development project, where developers and City officials talked down to those who spoke against the project. The City then approved the massive tax incentives for the DeVos/Van Andel project, despite significant public opposition.
A few other noteworthy posts I did on the Grand Rapids Power Structure, were about the DeVos/Van Andel announcement that they would own the professional soccer team that would be playing at the soon to be built stadium, the Kent County Commission decision to approve a 25 year contract with Live Nation for the Amphitheater bookings, and the newly created website that members of the Grand Rapids Power Structure collaborated on to both celebrate and sell the economic benefits to the new downtown development projects.
In Part IV of the GRIID end of the year in Review, I will talk about the social movements and groups that organized against systems of power and oppression in Grand Rapids.
Palestine Solidarity Information, Analysis, Local Actions and Events for the week of January 5th
It has been almost 15 months since the Israeli government began their most recent assault on Gaza and the West Bank. The retaliation for the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack in Israel, has escalated to what the international community has called genocide, therefore, GRIID will be providing weekly links to information and analysis that we think can better inform us of what is happening, along with the role that the US government is playing. We will also provide information on local events and actions that people can get involved in. All of this information is to provide people with the capacity of what Noam Chomsky refers to as, intellectual self-defense.
Information
Israel Carried Out 1,400 Strikes in Gaza Last Month — Over 45 a Day on Average
Gaza: Doctors Warn Thousands of Palestinians Could Die This Winter from Cold, Hunger, Disease
UN Report Condemns Israel’s ‘Appalling Destruction’ of Gaza Hospitals
SUITCASES OF QATARI CASH: UNPACKING ISRAEL’S ROLE IN ‘FUNDING HAMAS’
Israeli Strikes on Gaza Kill Over 20—Including Children—on First Day of New Year
Latest Israeli Attack on Gaza ‘Safe Zone’ Kills Several Children
Manufacturing Consent 101: The New York Times and “What [NOT] to Know” About the Genocide in Gaza
Analysis & History
2024 Will Be Remembered as the Year Israel’s Global Legitimacy Fully Unraveled
Image used in this post is from the https://visualizingpalestine.org/.
GRIID end of the year in Review: Part II – Monitoring the Far Right in West Michigan
In Part I of the GRIID Year in Review, I wrote about the media watchdog work I do and how the local news reported on critical issues in Grand Rapids for 2024. Today, I want to look at my reporting on the Far Right in West Michigan.
I monitor the Far Right in West Michigan because not only do they spread misinformation and promote hate, they also engage in actual harm. The kind of harm the far right practices disproportionately impacts trans people, immigrants, BIPOC communities and people who are subjected to poverty. Monitoring the Far Right in West Michigan can help us to identify the organizations engaged in harm, which can lead to exposure and resistance.
In February of 2024, I wrote a Part I and Part II story about how Kent County candidates were embracing some of the same ideological commitments as the group Ottawa Impact.
In a March 12 post, I looked at how the Acton Institute trashed Aaron Bushnell for his decision to self-immolate as a protest against US complicity in the Israeli genocide against the Palestinians, the GR Chamber’s claim about immigrants and a Doug DeVos podcast interview with former GRPS Superintendent Teresa Weatherall Neal.
In late. March, I wrote another 2 part story about how politicians used anti-immigrant hysteria after an undocumented immigrant killed his girlfriend in Kent County. The hysteria was brought about because a far right anti-immigrant group claimed that Kent County was a sanctuary county.
The Acton Institute was once again the subject of another GRIID article in April, after one of the Acton writers made anti-Black comments and then equated anti-Zionism with anti-semitism. In late April, I also wrote a piece about the far right group in the Forest Hills area known as Forest Hills for JUST Education.
In May, I wrote about the far right pro-cop group, Voice for the Badge, and Acton Institute podcasters calling for students that are protesting against the Israeli genocide should be expelled. Then in late May, I wrote about the GR Chamber of Commerce, the Acton Institute and the Betsy DeVos created group, the Great Lakes Education Project.
On June 18th, GRIID posted an article about a Press Conference held by the far right, anti-trans coalition that was touring with their message of hate. The group Our Bodies, Our Sports held a Press Conference in front of the Ford Museum and included Betsy DeVos as one of the speakers.
After a tremendous amount of social media content about Project 2025, I wrote a piece in July that made it clear that many of the national groups that had signed off on the project have been funded by the DeVos family.
In August, the Acton Institute was once again the target of a GRIID article, especially since they made the claim that no one, even the unhoused, have a right to housing.
In September, Voice for the Badge reposted a meme from the group NumbersUSA. According to SourceWatch, NumbersUSA is an anti-immigrant organization that was tied to the larger anti-immigrant network that was created by now deceased Michigan physician John Tanton.
In October, I discovered that there were several conservative churches that were participating in Faith & Blue weekend. Some local churches actively participated in a national campaign that was created in response to the massive public protests again the George Floyd murder in 2020.
Lastly, in November, I wrote about how the Acton Institute’s revisionist claims about the First Thanksgiving, along with how the GR Chamber of Commerce was lobbying Michigan legislators to adopt bills that would benefit their members and other people in the Capitalist Class.
Some of the Far Right stories that I wrote in 2024, could easily be categorized as being part of the Grand Rapids Power Structure, but there is a great deal of overlap between the far right and the GR Power Structure. Part III in this series will focus on the Grand Rapids Power Structure.
I posted 53 different stories that critiqued the local daily commercial news media in 2024. The four news agencies I monitor regularly are MLive, WOODTV8, WZZM 13 and WXMI 17.
Some of those 53 posts were one-off pieces that looked at things like the Tesla mining project in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where the MLive article failed to provide adequate contextual information or explore the ecological and social implications of the mine.
Other one-off examples would be how WXMI 17 reported on the 50th anniversary of when Gerald R. Ford became President, how WZZM 13 failed to address how many people are struggling with the cost of rent in Kent County, how WOODTV8 only talked to the GR Chamber of Commerce on recent court decisions regarding minimum wages, or the example of how MLive failed to question the State of Michigan giving a $100 million tax exemption to the Chevron Corporation.
However, the bulk of the critique that GRIID provided on local news reporting centered primarily on the themes of the 2024 election, the GRPD and how the local news primarily acted as stenographers to the Grand Rapids Power Structure.
Local Election Coverage for 2024
ArtPrize vs Local Election coverage in the Grand Rapids media market
Local News Coverage on the GRPD for 2024
In an upcoming GRIID report, I documented that in the 673 crime related stories in the 4 local daily commercial media outlets, the GRPD were the primary source in 628 of those stories.
Here are some examples of how relying on the GRPD protects the GRPD from greater public scrutiny.
GRPD Chief Winstrom just lied to a reporter from MLive
GRPD Chief Winstrom engages in a little Copaganda and the local news media never questions it
Corporate Crime vs Street Crime: How Grand Rapids news distorts and racializes crime
Local News acts as stenographers to GR Power Structure
The amount of local news coverage regarding how the Grand Rapids Power Structure functions in this city, once again demonstrates how local news primarily acts as stenographers to those with power. There are too many to list here, so let me just highlight some of the more egregious examples.
Power Dynamics, community engagement and the Grand Action Soccer Stadium proposal
MLive’s Amphitheater coverage is a disgusting display of Neo-Liberal Journalism
Billionaire families announce new development project in GR, wants $544 million in public funding
Stenographers to power: When an Amway Press Release is used as “news”
What the DeVos/Van Andel ownership of the soccer team means for Grand Rapids
In Part II of the GRIID Year in Review, I will look at my reporting on the Far Right in West Michigan.
Doing accompaniment work with the Zapatistas in Mexico led me to do accompaniment work in Grand Rapids
It is now 31 years since the Zapatistas revealed themselves to the world in the southern state of Mexico, known as Chiapas.
The Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional (EZLN) chose January 1st, 1994, since that was the day that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) began in Canada, US and Mexico. The Zapatistas condemned this trade agreement, even going so far as to call it a death sentence for campesinos and indigenous people.
I had been through Chiapas numerous times before the uprising in 1994. After the uprising in Chiapas, I did travel through in 1994 on my way to be an election observer in El Salvador, then again in 1995, where I was doing accompaniment work in Guatemala with several human rights groups, along with documenting election violations in the Quiche region of Guatemala.
Version 1.0.0
The first time I did accompaniment work in Chiapas, specifically in the Zapatista communities, was in 1997, in the community of La Realidad. La Realidad is located in the Lacandon forest area, so it took about 4 hours to get there. I had to catch a ride in a cattle truck at 2am, so as to avoid Mexican government authorities, since traveling to Zapatista communities was prohibited at that time.
I was in La Realidid for for several weeks doing accompaniment work, where we mostly documented the daily activity of the Mexican military, which drove through La Realidad every day in order to intimidate them. Those of us would also monitor helicopter activity by the Mexican military, which used US supplied Huey helicopters. The same day that I left La Realidad, paramilitary forces in Mexico murdered 45 campesinos in Acteal, Chiapas, which was less than 30 miles from La Realidid.
I went to Chiapas a second time to do accompaniment work, but this time a whole group of people from Grand Rapids came. I was working at the Institute for Global Education at the time and was teaching a class on the history of US/Mexican relations. Several members of the class decided to make the trip to Chiapas with me.
This trip, which was in 1998, led us to the Zapatista community of Oventic. Again, we were in this community during the annual New Year’s even celebration, to commemorate the EZLN uprising.
My 3rd, and last time doing accompaniment work in Chiapas, was in late 2000, through the first days of 2021. During that short stint of accompaniment, several communities from the area marched to a Mexican military base and occupied the base until they left. Check out the video clip of this action, along with one of the Comandantes reading a statement during the New Years Eve celebration.
I am forever grateful for the opportunity to learn from the Zapatistas and to be able to leverage my privilege by doing accompaniment work in Chiapas. I continue to practice accompaniment work here in Grand Rapids, whether it is with Indigenous people, Black community organizers or the undocumented immigrant movement known as Movimiento Cosecha GR. La Lucha Sigue!!!!
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy 