News coverage of new downtown benches omits important information, critique of hostile architecture
On Friday, WOODTV8 ran a story about the new benches being installed in downtown Grand Rapids.
The headline for the online post on channel 8 reads, Grand Rapids’ new benches: ‘Beautiful’ or ‘aggressive’? The story interviews the director of Communications for Downtown Grand Rapids Inc, Bill Kirk. The channel 8 story claims that the new benches are being installed because of Downtown Grand Rapids Inc., which they identify as a non-profit.
Additionally, WOODTV8 interviewed Kelly Roper, the owner of SHOW Salon, who also supports the new benches, along with Anthony Cargill, who is experiencing homelessness, according to the reporter. Cargill doesn’t support the new benches, because they don’t allow people to lay down on them. The new benches have dividers, which Kirk says will assist people when standing up.
While I appreciate the fact that someone who is part of the unhoused community was interviewed, channel 8 didn’t interview community groups that were part of the effort to oppose the ordinances that the City of Grand Rapids adopted, ordinances that some community groups said would further criminalize the unhoused. In fact, the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union was the primary group involved in the organized opposition, which started in late 2022, when the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce put forth their own proposed ordinance, with the city adopting their own version – although similar – in July of 2023.
These new benches that Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. has initiated are part of a strategy being used by municipalities in the past few decades that is a direct response to city officials and businesses communities trying to keep the unhoused away from downtown areas. Some refer to this as anti-homeless architecture, while others call it hostile architecture. Here are some examples of what hostile architecture looks like, with number 2 being similar to the benches that Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. has initiated in Grand Rapids.
Another major omission in the WOODTV8 story is their failure to see the connection to those who signed on to the GR Chamber of Commerce ordinance proposal and its connection to those who are Board Members of Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. (DGRI). In screen shot below is that of the current DGRI Board, with a star next to the names of people who were signatories to the GR Chamber of Commerce proposed ordinance and the two Grand Rapids City officials who endorsed the criminalize the unhoused ordinances adopted in July. Groups like Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. will also have people on their boards who reflect either centers of political power or economic power. I’m guessing that channel 8 didn’t even consider these connections, as for-profit news agencies don’t often consider how systems of power function, and rarely do they even shine a light on those same systems.
Henry Kissinger was not a war criminal, says the Acton Institute, and other far right claims
For people who are regular readers of GRIID, you will know that since GRIID first became an Indy media site – providing on the ground coverage of local news, first hand accounts of social movements, acting as a media watchdog and monitoring systems of power and oppression – that we have been writing about the Grand Rapids-based far right think tank, the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty.
The Acton Institute went from being a small think tank in the early 1990s to a national, even global think tank, with connections to other far right/conservative institutions abroad, and ties to the State Policy Network, which acts as sort of a clearinghouse for think tanks across the US.
Even before GRIID came into being, several of us had been monitoring the Acton Institute through other Indy media sources such as The FUNdamentalist and Media Mouse, both of which are sourced at the end of SourceWatch’s information on the Acton Institute.
GRIID has been monitoring the work of the Acton Institute, in part because of their deep commitment to defending the system of Capitalism, but also because the think tank also embrace other far right perspectives, such as White Supremacy, an anti-LGBTQ stance, US Imperialism and a hatred for public education. However, on their most recent podcast, Acton Unwind, they might have produced their most over the top show ever.
On the Acton Unwind show for December 11th, they cover some of the recent activities of the Venezuelan government, the US Congressional Hearings on antisemitism and the death of Henry Kissinger, which they refer to as “Remembering Henry Kissinger.” The show is sort of a tri-fecta of far right ideology.
The podcast begins with a conversation about Henry Kissinger, where they read a bit from the Conservative Online source, The Morning Dispatch. A one point they talk down on the idea that Kissinger could have been a war criminal, saying, “The characterization that Kissinger was a war criminal is a bit overdone.” In addition, one of the guests on the show, although did not read Kissinger’s book on diplomacy, believes, “the book will be read for many years to come.”
In fact, all of the participants on Acton Unwind, wax eloquently about Kissinger, that he was such a towering intellectual. It is unfortunate that the Acton Institute talking heads didn’t talk about the role he played in the Ford Administration, avoiding the abvious connection to Grand Rapids. Now, GRIID did a post about the legacy of Henry Kissinger, which you can read here, but if there is one source that you should read, check out the declassified US documents on Kissinger, since these documents properly frame Kissinger’s influence in US foreign policy as brutal and imperialist.
Acton Unwind then shifts to talking shit about Venezuela, particularly Venezuela’s President Maduro whom the Acton talking heads refer to as an autocrat. This is consistent with the Acton Institute’s position on Venezuela, since Chavez was President, since he dared to challenge the US domination of Latin America.
The Acton podcast then ends with some discussion about the US Congressional hearings on antisemitism on US campuses. Here, the Acton Institute also sources The Morning Dispatch, which essentially mocks the presidents of several US universities because they have “tolerated” students and faculty for being involved in criticizing the Israeli assault on Gaza that is taking place right now.
What you don’t find on Acton Unwind of the so-called hearings on antisemitism is that it is really just another form of McCarthyism. In fact, the editor of Jewish Currents, Peter Beinart, in a recent interview on Democracy Now!, stated a much different critique of the Congressional hearings:
This really isn’t about those individual presidents. It’s about the fact that given the extraordinary slaughter that’s happening in Gaza, there is a movement on college campuses and across America for a ceasefire and to end American complicity in that slaughter. And in response to that, the effort is now to try to limit the ability of people who want to protest U.S. policy and support Palestinian rights from being able to organize on college campuses. So the reason that you’re going after these presidents is to try to set a precedent and bring in people who will be much tougher on restricting the ability of students and faculty and others who want to organize politically against this war in Gaza. This is what this is about.
As I stated earlier, this may have been the most ideologically-driven podcast from the Acton Institute that I have listened to, and it demonstrates how reactionary and far right the Acton Institute is on critical issues of the day. This is exactly why I can’t stress enough why it is important that we become familiar with the Acton Institute’s role in the larger far right movement in the US, and why I believe they not only need to be exposed, but they need to be resisted.
The bullshit response I got from Rep. Scholten in response to our demands calling for an immediate ceasefire and an end to US Military Aid for Israel
I hate it when politicians send form letters, especially when they don’t even address the content of our demands.
Rep. Scholten, as we have been documenting for several months, has unconditionally supported Israel, ever since they began their brutal retaliation for the Hamas attacks on October 7. There is no way that she could NOT know where lots of her constituents stand on this issue, since there was a large protest last weekend that came to her home just south of Martin Luther King Jr. Park in Grand Rapids. In addition, various groups collaborated on sending her (and Senators Stabenow and Peters) an action alert with the following 3 demands:
- A Call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza
- An End all US military aid to Israel
- For her to vote no on the proposed additional $14.3 Billion in US military aid to Israel
Rep. Scholten’s failure to address our demands is not only insulting, it is cowardly. What is worse is the fact that Scholten’s response reeks of pandering, even gaslighting. What follows is Rep. Scholten’s response in italics, with some commentary from me in bold.
Thank you for reaching out to my office regarding the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Words matter and this opening comment avoids naming what is actually happening, which is the brutal Israeli assault on Palestinians, particularly in Gaza and the West Bank. This is NOT a conflict, but a heavily armed state punishing civilians.
I’m so grateful for your care and concern about this important issue, and I share your deep compassion for the loss of human life, and the humanitarian crisis. It is imperative the United States shows our support for the innocent lives impacted by this crisis, and of course, to respond–and urge our allies to respond–within the parameters of international law. Really, when does the US care about innocent lives and international law. What Israel is doing right now, are clearly War Crimes, as defined by the Geneva Convention.
Internationally, peace and dignity for all individuals and cultures is always the ultimate goal. My heart breaks for all Israelis and Palestinians whose lives have been lost and those who are now in danger due to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. The United States should continue to work with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to help negotiate a two-state solution and block harmful efforts to circumvent those negotiations, such as unilateral actions and human rights abuses. We must support efforts to foster peace and allow for humanitarian aid to reach innocent people. However, we need willing partners on both sides to make those efforts possible. Peace and dignity for all has not been the history of US foreign policy. See the long list of US Military Interventions that were compiled by Professor Zoltan Grossman, which also provides the reasons for the intervention. The idea of a negotiate settlement or working on a two-state solution has never been part of the US agenda with Israel/Palestine. See any of the 16 book list we put together on this history, particularly, Dishonest Broker: The US Role in Israel and Palestine, by Naseer Aruri.
I want to make sure you’re aware of some of my actions on this matter since the beginning of this conflict. First, I signed a bipartisan letter urging the State Department to use all resources necessary for Americans who are currently in Israel and struggling to come home. Our office has helped facilitate such returns directly. Additionally, I have joined my colleagues in sending letters to both the Biden Administration and the Egyptian Ambassador, urging the creation of safe zones for civilians in harm’s way and a rapid deployment of humanitarian aid to those in need in the Gaza region. I have been aware of what Rep. Scholten has been doing, as I have been critiquing her stance on this matter since July, when she voted for a resolution stating that Israel is not an Apartheid State. Rep. Scholten can send all the letters she wants to the Biden Administration, but they are doing nothing to guarantee the safety of civilians who are in “harms way.” First, Palestinians are not in harms way, they have been told by the Israeli government to vacate Gaza, which is illegal, and they are experiencing the brutal Israeli air and ground assault, which has left over 16,000 Palestinians dead, with over 6,000 of them being Palestinian children.
The United States played a critical role in the recent pause in fighting and accelerating the delivery of food, water, and medicine in the region. We remain engaged to facilitate the continued release of hostages and deliver more aid to those in need. I am in constant communication with the White House about the importance of the United States playing a prominent role in protecting human life and ensuring we can achieve lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike. Rep. Scholten provides no evidence that the US played a role in the recent pause or the humanitarian aid that was to be made available to Palestinian civilians. In the second sentence of this section, Rep. Scholten continues to ignore that the Israeli hostages are contingent on the release of Palestinian prisoners, thus excluding a critical aspect of the exchange. Lastly, Rep. Scholten can be in as much communication as she wants with the Biden Administration, but she completely ignores the fact that the US is complicit in Israeli war crimes, since the US provided diplomatic support for Israel has provided many of the weapons they are using to murder Palestinian civilians, along with the $3.8 billion in US Military Aid to Israel this year alone. These facts make a mockery of the notion that the US wants to protect life and ensure a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians, especially since the Israeli could not commit war crimes without the US.
There is more in the letter response from Rep. Scholten, but that information has to do with how to contact her in DC and her office hours in Grand Rapids.
At this point, it seems clear to this writer that Rep. Scholten is either ideologically committed to the Zionist cause, it taking this stance because she is following what the Biden Administration wants her to follow, or she is willfully ignorant of what is actually happening on the ground with the Palestinians. It’s probably a combination of these reasons, but regardless of what is motivating Rep. Scholten’s position, she is party to war crimes and genocide.
GRIID 2024 Winter Class – A People’s History of Grand Rapids
I will be offering a class using my new book, A People’s History of Grand Rapids, beginning on January 22nd.
The class will be on Mondays from 7 – 9m and will be a virtual class, using zoom. The class will be either 8 or 10 weeks, depending on how much time participants want to commit to the class. We will determine how many weeks the class will last during the first class on Monday, January 22nd.
I am suggesting a $25 donation for the class, but this is just a donation, so no one will be turned away if they don’t contribute monetarily.
We will be using my book, A People’s History of Grand Rapids, which if you don’t have you can either purchase through Schuler Books or directly through me. I also have PDF copies of the book, which you can also purchase.
I am limiting the class to 15 participants, and it will be on a first come first serve basis. If you want to sign up for the class, send me a message at sjeff987@gmail.com.
Weekly Palestine Solidarity Information, Analysis, Local Actions and Events: Part I
It has become clear that the Israeli government will continue their assault on Gaza and the West Bank. The retaliation for the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel, has escalated, 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.
Information
Watch: Debunking Israel’s “mass rape” propaganda
Released Palestinians reveal horrors in Israeli prisons
‘Death Zone’: Over 700 Killed in 24 Hours as Israeli Bombing Blitz of Gaza Rages
Press Relayed Israeli Claims of Secret Hospital Base With Insufficient Skepticism
Amid Israel’s Brutality in Gaza, It’s Time to Commit to Anti-Zionism
We blew up Israeli houses on 7 October, says Israeli colonel
Analysis
Krystal Ball interviews author and political scientist Norman Finkelstein on Israel’s war in Gaza.
Two months that shock the world: The first phase of the Gaza War
Local Events and Actions
Rally to Demand a Ceasefire from the Kent County Democrats
Graphic included for this post comes from https://visualizingpalestine.org/.
Rep. Hillary Scholten voted for resolution that conflates Anti-Zionism with Antisemitism
As the US support for Israel’s assault on Gaza continues, the US House of Representatives voted to pass a resolution that equates criticism of Israel with Antisemitism.
According to a recent post on Common Dreams, “The resolution, which embraces the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s controversial working definition of antisemitism, was widely condemned by progressive and Jewish groups this week ahead of the vote.”
House Resolution 894 was introduced by Republican Rep. David Kustoff. The Resolution passed last night with 216 Republicans and 95 Democrats supporting it, with 92 Democrats choosing to vote “present.”
Michigan’s 3rd Congressional Representative, Hillary Scholten, voted yes on the resolution that equates criticism of Israel with Antisemitism. Scholten’s vote is consisted with the fact that she has been a recipient of pro-Israel lobby money, voted in favor of a resolution in July, which claimed that Israel is not an Apartheid state, took an AIPAC sponsored trip to Israel in August, and has supported the Biden Administration’s unconditional support for Israel, including the vicious assault on Gaza and his proposed to send an additional $14.3 billion in US military aid, which we have documented.
I checked Scholten’s website for any comments about her vote, along with her political Facebook page, and in both cases found nothing as of this posting.
New Energy bills signed into law by Gov. Whitmer receives criticism from Environmental Justice Group
“This package of bills is a vital step toward building a clean energy future here in Michigan that creates jobs and grows our economy,” said Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party Lavora Barnes. “While Republicans sit back and do nothing to address the climate crisis, Democrats are proving they will not leave Michiganders behind. We are thankful to our Democratic leaders who continue to make Michigan an example for the rest of the country when it comes to innovation and industry.”
This celebratory statement has been consistent with much of the coverage on the recent set on energy bills that Michigan State Legislators voted on, and Gov. Whitmer signed into law last week. The Detroit Free Press reported:
“By 2040, 100% of Michigan’s energy is set to come from clean sources under a new law approved by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Tuesday. The state now has one of the most ambitious clean energy goals in the U.S., after Whitmer approved heavily debated bills that passed both chambers of the Legislature along party lines.”
However, not everyone was so quick to celebrate the new energy legislation in Michigan. No, I’m not talking about the Republicans, who still think that Climate Change is a hoax. I’m talking about groups like the Union of Concerned Scientists and the Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition.
In a post from last week, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) made it clear that there were several things not included in the energy bills that were just signed into law by Gov. Whitmer:
Specifically, it weakened or completely eliminated environmental justice communities’ key priorities regarding affordability, reliability, and equity. Going forward, Michigan policymakers must incorporate these policies, which will mean standing up to utilities and other corporate interests.
The UCS critique also stated:
Additionally, SB 271 requires utilities to achieve a “clean energy” portfolio of at least 80 percent in 2035 and 100 percent in 2040. However, the bill’s definition of what constitutes clean energy includes nuclear power (which doesn’t emit carbon but isn’t “clean”) and fossil gas power plants that capture and store at least 90 percent of their carbon emissions. The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) will ultimately determine whether such gas plant projects—if proposed—are technically and economically justifiable. Even so, it is concerning that legislators included fossil gas in the definition of clean energy given the risk of continuing our reliance on fossil fuels and the impact of emissions from gas production, transportation, and combustion. Giving the MPSC the final decision on what counts as clean energy may force environmental justice advocates to take up the fight once again to protect their communities.
Notably, SB 271 encourages the growth of energy storage in Michigan by setting a statewide target of 2,500 megawatts of capacity. It also encourages distributed generation, such as rooftop solar, by raising the cap when utilities can deny customers the ability to connect their systems to the grid from 1 to 10 percent of the utility’s average annual load. This is a welcome improvement, but it was a result of compromise and negotiation with utilities—and it does not go far enough. There should be no limit on customers who want to install solar, and they should be better compensated for the value locally owned solar provides to the grid. Regrettably, community solar was left out of SB 271 entirely.
The Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition was equally as critical of the new energy bills signed into law by Gov. Whitmer last week. The coalition released a statement with the heading, EJ Communities Condemn DTE Rate Increase, Line 5 Approval. Their statement reads:
This rate increase is unjustifiable and unjust. Michigan has some of the highest electricity rates and least reliable service in the nation. Millions of Michiganders faced four prolonged outages just this year alone, costing thousands of dollars in lost food, medicine, wages and more.
Approval of a tunnel for Enbridge Line 5 shows that the Commission is foolishly ignorant of the threat of fossil fuel infrastructure to the largest source of freshwater on earth.
The DTE rate increase is particularly infuriating, so much so that the Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition created an Action Alert specifically to condemn DTE, stating in part:
DTE Energy is leaving us in the dark, when we need energy the most. They rely on dirty energy sources that harm our environment, polluting the communities they think can’t fight back while leaving everyone with unreliable and expensive service when we need to heat our homes, cook, and gather with friends.
And, they spend millions of dollars to keep it this way. on political influence to maximize their profit, hiking our rates and leaving us with no other options, paying off some politicians through campaign contributions, secretive “dark money” groups, and an army of lobbyists. All while rigging the rules to influence elections and various laws or regulations, and funding the phony think tanks that fudge data that supports their bottom line.
To sign onto the Coalition’s Action Alert targeting DTE, go to this link.
Last week, the Michigan Public Service Commission voted to approve a permit for the Enbridge Corporation to build an underground tunnel for an oil and gas pipeline that currently sits on bottomlands in the Straits of Mackinac.
There are only three members of the Michigan Public Service Commission and one of them abstained for the vote, thus making it 2 votes in favor of Enbridge. It addition, it should be noted that all three of the commission members were appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. So, the very Governor who campaigned 5 years ago on the promise that she would shut down Line 5, has not only failed to keep her campaign promise, she appointed the very people who just gave Enbridge a permit to build a pipeline tunnel under the largest body of freshwater on the planet.
Now, the Michigan Public Service Commission, according to the State of Michigan, exists to do the following:
We are committed to developing action-oriented strategies that reinforce the Michigan Public Service Commission as a safe, welcoming work environment and an organization that serves all Michiganders equitably. We address systemic and overt racism, both internally and externally, prevent discrimination, and adjust how we interact with one another as well as our community. We are dedicated to providing the necessary resources and leadership that will support the further development of the Michigan Public Service Commission’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, and we will continue to address institutional or cultural barriers that historically have inhibited or may inhibit progress toward these goals, including both within our organization and in the energy and telecommunications industries we oversee.
If this is indeed the mandate of the commission, then they have failed miserably, especially with their granting a permit to build a pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac.
Nearly four years ago, I wrote: During the election cycle of 2018, then Gubernatorial candidate Gretchen Whitmer and candidate for Attorney General, Dana Nessel, both made the promise that they would shut down the Enbridge oil pipeline that runs through the state and under Lake Michigan, also known as Line 5.
It has been more than five years that Whitmer and Nessel made the promise to shut down the Enbridge owned and operated, Line 5. So why is Line 5 still operating?
We know that Gov. Whitmer tried to use legal means to deal with Line 5, but we all know how limiting that the legal system can be, especially when you have a multi-billion corporation like Enbridge, which had a very large legal team. Regardless, Whitmer and Nessel made a promise to shut down the Enbridge Line 5 and have failed to do so. On top of that, Governor Whitmer appointed the very people who approved the permit for Enbridge to build an underground tunnel for Line 5.
When are we going to stop giving these politicians a free pass and allow them to deceive us into thinking they would actually do the right thing and shut down Line 5? When are we going to take matters into our own hands and shut down Line 5 ourselves? The very existence of Line 5 violates Indigenous treaties and it perpetuates climate injustice.
Development projects vs human needs: Kent County Commissioners vote to put more public dollars into private hands
On Thursday, the Kent County Commission demonstrated their own commitment to giving away public funding for private gain……..more than once. Kent County Commissioners voted on three separate items, all of which revealed their allegiance to Neo-liberal capitalist principles.
Before I get to the three votes from the Kent County Commission, it is worth noting that Josh Lunger, head of government affairs for the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, got up to speak during public comment before the commissioners voted on critical agenda items from Thursday County Commission meeting. Lunger, who was sitting with Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss and chatting with her before he got up to speak, was one of the main protagonists in the City of Grand Rapids decision to adopt ordinances that further criminalized the unhoused.
At 45 minutes and 20 second into the Kent County Commission meeting, Lunger got up to say the following, regarding the items that the County would be voting on 1) giving the Arena Authority governance to operate the outdoor Amphitheater, 2) giving $15 million in public money for the Amphitheater project, and 3) approving a memorandum of understanding relating to the proposed soccer stadium – “These transformational amenities are tools to attract talent and raise the quality of life for all residents.”
Ok, so can somebody explain to me or provide me with concrete evidence that amphitheaters and soccer stadiums attract people? People move to places because of a job, because of family/friend connections, or because of the schools they want to send their kids to. Also, how do amphitheaters and soccer stadiums raise the quality of life for all residents? I mean, does anyone really believe such non-sense? Does Josh Lunger even believe this shit? People have their quality of life raised by making a living wage, by have their basic needs met, by living in communities that prioritize making sure that basic needs are met over development projects that are promoted by the rich, often at the public’s expense.
Voting in favor of transfer public funds to private interests
At 1:40:20 in the video of the Kent County Commission meeting from last Thursday, is where the commissioners begin their discussion on 1) giving the Arena Authority governance to operate the outdoor Amphitheater, 2) giving $15 million in public money for the Amphitheater project, and 3) approving a memorandum of understanding relating to the proposed soccer stadium. Let’s take a look at each of these votes.
Item 1 – The Grand Rapids/Kent County Convention and Arena Authority already oversees the arena and the Convention Center, projects that also involved millions in public funding that have primarily benefited the private sector. The Grand Rapids/Kent County Convention and Arena Authority is made up of a 6 member board. Those 6 board members include ,2 politicians – Mayor Bliss and Kent County Chair Mandy Bolter; Lew Chamberlin, the CEO of the West Michigan Whitecaps; Birgit Klohs, former CEO of the Right Place Inc., Michael Verhulst, with Acrisure Benefits Group (the company that bought the naming rights to the Amphitheater); and David Winn, Chairman of AHC Hospitality, which is owned by the DeVos family. So, we have 4 members of the Capitalist Class and 2 politicians, both of which have a history of defending the interests of the Capitalist Class.
Item 2 – The Kent County Commission voted 16 – 2 in favor of giving $15 million in public money to the Amphitheater project. This brings the total of public money to $114 million out of an estimated $184 price tag for the 12,000 seat outdoor Amphitheater. The majority of the County Commissioners voted to give $15 million in public money because they also believe in the unsubstantiated claim that having places like the Amphitheater will “attract talent.” In contrast, what if the Kent County Commission had voted to provide $15 million in rental assistance to families who can’t afford the high cost of rent. What if the County Commissioners voted to invest $15 million of public money into a more robust transit system or invest in solar panels for Kent County residents. Housing, transportation and energy costs are clearly more urgent that funding an outdoor Amphitheater, yet local governments continue to direct public money to these development projects time and time again.
Item 3 – The last item that the Kent County Commissioners voted unanimously on, was to Support the Memorandum of Understanding Relating to Public Soccer Stadium. You could use the same shitting arguments for the soccer stadium as they have used for the Amphitheater – talent attraction, tourism, and entertainment. Plus, the soccer stadium will also use public money, even though it will be owned privately, probably by Dan DeVos, who already owns multiple sports teams.
Of course all of the local news reported on these decisions by the Kent County Commissioners. However, their reporting was celebratory without any critical inquiry, analysis or discussion about what is prioritized in this community and what isn’t. When the unhoused population grows, since the City and the County both prioritize development projects over basic human needs, they will just keep adopting ordinances to further criminalize and marginalize those who are housing insecure.
On Saturday, there were an estimated 150 people who came out to a protest to show solidarity with Palestinians and to demand an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the West Bank.
Unlike previous protests in support of Palestine, Saturday was held at Martin Luther King Jr. park, in the southeast part of Grand Rapids. The protest/march was held in that neighborhood, primarily because Rep. Hillary Scholten lives in that neighborhood.
GRIID has been posting articles critical of Rep. Scholten’s unconditional support of Israel, even prior to the October 7 Hamas attack. Most recently, I wrote a critique of Scholten’s statement on the so-called “pause.” Scholten has been the target of a fair amount of activism in the past month, including three of us getting arrested at her Grand Rapids office in the federal building about 4 weeks ago.
The protest/march yesterday began with a short rally, followed by began marching in the streets, specifically in the residential neighborhood around MLK Park. People also dropped off a small handout at the homes of those who lived on the march route. Several people who handed out the flyers, had commented that the feedback was mostly positive, and people came out of their homes to greet those showing solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
The march wove through the neighborhood surround the park and eventually arrived at the home of Rep. Scholten, who lives on Benjamin St., just south of Martin Luther King Jr. Park.
When the march arrived at Scholten’s place, someone put a makeshift yard sign in her front lawn, which demanded an end to US military aid for Israel. Someone else delivered a list of demands that is part of a larger campaign that has been targeting Rep. Scholten, along with Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow. The campaign targeting these members of Congress is demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, an end to the annual $3.8 billion in US Military Aid, and a no vote on the proposed $14.3 billion the Biden Administration has been calling for over the past month. You can send an electronic message with these demands, which can be found at this link.
After about 15 minutes of chanting outside of Rep. Scholten’s home, those doing crowd safety noted that a few GRPD cruisers had arrived, parking further south on Benjamin St. A few minutes later, people got word that 2 more GRPD cruisers showed up on the north end of the same street, so crowd safety people urged those standing in front of Scholten’s house to move, in order to avoid getting boxed in by the cops.
Just as the protest march was leaving Scholten’s place, an ambulance and a fire truck arrived and pulled up in front of a house that was 2 doors down. There was also a white, unmarked cruiser, which just happened to be the Chief of Police (seen in the picture below), which made those of us doing crowd safety suspicious, since why would Chief Winstrom be out and about on a Saturday.
The march then moved to Alexander street, which is on the south side of MLK Park. All of the marchers were off the street by this time, walking back to the spot where the protest march had begun, when all of a sudden 10 GRPD cruisers showed up, with lights on, and several cops exiting their cars. The march had a car included, which was doing safety from the rear, making sure that no motorists would drive into those marching. This is a standard practices, especially after what happened in Charlottesville in 2017, when a White Supremacist drove into an anti-racists crowd of protesters killing one of the protesters.
The GRPD ended up giving a ticket to the comrade driving the safety car, saying they were blocking traffic, which of course was ridiculous, considering that on a Saturday, in a residential neighborhood, there was essentially no traffic to block. Thus, the GRPD was just looking for any excuse to harass those who were protesting. During this time, lots of people had their phones out, recording the GRPD and chanting, “Police violence is a crime, from Grand Rapids to Palestine,” which was a theme raised at the beginning of the rally by one of the speakers with the Comrade Collective, citing the example of the GRPD’s murder of Patrick Lyoya, a Congolese refugee in April of 2022.
The repressive display from the GRPD was instructive, since it demonstrated to many at the march just how insidious they could be. The Palestine Solidarity march was clearly a non-violent action, with very limited disruption, along with the fact that most of the public we encountered along the way were both supportive and appreciative of what we were doing. The GRPD’s behavior was particularly instructive to those who were newer to protest movement politics, and it also demonstrated how the GRPD reacts to actions that operate outside of the normal downtown marches, which the GRPD has grown accustomed to. The GRPD may also have been alerted to the protest because we stopped in front of Rep. Scholten’s house for some 15 – 20 minutes, further demonstrating their commitment to protecting systems of power, even when those in power who are complicit in war crimes.
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy 