Created Equal

The rural landscape of West Tennessee is undergoing a massive change. Ford’s “BlueOval City” electric vehicle manufacturing complex spans six square miles and is expected to bring 6,000 jobs to the area. That kind of economic development would be the envy of many states, including Michigan, but some residents are asking Ford to adopt a community benefits agreement.

WDET received the following statement from Ford community relations director Gabby Bruno after recording this episode:

“Ford and Ford Philanthropy are committed to our community initiatives because we want residents in every community neighboring BlueOval City to benefit as the campus comes to life. I look forward to introducing our Good Neighbor Plan, developed with the help of resident input and the community leaders who make up our Equitable Growth Advisory Council.”

Today on "Created Equal," we share highlights from this week's episodes, including a new book detailing the community ripple effects of Texas’ ever-expanding highways; and the cost of child care for both parents and child care workers.

The cost of child care is an enormous financial burden for parents and guardians of young children in the United States — especially low-income households. Wanzi Muruvi (Center for the Study of Child Care Employment) and Laura Herberg (Outlier Media) join Created Equal to find out why child care is so expensive, and why child care workers are paid so little. 

Since the Federal Highway Act, states across the nation have conceded a lot of land to cars and roads. Neighborhoods were destroyed and communities have been displaced as a result. The state of Michigan is working on a plan to redevelop the one-mile strip of I-375 in an effort to undo some of those harms. In her new book "City Limits" writer and author Megan Kimble details how Texas officials are doing the opposite by expanding them, despite a similar history of displacement. Kimble joins the show to discuss how Texas became so invested in its highways and how the construction will impact its residents.

Over the last 20 years, education experts have increasingly questioned whether standardized tests are the best way to measure how students perform — with many colleges and universities implementing "test-optional" admission policies. Today on Created Equal, we speak with education researcher Elaine Allensworth about America's affinity for test culture and the shortcomings that come with it.

The first – and maybe only – presidential debate of 2024 left little unexplored or undiscovered, but what did we really learn about Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump? Today on Created Equal, Michigan Public's Zoe Clark and former Michigan Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville join the show to discuss the key takeaways from the debate.

We know a lot about the profound poverty and isolation that confronts Detroiters every day. But what happens when that poverty affects families with pets? Today on Created Equal, we’ll talk with the CEO of Michigan Humane about how that institution tries to fill the gaps that arise when pets become threatened by the economic circumstances of their families. And we’ll hear how the needs of our pets tell us about the needs of our people in a city where the concepts of sufficiency are just not what they should be.  

Once dominated by non-local LLCs exploiting the system for quick returns, new data suggests that fewer outside investors are "milking" the system, and more Detroiters are taking advantage of opportunities to participate in Detroit’s recovery. Alex Alsup, VP of Research and Development for Regrid and author of the Substack “The Chargeback,” and Chase Cantrell, CEO of Building Community Value, joined Created Equal to discuss.