On Hand

Nandi Comer was recently appointed Michigan's poet laureate. Originally from Detroit, she's the first person to hold the title in decades.

GUEST:

Nandi Comer, author and poet laureate

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions

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Infighting in the MIGOP led, at least in one case, to an actual fight during an after-hours gathering in Clare. Bridge Michigan wrote about the scuffle between Party officials from Kalamazoo and Macomb. 

GUEST:

Jonathan Oosting, Bridge Michigan

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions

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If you’ve been in the international section of a supermarket, chances are you've seen La Choy products — maybe even bought some of their sauces or noodles. And while the brand's signature blue label and mimicry font are ubiquitous, it's origin story is not. The company was started in 1922 right here in Michigan.

GUEST:

Amy Elliott Bragg, assistant city editor at The Detroit News

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions

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Last October we aired a story two weeks before the election in which voters were asked to decide whether to guarantee access to abortion in the Michigan state constitution. For this story, Michigan Radio reporter Kate Wells spent several days in a Michigan abortion clinic, speaking with women about what led them there. That story was recently nominated for a Peabody award.

Voters passed Proposition 3 by a wide margin last November in Michigan, preserving abortion rights in the state. The issue of access to abortion is still relevant and ongoing. With that in mind, we wanted to bring your attention back to the story from the Michigan Radio Newsroom and Stateside. Keep in mind that the story you’re about to hear was recorded and aired before voters went to the ballot to vote on Prop 3 last Fall.

The original story was reported by Kate Wells, and edited by Sarah Hulett and Lindsey Smith. Mixed by Mercedes Mejia, with additional help from Rachel Ishikawa.

Thank you to the many hands at Michigan Radio who helped make this story happen, and thanks especially to the women who agreed to share their personal stories.

Stateside’s executive producer is Laura Weber Davis.

Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Additional music by Brad Gowland.

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Kids book author Kyunghee Kim of Ypsilanti talks about honoring the complex emotions and experiences of kids in her new book "See Us Bloom".

GUEST:

Kyunghee Kim, author and teacher

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The small town of Marshall has been rocked by the planned use of a large swath of land for a Ford battery plant. The Detroit News looked at the long shadow cast over land use in the community. You can read their story here. Today, how Ford's proposed battery manufacturing facility has the town of Marshall divided.

GUESTS:

Kalea Hall, Detroit News

Jordyn Grzelewski, Detroit News

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The nearly unbelievable story of an amateur archeologist's massive and illegal collection and how a Michigan tribe stepped forward to reinter unidentified native remains.

GUEST:

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Among the most prestigious awards in poetry is the Whiting Award. And this year, the award went to Detroit native Tommye Blount, a writer known for his poetry collection Fantasia for the Man in Blue (2020). He stopped in to discuss his work and future endeavors.

GUEST:

Tommye Blount, award-winning poet

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Michigan's 2019 auto no-fault reforms aren’t just hurting people who were injured prior to 2019, they've left out Michiganders injured today. Today on the pod: a new generation of crash survivors struggling to get the medical care they need.

GUEST:

Tracy Samilton, reporter at Michigan Radio 

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions

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Over the weekend, U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk blocked the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, a drug used for medication abortion. The FDA had approved the drug back in 2000, but Judge Kacsmaryk ruled the decision to be invalid.

Less than an hour later, U.S. District Judge Thomas O. Rice issued an opposing decision, ordering the FDA to maintain access to mifepristone.

State-by-state tumult over abortion was all but guaranteed by the Dobbs decision. But what does this latest federal court ruling mean for a state like Michigan, where abortion has been codified in the state Constitution?

GUESTS:

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Music:

"Perpetuo" Written by Jody Jenkins

"Thinking About It" Written by Alexander L'Estrange

Courtesy of Audio Network

Other music from Blue Dot Sessions

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