The Metro

Dr. Keisha N. Blain is a historian, speaker, advocate, and social justice activist who is a best-selling author. She is a professor of Africana studies at Brown University.  

Her most recent book “Without Fear: Black Women and the Making of Human Rights” takes a historical look back at various civil rights movements and the Black women behind the scenes created global change. 

Dr. Blain spoke at Wayne State University as part of the university's annual Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. commemoration. She joined The Metro to talk about the women who helped progress human rights, often leading to systemic change.

The Civil Rights Movement was largely focused in the South, but segregation was happening across the country. Dr. King experienced this first hand. 

Jeanne Theoharis is professor of political science at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York. In her new book "King of the North: Martin Luther King Jr.'s Life of Struggle Outside the South" she writes about King’s time in Pennsylvania and Boston as a student and his return to the Midwest, East, and Western regions of the U-S at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. She discusses what her book teaches us about social movements in America today.

Yesterday, the Smithsonian Institution submitted documents about upcoming exhibitions and programming to the White House for a review of "improper ideology.”

Since last year, President Trump has been pressuring the Smithsonian Institution to celebrate American exceptionalism, and not to focus so much on the ugliest parts of American history, like the institution of slavery.

What the president does next remains to be seen, but the effort to censor exhibits raises important questions about American culture and history.

Though museums are suddenly politicized spaces, they’re among the most trusted institutions in America, according to a survey by the American Alliance of Museums.

Devon Akmon, director of the Michigan State University Museum, argues that museums have an opportunity and responsibility to model the ways people can think and listen together.

He joined The Metro to discuss the implications of President Trump's pressure campaign on the Smithsonian and cultural institutions in America.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor is nearly open, and its community benefits process is winding down.

The bridge will create a second international crossing between Detroit and Windsor-Essex and has been in the works for years. It was first proposed in the early 2000s and the Windsor Detroit Bridge Authority was created in 2012. In 2019, a Community Benefits Plan was published by the Windsor Detroit Bridge Authority. 

Residents on both sides of the border, including Delray in Detroit and Sandwich in Windsor, were engaged through a number of meetings and an advisory council was assembled. The report highlights key issues raised by community members:

Heather Grondin is the Chief Relations Officer for the Windsor Detroit Bridge Authority. She joined The Metro to look at what community benefits were delivered for residents of Delray on the Detroit side, and Sandwich on the Windsor side.

Late last year, four Detroit students and their families were detained by ICE. The incident sparked outrage and fear amongst community members, who have since raised their voices in response. A new project spearheaded by two Detroiters aims to give people whose loved ones have been taken a place to heal.

The Altars for Collective Grief Project is an effort by Theresa Beckley-Amaya and Julianna Sanroman to construct altars around Southwest Detroit with the photos of loved ones who have been detained. Beckley-Amaya and Sanroman joined the show to discuss the project and why they organized around grief.

Submit your photos to the project here.

Detroit ended 2025 with one of its lowest homicide totals in decades. The number is striking — and incomplete. In this conversation, Detroit Justice Center executive director Nancy A. Parker joins Robyn Vincent to talk about the long, sometimes invisible work that shapes public safety: housing stability, community trust, movement lawyering, and the slow effort to repair systems from the inside. 

Detroit City Councilmember Gabriela Santiago-Romero joins Robyn Vincent on The Metro to talk about rising immigration enforcement, a deadly year in ICE custody, and why she’s pushing Detroit to examine where — and whether — federal agents should operate on city property and in sensitive places like schools and hospitals.

Andre “Dre” Dukes is a living example of what happens when you get a second chance in life. Dre grew up in Detroit on the eastside and watched once thriving neighborhoods collapse. 

Dre lived a rough life, growing up in Detroit riddled with gun violence and drugs. He battled addiction and spent a decade in prison. Since his release, he has changed the way he approaches life. He works at recovery centers, and with at-risk kids and teens.

He has been motivated to make an impact to ensure the next generation of young Black boys have a blueprint to follow and learn a better way to escape their issues. 

"Street-Wise & Real Talk" is an autobiographical guide for boys who simply need to feel seen and heard. It's a fictional, age-appropriate book for at-risk youth that focuses on consequences and not glorifying crime.

Dre spoke with The Metro's Tia Graham about "Street-Wise & Real Talk."

At the federal level, democracy is on its heels in America. But at the local level, despite weak participation, officials say democracy is strong. The trash is getting picked up on time, and services are being properly distributed, especially in more urban areas. 

That's what Stephanie Leiser found in a recent survey of Michigan municipal leaders. She’s the Director of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy, and a lecturer at University of Michigan. The Metro's Sam Corey spoke with Leiser to learn more.

Being a mom can mean a lot of different things. For people experiencing pregnancy, the whole ordeal can be stressful, daunting and quite scary.

And without the proper tools and resources, moms are often at risk after giving birth during the postpartum period, which can lead to dangerous outcomes for mom and baby. 

ROSE or The Reach Out, Stay Strong, Essentials program is for birthing parents. It provides pregnant people with the skills and information they need to have better outcomes after giving birth. 

Dr. Jennifer E. Johnson is the founding Chair of the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health at Michigan State University. Dr. Johnson is a University Distinguished Professor, and the first C. S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health at MSU.