The Metro

Wayne State University is offering a genealogy workshop focused on the lineage of enslaved Black Americans as part of its 2025 Juneteenth programming.

At the interactive workshop, "Building Forward with Wisdom," participants will learn practical genealogy strategies, like how to trace one's ancestry through digital tools and historical records, under the guidance of professional genealogist, historian and researcher Dr. Carolyn Carter.

WDET’s Bre’Anna Tinsley spoke with Carter ahead of the workshop to discuss what attendees can expect and why uncovering the history of slave holders is so vital to tracing the history of enslaved people.

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The night skies over Tehran have been flashing with fire since Israeli jets began piercing Iranian airspace. They have been targeting nuclear facilities that Israel insists pose an imminent threat. Hundreds have been killed in Iran and thousands injured. 

Iran has responded by firing missiles into Israel, where at least 24 have been killed.

An American-brokered ceasefire fell apart this morning with reports of Israeli and Iranian airstrikes coming after the announcement. 

President Donald Trump’s post on Truth Social Tuesday morning demanded Israel’s compliance: “ISRAEL. DO NOT DROP THOSE BOMBS. IF YOU DO IT IS A MAJOR VIOLATION. BRING YOUR PILOTS HOME, NOW!”

Meanwhile, the world has been watching anxiously. That anxiety grew Saturday when Trump escalated the conflict, deploying American B-2 bombers and launching Tomahawk missiles in an aggressive campaign. The president has openly hinted at regime change. 

Iran responded by striking an American air base in Qatar, home to thousands of U.S. troops. 

Diplomacy now teeters on a knife-edge as fears of broader conflict intensify. These fears are held among many in metro Detroit, especially among the hundreds of thousands of Arab and Middle Eastern residents here. Many have been watching violence and conflict erupt across the region and it brings back painful memories of the wars that forced them to leave their homes and flee to the U.S. in the first place.

Some analysts say this latest move by Israel is an attempt to entirely reshape the Middle East, which is stoking further tension and anxiety among people in the diaspora here.

Fariba Pajooh, an Iranian-American scholar of communication and media studies at Wayne State University, joined The Metro to help us understand this moment. Pajooh spent years working as a journalist in the Middle East covering conflicts. Some of that coverage led to her imprisonment by Iranian authorities. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Men’s sports have dominated the media for decades, but that trend is shifting.

The U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (USWNT), widely considered the most successful international women’s team, has won four World Cup titles and five Olympic gold medals. The team's success has both increased the popularity of women’s soccer domestically and helped close the pay gap between the men and women’s national teams.

Today on The Metro, national sports columnist and commentator Christine Brennan joins the show to discuss parity in women's sports and her new book on the subject, "On Her Game: Caitlyn Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports”

Later, Detroit City FC player on the women’s team, Ella Karolak, joined the conversation to discuss the unique challenges women athletes still face and how it has shaped her athletic career so far.  

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Detroit has produced some of the world's greatest boxers, largely thanks to Kronk Gym.  

Kronk was established in 1971 by trainer Emanuel Steward in a gym on Detroit’s southwest side. Boxer Hilmer Kenty was Kronk’s first professional champion, winning the WBA title. Gold-medalist Steve McCrory and world boxing champion Lenox Lewis also trained there.

The original gym closed in 2006 and was long vacant by 2017 when the building was destroyed by fire. Steward later rented a space in Westland to house the gym.

Now, the historic gym is making its return to Detroit, at the Brewster Wheeler Recreation Center.

We spoke to Kronk Chief Operating Officer John Lepak and former professional boxer Tarick Salmaci ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics about the move and the gym's legacy in the sport.

Kronk Boxing Gym will reopen in the Brewster recreation center by the end of the summer. 

Associated Press writer Corey Williams contributed to this report.

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There are some areas in metro Detroit that experience significant flooding almost every time the region gets heavy rains. One of these floodplains is the Ecorse Creek Watershed.

Located in Wayne County, Ecorse Creek has 15 cities within its boundaries including Westland, Wayne, Romulus, Taylor, Inkster, Dearborn Heights, Dearborn, Allen Park, Southgate, Lincoln Park, Wyandotte, Ecorse, Melvindale, River Rouge and Detroit.

Friends of the Detroit River has been working for many years to help mitigate stormwater flooding, improve water quality and restore ecosystems within the watershed. 

The nonprofit group is one of 17 organizations recently awarded Watershed Council grants from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) to address flooding and stormwater runoff problems. Friends of the Detroit River will receive $40,000 of the total $600,000 awarded.

McKenzi Waliczek, stewardship director for Friends of the Detroit River, joined The Metro to talk about how the organization will utilize the funds.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

As lawmakers debate slashing nearly $300 billion from food assistance, millions of Americans are facing an uncertain future. 

In her new opinion piece for The New York Times, investigative journalist and author Tracie McMillan reminds us why hunger remains a persistent reality in America today.

She introduces us to Jocelyn Walker, a mother and entrepreneur from metro Detroit who is struggling to make ends meet. McMillan joined The Metro to discuss what inspired the piece and what this moment means for families like hers in metro Detroit.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

The city of Detroit launched new safety measures at the Rosa Parks and Jason Hargrove transit centers last month, including the installation of metal detectors and an increased police presence. 

Many residents have since expressed concerns about the security enhancements, saying they're no longer allowed to wait inside the transit centers.

Detroit City Council's Public Health and Safety Committee held a meeting this week to discuss the issue. Transit advocates in attendance told council members the policy change puts riders at risk — especially during periods of extreme cold or extreme heat. Their concerns come as temperatures this week rise to dangerously high levels, with an extreme heat warning in effect for metro Detroit through Tuesday evening. 

Producer Jack Filbrandt spoke with Detroit Documenters Coordinator Lynelle Herndon and BridgeDetroit Reporter Malachi Barrett about the security enhancements and concerns shared by residents at the meeting.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Some Michiganders will begin casting ballots in the state's Aug. 4 primary election as early as next week, with absentee voting beginning Thursday, June 26. 

Federal and state laws require equal access to voting for people with disabilities. But for many, voting in person remains a challenge. 

According to a May report from Detroit Disability Power, only 13% of nearly 300 metro Detroit polling locations that the organization surveyed in 2024 were found to be accessible to people with disabilities. 

DDP Advocacy Director Eric Welsby joined The Metro to discuss how to close the accessibility gap for the roughly 30% of voters in the region with disabilities.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Canadian singer-songwriter and Grammy nominated artist Jessie Reyez has written for and collaborated with some of the biggest names in the industry, including Sam Smith, Dua Lipa and Beyoncé.

She also wrote and published a debut collection of poetry in 2023 titled, “Words of a Goat Princess," and released her third studio album, "Paid in Memories," this past March with features from Ari Lennox, Big Sean, Lil Wayne and more.

Now, the JUNO award winner is on a tour across North America, including a stop in Detroit this Sunday. Reyez joined The Metro ahead of her Detroit stop to share her reflections on being an artist and how she's preparing mentally and physically for her current tour. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

On Friday, Israel launched attacks on Iran, intending to hit Iran’s uranium enrichment site, where it is building nuclear arms, as well as the country’s military sites.

Iran has since retaliated with aerial attacks on Israel. Over the course of a week, the Israeli military has killed at least 224 people in Iran, and Iran has killed 24 people in Israel. This past weekend, Israel asked the U.S. to join its side in the war, since Israel lacks the capacity to destroy the space where Iran is developing nuclear weapons. 

Although, CNN reports that U.S. intelligence officials are saying Tehran was up to three years away from fully developing a weapon, and that it’s not actively pursuing a bomb. Still, the U.S. continues to provide weapons and warplanes to Israel, including a recent shipment. But it has yet to directly engage militarily in the war, and Trump, thus far, has called for Iran’s “Unconditional surrender.”

Saeed Khan, an associate professor of teaching in near eastern studies at Wayne State University, joined The Metro on Wednesday to discuss what this says about Israel’s role in the Middle East, and how America will respond.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.