The Metro

Throughout its parks and recreation centers, the City of Detroit puts on its annual Senior Olympics, to make sure the city's elders are supported and a part of our community. The competition ends this Saturday and concludes with an Awards Dinner Dance at Northwest Activities Center.

Cary Junior II spoke with Crystal Perkins, Director of the General Services Department, about this year’s event and what he’s most excited for—on today’s episode of The Metro.

Protests against President Donald Trump’s executive order activating more than 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines in Los Angeles have ignited unrest across the country.

This weekend, “NO KING” protests are scheduled in multiple cities, drawing people from all backgrounds—including faith leaders like Rev. Barry Randolph. A lifelong Detroiter, Rev. Barry recently spoke at a press conference urging peaceful demonstrations and is now joining us on The Metro to share why he’s calling people to the streets this Saturday.

As Detroit continues its fight to stabilize population loss and rebuild its tax base, one mayoral write-in candidate believes the solution lies in physically expanding the city.

Rogelio Landin, 71, a longtime political figure, proposes annexing 28 distressed communities across Macomb, Oakland, and Wayne counties. His plan, he says, would not only increase Detroit’s population and tax revenue but also help address longstanding issues such as poverty, illiteracy, and failing schools.

“The fact that Detroit has lost 20,000 people annually over the past 50 years is unbelievable,” Landin says. But projections show 650,000 immigrants are expected in the region by 2050, and he believes Detroit must position itself to benefit from that growth.

Landin’s career includes work with the New Detroit coalition formed after the 1967 uprisings, where he focused on economic development, capital access, and minority inclusion. Now, he’s emphasizing community self-determination and inclusive policy as central pillars of his mayoral campaign.

The key to Landin’s platform is securing funding for education reform specifically boosting literacy rates and student proficiency. He also wants to broker deals connecting Detroit entrepreneurs with venture capital funding.

Landin believes Detroit must expand its boundaries to recover economically. “This isn’t just about redrawing lines,” he says. “It’s about making Detroit more inclusive, economically vibrant, and future-ready.”

Whether his bold vision gains traction remains to be seen, but Landin hopes to ignite a new conversation about what it means to grow Detroit.

Since October 7th, the world has felt different for a lot of American Jews and Antisemitism has risen. More recently, two people were shot dead outside a Jewish Museum in Washington, DC. And a man with a flamethrower in Colorado attacked Israeli hostage advocates. 

At the same time, the Jewish-majority country that is Israel has continued its attacks against Hamas in Gaza. On Sunday, 13 Palestinians were killed and over 150 injured after Israeli troops and American contractors opened fire on crowds waiting for food near two aid distribution sites in Gaza. Israel’s months-long food aid blockade has put one in five Palestinians on the brink of starvation. 

There are now 57,000 Palestinians who’ve been killed by Israel’s attacks since October 7th, 2023.  Where has this left Jewish Americans? What does it look like to hold a range of difficult, sometimes opposing, views on a topic that is often a lightning rod in American culture? 

This tension has long shaped American Jewish identity. Today on The Metro we dive into the evolving challenges faced by American Jews, focusing on the rising tide of anti-Semitism and the often-confused distinction between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism—where Zionism represents Jewish nationalism, and anti-Semitism signifies prejudice against Jews. The 1967 Six-Day War marked a turning point, deepening loyalty to Israel among some American Jews while sparking resistance in others, influenced by anti-colonial views during the Vietnam War era. Over the decades, Israel’s role in shaping American Jewish identity has grown increasingly divisive, reflecting a broader shift in how the community relates to the Jewish state.

Julian Levinson is a professor of American Jewish studies at the University of Michigan. And he’s worked in his classes to get students who are often young Jews, to be containers of multiple perspectives. Over the decades, Israel’s role in shaping American Jewish identity has grown increasingly divisive, reflecting a broader shift in how the community relates to the Jewish state.

For many people in Detroit and across the nation, living without stable housing is a daily reality. Keith Famie’s The Razor’s Edge gives us an unfiltered glimpse into that world, capturing the complexity of life without a stable home, and the harsh connection between poverty and food insecurity.

Famie’s Emmy-nominated documentary explores how real change can happen, and underscores why humanizing the problem matters so much. He joined us on the show to talk about the people he's met, the misconceptions he's challenged, and the lives impacted by this film.

Father’s Day is this weekend, and today on The Metro we’re celebrating fatherhood, past and present. We’re joined by The Metro dads, Jerome Vaughn, David Leins and Jake Neher, plus listener dads calling in to share what fatherhood has taught them.

A lot has been reported on the struggles of boys and men. College enrollment for men lags behind women, workforce participation is declining, and many report poor mental health.

Some point to a common explanation: the lack of male role models to help guide boys into adulthood. With Father’s Day approaching, we wanted to highlight not just dads, but also the men who serve as father figures across communities.

These are the men who may not be biological fathers, but who show up every day for kids in their neighborhoods. One of them is Marquise Herring, Dean of Students and Athletic Coordinator at Sampson-Webber Academy in Detroit. He also runs “Mentoring through Media,” a male leadership program.

Today on The Metro, Marquise joins us to talk about what it means to be a role model and how he's helping shape the next generation of young men.

From the start, Black Twitter permeated popular culture and sparked social change. An ecosystem in it’s own right, Black people went to twitter to read about what went down, and to watch the timeline react with jokes, memes and laughter. 

Professor Sherri Williams joins us on The Metro today to share how Black Twitter transformed the way we watch our favorite shows together, drawing from her book Black Social Television: Black Social Television: How Black Twitter Changed Television and more.

Studies show women live longer than men. According to the CDC, women are expected to live about five years longer. While there isn’t a single explanation for this gap, several contributing factors shed light on the disparity.

Biology and hormones may play a role, along with external factors like job-related risks. Men are also more likely to smoke, drink heavily, and skip annual checkups.

To raise awareness and promote healthier habits, June was established as Men's Health Month. On The Metro today, we spoke with Harold Neighbors, professor emeritus at the University of Michigan School of Public Health.

As Professor Neighbors explained, men often face societal pressures that discourage them from seeking mental and physical health care. A national organization is working to change that.

Demetrius Scott is leading those efforts in Detroit as the local coordinator for the African-American Male Wellness Agency, a nonprofit focused on reducing health disparities among Black men through free programs and services.

So little is discussed about “The Change”. That’s right Menopause is not widely discussed and can bring a sense of feeling ashamed. It’s something that’s often held close to a woman's chest, a secret that only she knows. 

While some do share their experiences, many women continue to struggle with finding community when preparing for and enduring menopause. 

Menopause It’s a biological process when a menstruating woman no longer has periods. Each woman experiences the stage differently, whether it’s with hot flashes, sleep problems or a low libido. But all menstruating women will experience menopause; it's just a matter of when. 

A new comedy special aims to tackle the inevitable process with laughter. “Confessions of a menopausal femme fatale” is a stand-up storytelling concert by multidisciplinary artist, storyteller, and social entrepreneur Satori Shakoor. 

Shakoor is the founder and Executive Producer of The Secret Society of Twisted Storytellers, host of PBS’s Detroit Performs. The special, which was taped at Detroit Public Theatre will be available to stream Thursday, June 12th.