The author is a political commentator and former journalist, who served as deputy director of Public Information under Mayor Coleman A. Young from 1984-1991. He is the co-host of the podcast, Detroit in Black and White.
By Adolph Mongo
There was a time when the media and the Black church played major roles in Detroit's mayoral elections. In 1973, for example, both the newspapers and broadcast outlets did a superb job covering the race between Detroit Police Chief John Nichols, Councilman Mel Ravitz, and state Senator Coleman A. Young.
The Black church — not just a religious institution, but a vital political, social, and cultural force in African American life — rallied to get out the vote for Young in both the primary and general election. Their work paid off: Young was elected the city’s first Black mayor. Black ministers, including Albert Cleage Jr. of the Shrine of the Black Madonna and Nichols Hood Jr. from Plymouth Congregational Church, played key roles in his campaign.
Nowadays, the media and the Black churches have fallen far short, providing little guidance and shedding even less light on the ever-important election issues.
And unfortunately, even when the media weighs in, it often misses the mark — for example, focusing on issues such as the residency of a leading candidate, Rev. Solomon Kinloch Jr. His residency should not be an issue. Yes, he lived in the suburbs, but he moved into the city with his wife.
Believe me, the media spent time digging through the records before confirming that. Interestingly, the media never really dug very deeply into the residencies of Mike Duggan or Dave Bing — even though their wives never officially moved into the city. It must not have been that important then. Why now?
Where are the hard-hitting questions that seasoned reporters and columnists should be asking candidates?
News coverage should focus on accomplishments, managerial skills, dedication to public service, potential conflicts of interest, missed council committee meetings, elected officials fraternizing with felons, or investigating whether any candidates took donations from William Smith, the disgraced CFO of the Riverfront Conservancy, who admitted to stealing over $40 million. Or they should be asking why candidates have gone against the community by supporting the I-375 MDOT project or backing the reallocation of police funding.
We keep hearing how candidates want to focus on improving the neighborhoods. Voters need to know specifically how that's going to happen. Screw the sound bites: "We're going to create affordable housing," or "We need more good-paying jobs," or "I will work with the schools.” Let's hear specifics.
Concrete Answers
Detroiters want concrete solutions to the real problems they face. People are tired of the political double-talk on crime. They're sick of seeing innocent children killed by stray bullets — like in the recent incident where 4-year-old Samir Grubbs was murdered while playing in a park on the city’s east side.
Bringing celebrities to town for endorsements and creating music videos is not going to fix the problems. Billboards don’t vote, and a mountain of slick mailers may look impressive, but they don’t tell us much — other than the fact that the candidates have money to spend.
News coverage shouldn’t be focused on issues like why then-CEO Saunteel Jenkins hired Kwame Kilpatrick's former chief of staff Christine Beatty to work at her nonprofit, which helps those in need pay their heating bills. With that said, it seems comical that the media didn’t seem bothered that Charlie Beckham — who served time in federal prison for bribery — worked effectively in prominent roles under three administrations.
The media focus should be on Jenkins’ vast experience in city government. She played a key role in negotiating Detroit’s historic bankruptcy as council president. Her knowledge and calm approach during a major crisis reassured many residents that the city would be okay. More recently, her advocacy on behalf of the homeless, children, and families in crisis is something worth highlighting.
Council of Baptist Ministers
As for the Black churches — how is it that about 150 ministers, the majority of them Black, recently came out to support Duggan as an independent candidate for governor, yet have remained mostly silent in this mayoral race?
Why are their voices silent? Why are they invisible in this primary election — one of the most important in a long time? Where is the Council of Baptist Ministers? One would think they might rally to the side of fellow minister Rev. Kinloch, who inherited a six-member church in southwest Detroit and grew it into a network of seven churches across Southeast Michigan, serving 40,000 families.
I fear the silence and lack of engagement from the media and the Black churches will leave us in November with a government where outsiders, celebrity-turned-developers, and pulpit pimps land city contracts as a reward for their support.
Does this all sound too familiar?
The late WJR reporter Bill Black
Where are journalists like Bill Bonds, Pete Waldmeir, Bill Black, and Sam Logan — who weren’t afraid to ask the tough questions? And where are the ministers who helped lead this city through turbulent times — like Revs. Charles Butler, Charles Adams, and Frederick Sampson, just to name a few?
I guess those days are gone.
The Fourth Estate and the Black churches need to wake up and stand up. If not, we’ll get the same old, same old — handing over the reins to those more interested in enriching themselves than solving the menacing problems of crime, unemployment, poverty, inadequate public transportation, failing schools, and blighted neighborhoods.
It was the late Martin Luther King Jr. who said: “There comes a time when silence is betrayal.”
Let’s not betray the great people of Detroit.
