Retaliation for Airing Dirty Laundry? WCC Student Journos Fear “Autocratic” Prez May Shutter The Voice
by Rob Smith
IN 2005, WASHTENAW Community College President Dr. Rose Bellanca found her institution, Saint Clair County Community College in Port Huron, embroiled in an ACLU lawsuit over a gag order imposed on the college’s Board of…
EDITORIAL: “I Can’t Explain What SPARK Does.”
WARD 1 COUNCIL member Sabra Briere has repeatedly said she (and by extension, the public) cannot be certain that Ann Arbor SPARK is responsible for the jobs the entity’s employees claim their programs and services help create and retain. In…
The Ann Arbor Independent’s Inaugural Fourth of July Candidate Event Draws Pols, Public & Performers
EVEN THOUGH THE event ticket said the party was set to begin at 6 p.m., curious, excited party-goers began showing up early. By 6 p.m., there was a line to enter the Top of the Park North Tent and by 6:45 p.m. the venue was packed.…
Ann Arbor Independent Reader Survey Results
THE ANN ARBOR INDEPENDENT is in the midst of conducting its first reader survey. Thus far 170 individuals have elected to take the survey online.
“This is a community newspaper,” said Patricia Lesko, whose decades old local publishing…
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Open Letter to the AAATA Board
An Open Letter to the AAATA Board Questioning the Legality of CEO Michael Ford’s Retroactive Raise
The Michigan Constitution art 11, Sec. 3, provides: “Neither the legislature nor any political subdivision of this state shall grant or…
Gov. Snyder Signs Ann Arbor State Sen. Rebekah Warren’s Bill in Support of Public Breastfeeding
ON JUNE 24, Gov. Rick Snyder signed legislation to prevent discrimination against breast-feeding mothers.
“Breast-feeding is a natural act with many proven benefits,” Snyder said. “By supporting new mothers we help ensure good infant…
OP-ED: The Economy Is Binging on Fast Food and Low Wages—and It Needs to Change
by Mike Evangelist
Fast-food workers are walking off the job in 150 U.S. cities today to demand a raise in pay, in the latest demonstration of discontent with the low-wage jobs that have become the new normal in today’s economy.
The…
A2POLITICO: Economic Development Groupies Circle The Bentleys to Defend SPARK
by P.D. Lesko
AT A RECENT mayoral candidate forum, unabashed supporters of “crony capitalism”—what President Obama’s former economic expert Dr. Lawrence Summers called the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s programs—defended Ann…
CULTURE VULTURE: Elvisfest Coming to Ypsilanti Depot Town July 11
RIVERSIDE PARK, Ypsilanti, will be transported back in time to pay tribute to one of America’s most recognized figures–Elvis Presley®. The 15th Anniversary of the Michigan ElvisFest is one of a handful of events that is sanctioned by Elvis…
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Economic Development and Public Schools
Economic Development Entities and Public Schools
Thank you to The Ann Arbor Independent and Rep. Jeff Irwin for working to expose the damage being done to public schools across Michigan by so-called “economic development” organizations…
