Among bills introduced by the Michigan Legislature this month, gay conversion therapy would be prohibited for minors under SB 367, sponsored by Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), or HB 4651, sponsored by Rep. Felicia Brabec (D-Pittsfield). At least three Michigan cities have previously banned the practice, which, according to the Human Rights Campaign, falsely claim to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
State of Michigan
The GOP-led state Legislature’s ongoing feud with Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has seeped into the budget process for the next fiscal year, with the state House proposing major funding cuts and attempting to exert more control through a quarterly budgeting process.
Now that the U.S. House of Representatives has passed a measure to eliminate a critical deadline associated with the seminal Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn) is hopeful that the legislation — decades in the making — will move forward.
On Thursday, April 15, members of a U.S. House Natural Resources panel agreed on the need to clean up and cap abandoned oil and gas wells, but disagreed along party lines about the extent of the federal government’s role in well regulation.
During the pandemic, there’s been a lot of focus on students, but policymakers have primarily stressed schools’ reopening plans, standardized tests and sports seasons. But one issue that has largely taken a backseat is the effect that grief has had on young Michiganders.
Rick Haglund writes, “It once seemed unthinkable that Michigan, home to a powerful United Auto Workers union that organized automakers through such historic events as the “Battle of the Overpass” at Ford Motor and the Flint Sit-Down Strike at General Motors, would join mostly southern states in trying to crush labor unions.”
While the pandemic continues to worsen here in Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday urged Michiganders who contract COVID-19 and have pre-existing conditions to consider an antibody treatment.
Dozens of Michigan company leaders spoke up Tuesday against a voter restriction package that was introduced by Republicans in the Legislature last month.
Provisional data shows there were 1,282 suicide deaths in Michigan in 2020, according to a report by the Michigan Suicide Prevention Commission. Compared to 2019, which had 1,471 suicides in Michigan, that number is lower, but the commission expects the 2020 data to increase as more suicide reports are finalized.
The U.S. Department of Education (USED) on Tuesday denied Michigan’s request to waive the federal requirement to administer the state’s standardized tests during the pandemic.
Despite Michigan’s COVID case rate, mortality rate and hospitalizations increasing in every region of the state, state health officials remain hesitant to say whether business closures or stricter restrictions are on the horizon.
‘This could set women back generations’: The pandemic recession’s toll on the workforce and families
In Michigan, COVID-19 has translated to a 9.4% drop in the employment of women ages 20 and older. There were 213,000 fewer employed women in the state during the last three months of 2020 compared to the three months preceding the pandemic, the most recent data available, according to the state Bureau of Labor Market Information and Strategic Initiatives’ assessment of numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded Michigan more than $90 million to expand COVID-19 vaccine programs. Michigan has seen a surge of COVID-19 cases, even while vaccination efforts ramp up across the state.
Nate Turner writes that some Michigan officials “have failed to understand their own state’s history dealing with a deadly virus. The 1918 influenza epidemic proved that statewide restrictions work and should be enforced even if officials don’t agree with them.”
As Michigan is in another deadly surge of COVID cases — with both positivity rates and hospitalization rates rising — the question of how much variants of the virus are driving the surge is still up in the air.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) reported Wednesday that a total of 672,259 Michiganders have tested positive for COVID-19 and 16,092 have died from the virus — an additional 6,311 cases and 10 deaths since Tuesday.
COVID-19 metrics have met the threshold to close some businesses, but the state is keeping them open
DHHS spokesperson Lynn Sutfin said the state “will continue to monitor the data to make decisions including three key metrics: case rates, percent positivity, and hospitalizations.” Sutfin said the DHHS’ goal “is to reengage while reducing public health risk, which is why we move slowly to maintain progress and momentum with thoughtful public health measures.”
James Pedersen of Cassopolis expresses his concerns over what he calls “outrageous, appalling, sexist and violent comments” recently made by Michigan GOP Chair and University of Michigan Regent Ron Weiser.