Village Life:  “Among Us,” but Not Us — video game brings up painful American truths
Jan22

Village Life: “Among Us,” but Not Us — video game brings up painful American truths

By Vivian Kao My older son is eight years old, and like most eight-year-olds, he goes through phases in which he gets obsessed with certain things. About a year ago, it was professional wrestling. He had a group of friends at school who watched WWE, and through them, he learned the names of all the wrestlers, their signature moves, their costumes, their backstories. He checked out biographies of wrestlers from the library and created...

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Michigan food assistance payments increase 15 percent by end of January – Gov. Whitmer/MDHHS
Jan22

Michigan food assistance payments increase 15 percent by end of January – Gov. Whitmer/MDHHS

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced 15 percent increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits beginning by the end of January and lasting until June, 2021, as detailed in a Thursday press release from MDHHS and Gov. Whitmer. The increase is part of a Congressional relief bill recently passed and is intended to help families affected by the COVID-19...

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Education Beat:  Adrian Walker picked to fill vacancy on Flint Community Schools Board
Jan19

Education Beat: Adrian Walker picked to fill vacancy on Flint Community Schools Board

By Harold C. Ford “We (millennials) want to be a part of meaningful change.”—Adrian Walker, YouTube statement, June 28, 2017 Adrian Walker, director of community and government affairs for the Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce, emerged from two rounds of interviews as the Flint school board’s choice to fill a vacant seat on the seven-member panel. Walker fills a seat left vacant by Anita Moore, who failed to complete...

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COVID, water crisis exacerbating mental illness in Genesee County, health systems rep warns
Jan18

COVID, water crisis exacerbating mental illness in Genesee County, health systems rep warns

By Coner Segren COVID-19 is exacerbating a mental health crisis in Genesee County, according Lisa Bruder of the Genesee Health System (GHS) in a presentation to the January meeting of Flint Neighborhoods United (FNU). “It would be impossible to live through COVID and not be impacted by in some way by stress or grief,” said Bruder,  manager of education at the GHS. “We need to tend to our community that has an existing mental health...

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“There are no velvet ropes in our criminal justice system.” – Solicitor General Fadwa Hammoud on Flint water crisis prosecutions
Jan14

“There are no velvet ropes in our criminal justice system.” – Solicitor General Fadwa Hammoud on Flint water crisis prosecutions

By Tom Travis Today Flint residents who logged onto a virtual court procedure saw something many had called for, but never thought they would see:  former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, an attorney at his side, pleading not guilty to charges leveled by Attorney General Dana Nessel for Snyder’s role in the Flint water crisis. Former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and eight other former state and local officials, including Nick Lyon,...

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