Village Life:  Memories burned into Washington School’s demise:  “This one hurts the most”
Oct25

Village Life: Memories burned into Washington School’s demise: “This one hurts the most”

By Gary Fisher She was nearly half a century old by the time I showed up. Creaky wooden windows, stifling forced heat, so thick you could taste it, zero air conditioning, lead paint everywhere, and asbestos-covered pipes. The ancient bathrooms with the old radiators (an especially egregious artifice when some miscreant relieved himself on it), with wooden stall doors, long ago removed, meant zero privacy. Really tough kids, and...

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Memories of Jack Minore, Michigan, Flint, and East Village
Sep25

Memories of Jack Minore, Michigan, Flint, and East Village

By Paul Rozycki There have been many official obituaries, tributes, and memorials written about Jack Minore, the offices he held, the causes he championed, and the commitment he had to the state of Michigan and the Flint community. Most political leaders in the area have spoken about his commitment to Michigan, Flint and a long list of causes—civil rights, women’s rights, labor and the environment.  But beyond those, I’d like to share...

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The East Village Magazine – August 2021
Aug03

The East Village Magazine – August 2021

The latest edition of The East Village Magazine is available for download here: View...

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From San Francisco to Chevy-in-the-hole – the Chevy Coupe helped to move America
Jul29

From San Francisco to Chevy-in-the-hole – the Chevy Coupe helped to move America

By Teddy Robertson “Je-zus Christ!” Stress on the first syllable and heavy elongation of the “z” sound. I blurted out one of my father’s favored expletives. My mother had slammed on the brakes and I tumbled off the bench seat of our old Chevy coupe and hit the floor mat beneath. The brown and red threads of the tan plaid upholstery prickled as I clambered back onto the bench seat. It was 1951 and I was six years old. The car was a...

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Village Life:  Viral time revisited, 2021 — personal panic, wine, and the witching hour
Jul09

Village Life: Viral time revisited, 2021 — personal panic, wine, and the witching hour

By Teddy Robertson We were all so new at balancing mortal threat and daily life. Inept, but resourceful. That’s how it felt a year ago this May when East Village Magazine staff shared their first experiences of the COVID pandemic. That’s odder than you might think—reporters usually don’t want to be part of a story. I can hardly recall the details of Spring 2020 now; I had to look them up. Each new order blotted out  memory of...

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He changed my life:  A remembrance of John Lewis
Jul21

He changed my life: A remembrance of John Lewis

By Harold C. Ford “When you see something that is not right, not just, not fair, you have a moral obligation to say something.  To do something.” — John Lewis, December 2019 It was Sunday, March 7, 1965.  I was an 18-year-old freshman student at Flint Community Junior College (FCJC).  I still lived at my parents’ home with four younger siblings. The images on the family’s black and white television had riveted my attention. ...

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