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Publisher - Chris Keating Associate Publisher - Jim Cohen Editor - Dustin Blitchok
Vol. 37 | Issue 01 | Oct. 12-18, 2016
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U p Front In response to Jack Lessenberry’s column, Walter Finan of Royal Oak wrote us: I just voted for Hillary today absentee. It is not quite true, however, that Hillary is not, or at least was not, a crook at least once. Remember her first, last and only venture into commodity trading? A poor exstudent with Ivy League tuition debts, whose husband is attorney general about to be governor, her trading advisor was from Tyson Chicken, the largest poultry processor in the world, and the brokerage house was subsequently disciplined for improper trading practices. Hillary Clinton made almost a 10,000 percent profit in 10 months ($1,000 into $100,000). Remember what your parents told you as a child? If it sounds too good to be (honestly) true then it probably wasn’t. Jack and his magic bean stalk didn’t even do that well! How is that not stealing from other honest trades placed in the market? There have been a few other probable felonies but, on balance, she’s the far better candidate. Not much of a choice when Donald’s an existential threat to the republic. In reply to Alysa Offman’s blog about UAW-Ford hosting a week of free mammograms, Angela Talo posted: Would be wonderful if they could do this year round instead of just in October. I needed a mammogram and biopsy in June and it cost me $2500 out of pocket after insurance coverage. I’m under 40 so all the free screenings by Karmanos and wherever else refused to accept me, even with a palpable mass. Now I am on a payment plan for the next two years for a screening I had to have to rule out cancer. Yay healthcare! And in response to Michael Jackman’s blog about anti-nuke groups marking 50 years since Fermi 1’s par-
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tial meltdown, nobsartist posted: The quick way to end this useless industry is to simply force insurance companies to insure all housing within 100 miles of every plant for coverage related to nuclear accidents. EVERY plant would close within 6 months. Now if the insurance industry will not insure a nuke plant, that doesn’t say much regarding all of those “safety systems” designed into it. Michael Jackman’s article about the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals rejecting the appeal of Detroit pensioners fighting cuts made by emergency managers (or EMs) drew a response from Tom Stephens that’s somewhere between a poem and an erupto mandamus. It reads: Established Mastery Exceptional Madness Equal Malfeasance Evident Mendacity Enormous Misconduct Engler’s Manure Eviscerated Municipality Effective Miseducation Erudite Molluscs Evil Men Educational Malpractice Elite Mockery Epidemic Malice Epic Mismanagement Extra Mustard Easily Manufactured Excessive Morons Epistemological Mess Eradicate Millenials Erase Morality Emissions Multiplying Evenhanded Militarism Expert Mind-set Economic Motivations Endlessly Makeshitup
Errata: Our story about Abick’s Bar last week got some of the hours of business wrong. They open at noon on Sundays.
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N ews All Lives Matter
news feature
A racist response to a race problem in America by Gabriel Goodwin I don’t believe everyone who is a proponent of the All Lives Matter movement is simply racist, prejudiced, or ignorant because, on some level, they are right. Every life on this planet matters. Right now, we don’t need to be reminded of this fact because the country and the world are told to fear black people, stereotype black people as violent savages and criminals, and kill black people. All Lives Matter feeds on a notion that racism is gone. It’s perpetuated by people who are oblivious to the world around them, but want to chime in on a “race issue.” No one wants to truly admit these problems still exist in the world around them or they that just might be contributing to them. All Lives Matter has been thrown in the face of Americans, especially black people, for at least a year, maybe longer. Americans were told Black Lives Matter when Trayvon Martin was killed and no one was held com-
pletely responsible. A white Stanford swimmer can rape an unconscious college student and be sentenced to six months in jail — even though he was let out after three months — because of the potential impact of prison on his future. Meanwhile, a black former Vanderbilt football player is sentenced to the 15-year-minimum for the exact same crime. What’s the difference? It wasn’t that these events happened decades apart. They happened this year. The official excuse was that the case involving a black man will set an example for future rapists. Here is where the problem lies: standards and expectations. Black people are expected to be murderers, thieves, and criminals until we can prove otherwise because the stereotypes used to describe black people make those assumptions normal. We have more evidence to the contrary of these expectations, but you hardly ever hear of it. Those accomplishments usually float around the black community.
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Why? A majority in this country still sees us the same way they brought us over here: we will have it worse “somewhere else,” we don’t know any better, and the white man is going to rehabilitate us (with religion and “education”) like they did the natives of this land. Black people have always known that most whites never saw anyone of color as their equal. With the current influx of videotaped evidence proving black people can die based on a lesser standard of evidence because we are more likely to be “guilty until proven innocent” is currently all over several types of media. Yet, no one in the majority is listening because All Lives Matter. The same realm that captured these videos is the same realm where the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement started. It’s the realm that many black people live in. Admittedly, there has been a lot of hate festering within the black community and rightfully so. We have been demonized as rapists, murderers, thieves, and a threat to all white people
everywhere. Consider any moment in your life where something is broken. You bring attention to it, but everyone is trying to pin the blame on you because you brought attention to it. Imagine nobody wants to hear your side and their perspective is just the end of the conversation. Actually, no, think back to when you were a child and wanted to tell someone about the bullying, physical or mental torment, or a frustration you were facing and everyone makes an excuse for the person doing it. Didn’t that very memory create a discomfort for you? Maybe you got a little bit angry just thinking about it. Now, consider this happens all the time for the rest of your life. That is why Black Lives Matter. Black people feel this way every day in our neighborhoods and yours. Our problems are overlooked or understated for the “larger good” then they create laws to further separate us. Stop and frisk (but only if you look like an immigrant). The “war on drugs” (although
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N ews the penalties for crack cocaine and powder cocaine – even though both are cocaine, one is used more by whites and the other used by more blacks – yet its 15 years for crack and three to five years for powder cocaine). Mandatory minimums. Truth in sentencing. More minorities, mainly black, receive jail time for a first offense, longer sentences, and harsher penalties than whites. Instead of using these statistics to figure out a solution, some people use the statistics to better establish the stereotypes of black people to feel comfortable about the institutionalized racism. This after hundreds of years in this country filled with dissent, hatred, and violence towards blacks shows how racism — and turning a blind eye to racism in this country —has evolved. All Lives Matter is the equivalent of “ignore it until it goes away,” and seemingly started in a corner of our society where our everyday world doesn’t enter theirs. It seems like an insulated and distant thought process. I’m not looking to spout some logic that is steeped in an ‘anti-white’ perspective. There are countless white people that support the black community, are very active in it, and create lasting relationships with black people. But there are also people, regard-
news feature less of race, who are stuck in this enclosed, insulated world of either money or privilege where they won’t ever experience the normal, everyday world we all share. A normal, everyday world where racism, prejudice, and ignorance still exist. This is the realm where All Lives Matter and it’s a place where people make judgments based on a world that’s disjointed from reality. All Lives Matter supporters want to hold onto this belief that racism ended the day us black folks got our civil rights, like it didn’t take another two decades to “settle in.” In fact, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan used the civil rights movement to create this “law and order” state of America. Hell, George Bush used black fear in campaign ads to get elected president. All of this after we were brought here on boats, starved, diseased, beaten, sold, raped, enslaved, and considered subhuman by white people in this country. And 96 years after the Constitution stated “All men are created equal,” black people were still slaves. Another 90 years after that, black people could finally integrate into schools, vote, and do a plethora of other things whites were already privileged to. So the argument is not about our treatment during slavery,
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or slavery at all, but it’s about the continued negro-bashing. If you don’t think you experience racism, then you probably shouldn’t comment on the current state of race equality in this country because no one expects you to be aware of or understand what racism is. But, these individuals continue to speak about race anyway, the rest of America grab hold of their statements, creating the All Lives Matter movement. It is a sleight of hand tactic to draw attention away from the real issues at hand, to confuse, belittle, and refocus the blame onto black people. There is and has always been video and photo evidence that black people, as a whole, have received relatively brutal treatment from the police. All Lives Matter seems to be an inclusionary tactic. It tells us that “we (as whites) have this same thing happen to us too, so you’re not special.” But, black people are dying under some seriously mysterious circumstances. A black man is dead because he was selling loose cigarettes outside a store. Black people are being hogtied, thrown in the back of a car, and dying when they reach the police station after being pulled over for a busted taillight. A perfect example of the differences
between All Lives Matter and Black Lives n polarizing Former President Bill Matter is the views on Colin Clinton arrives a camKaepernick and others in the at NFL. There are paign in downtown social media postsoffice about how these “niggers” Photo by Dustin should allPontiac. be shot or hung because they Blitchok. won’t stand up for the National Anthem. We are told how unpatriotic it is, but not why he is doing it. All Lives Matter garners hate because you overlook your everyday prejudice and your everyday fear. Racism is not always overt. Black Lives Matter wants to change the narrative on black lives. The movement means to bring attention to the injustices we all face, but is exponentially greater amongst our community. Black Lives Matter wants to show the country, and the world, that black lives shouldn’t be feared and, thus, taken. All Lives Matter is a politically-correct scheme to steer the conversation back towards a fear of the black life and away from the social problems faced by the community. Gabriel Goodwin is an editorial intern at Metro Times.
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N ews
politics&prejudices
Vichy Republicans by Jack Lessenberry Here’s something interesting to consider: We know exactly what happens if a president of the United States dies. If the person in that job goes stark raving mad, things might be a little more difficult. But there’s a plan in place for that too. All it would take is for the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to sign a declaration that the president is not up to the job, and send it to Congress. The vice president would then become acting president, until the president was back to normal. What if the president thinks he is mentally normal but the cabinet and the vice president disagree? Well, then, Congress would have to decide. That might be a bit cumbersome, but that could and would work. But what if a presidential nominee reveals him or herself to be crazy, or turns out to be a criminal? Remarkably, neither party seems to have a way of removing him before the election. They do have a system for replacing a nominee if a candidate were to die, or suddenly decide to drop out. In that case, the party’s national committee would meet and select a new candidate. But evidently nobody thought about what to do if your nominee goes roaring mad. Possibly they thought that would be just too improbable to worry about. Maybe they thought it would be a piece of cake to make that so-called troubled person quietly resign. Ho ho. They hadn’t reckoned on Donald Trump. Three days after his disastrous first debate with Hillary Clinton, Trump took to Twitter in the wee small hours of the morning, and went on the attack. No, mostly not against his rival for the presidency. Not against Vladimir Putin, or President Obama, or some other foreign leader. Trump attacked instead a Venezuelan woman who had been the winner of his Miss Universe pageant two decades ago. “Did Crooked Hillary help disgusting (check out sex tape and past) Alicia M. become a U.S. citizen so
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she could use her in the debate?” Other tweets followed. This came after Clinton reminded the millions watching the debate how Trump had slimed her. Just think about this. With the most important job in the world on the line, Trump isn’t waking up in the middle of the night worrying about terrorism or how to rebuild America’s infrastructure. He’s obsessing over a woman who won a pageant 20 years ago who he then ridiculed for being Hispanic (calling her Miss Housekeeping) and for putting on weight (he called her Miss Piggy.) Ladies and gentlemen, we have a presidential nominee who has proven that if not insane, he is, as Detroit News editorial page editor Nolan Finley moaned in a later column, the victim of “a serious mental disorder that traps him inside the brain of a 13-year-old boy.” Finley, interestingly enough, can’t bring himself to believe that. Instead, he thinks Trump is out to “hand the White House to Hillary Clinton and to destroy the Republican Party.” In return, he expects that Trump will get some sort of big dollar payoff from the Clinton Foundation. Now, while I do not share Finley’s politics, he is normally a smart and rational man, and I was stunned that he could possibly believe something that far out. His problem is that he seems blinded by an irrational hatred of Hillary
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Clinton, who he seems to believe is the most corrupt person in the universe. In fact, she is a rather ordinary politician when it comes to shading the truth. She seems a lot more qualified and somewhat less charismatic than most, who thinks nothing of giving speeches for enormous sums to groups who have a vested interest in some policy. There’s also, as his own editorial endorsing the hapless Gary Johnson said, absolutely no reason to think she would push the nuclear button, start a war, or do anything irrational as president. However, there is a vast amount of evidence that Donald Trump is, indeed, at age 70, trapped in the body of a sex-crazed teenager. When Howard Stern asked him if he would stay with his third wife Melania if she were mutilated in a horrible car accident, Trump knew just what to say: “How do the breasts look?” Told they were OK, Trump responded, “OK, well, that’s important.” This is how junior high school boys talk and think. When I was in junior high, in fact, the boys I knew played a game in which they rated girls as if they were cuts of meat: “Prime,” “Choice,” “Hamburger.” Breasts, naturally, had a lot to do with it. But nobody, not even those kids, thought that’s how the president of the United States should talk and act and think. Forget all Trump’s wacky policies; forget the wall and his wish to destroy constitutional protections by “opening up the libel laws,” so he can successfully sue any journalists he doesn’t like. Think about his laziness, his unwillingness to even prepare for the presidential debates, his terminal undisciplined narcissism. The Republican Party has nominated for leadership of the free world a mentally unstable juvenile who their leaders have to know is dangerously unsuited to be president of the United States. Nevertheless, in an act that can only be called moral treason, many of them are supporting him, though they know full well who he is. They are, in the marvelous phrase of the great documentary historian Ken Burns, “Vichy Republicans,” equivalent to the French who sold out to the Nazis during the occupation in World
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War II. As I mentioned last week — I recently had a chance to meet Burns, who has created some of the best documentaries ever. Few Americans haven’t seen at least some of his epics on baseball, the Civil War, and jazz. Burns has never taken sides in any election before, telling all interviewers, “I talk about dead presidents, not living one.” This time is different. “Our history of contested presidential elections goes back to 1800,” he told a rapt audience at Michigan State University, where he was addressing a forum sponsored and funded by former Gov. Jim Blanchard. “But never before has anyone been nominated who was totally unqualified to be president,” he said, without ever once mentioning the monster by name. The audience gave him a standing ovation. This bears repeating because this is not like any other election, except maybe the one in 1860 that tore the nation apart for four years, because we could not agree that all of us were human. Donald Trump doesn’t see all of us as human either. In fact, there’s not a lot of evidence that he really is concerned about anyone except himself. Yet millions and millions are voting for him. In the long run, if we are ever to save this country, we need to figure out why.
Trump’s mini-me
Long before anyone not in sleazy real estate circles ever heard of Donald Trump, Oakland County had L. Brooks Patterson, the Detroit-bashing demagogue. Brooks doesn’t seem to dwell on women’s breasts as much as Trump, though he talks even dirtier, drinks a whole lot more and doesn’t hold it very well. He has been a national embarrassment, but is propped up by voters who somehow think he is good for business. Coming soon, a look at the latest attempt to free Oakland County from the man who said we should fence off Detroit, herd in the “Indians” and throw in some blankets and corn.
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what’sgoingon
Art | Dance | Comedy | Eat | Theater
Thursday, 10/13 Fashion Speak @ One Woodward
n Fashion Speak at One Woodward. Photo by Christian O’Grady and Victoria Zegler
Friday, 10/14
Sat, 10/15 - Sun, 10/16
Saturday, 10/15
Scary Monsters and Super Creeps Art Show
Ann Arbor Antiques Market
Melting Map Pot(luck)
Hipsters, this one’s for you. The Ann Arbor Antiques Market features dealers of jewelry, repurposed furniture, vintage clothes, glassware, industrial design, oil paintings, and more. The market, which has been running for 48 years, is filled with rustic, classic, and unique pieces of furniture and art to jazz up your home. This is the last scheduled weekend of the market this month, so don’t miss out on your chance to check out the various buildings and tents filled with products.
In conjunction with Peace Meal Kitchen, more FoodLab Detroit businesses, and the Detroit Atlas Collaboration, the Arab American National Museum has a night of food, fun, and culture planned out. Guests will be able to create their own food and memory maps, while bringing in a dish to explain what that aspect of their culture means to them. Guests will learn printmaking skills, as well as more about the ever-growing diversity of Detroit.
@ Arab American National Museum
@ UFO Factory
Spooky Halloween exhibit Scary Monsters and Super Creeps will feature pieces from artists Kara Meister, Tim Vulgar, David Dunbar Buick, Sarah Stawski, Kyle Akey, Davin Brainard, Dalia Reyes, Erin Norris, and more. Right after the show, which will have “monster snacks” and “haunted musik,” there will a pretty sweet Behemoth Killer concert to check out.
The show begins at 6 p.m.; 2110 Trumbull Ave., Detroit; ufofactory.com; entry is free.
Ann Arbor Antiques Market is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday; 5055 Ann Arbor-Saline Rd., Ann Arbor; annarborantiquesmarket.com; entry is $6.
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The event starts at 5 p.m.; 13624 Michigan Ave., Detroit; arabamericanmuseum.org; tickets are $10 if you wish to just bring a dish and develop a food map; tickets are $20 if you want to bring a dish and participate in the drawing stations, letterpress, printmaking, and map creation.
Michigan’s fashion industry conference, which is now in its third year, will feature five 70-minute workshops focused on helping those trying to break into the fashion business. These include Get Your Foot in the Door: Developing Relationships with Larger Companies, Determine and Develop Your Best Product, Tradeshow 101, and How to Elevate Your Brand. In addition to these workshops, guests will also get to hear from keynote speaker Jeffrey Aronsson, the founder and CEO of Aronsson Group. He is a former CEO of Oscar de la Renta, Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, Emanuel Ungaro, and Ralph Ricci. His Detroit ties reach back to the University of Michigan, where he got his bachelor’s degree, and Wayne State where he got his Juris Doctor. He went to New York University’s School of Law for his master’s degree, and made a name for himself there. If you’re just starting out, he’s definitely someone you want to hear from.
The conference begins at 10 a.m.; 1 Woodward Ave., Detroit; detroitgarmentgroup. org; tickets are $49.
Art | Dance | Comedy | Eat | Theater
UpFront
what’sgoingon
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Thursday, 10/13
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An Evening of Classic Lily Tomlin @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
Feature |
She’s a Detroiter. She’s Mrs. Frizzle. She’s Deborah Fiderer. She’s Frankie Bergstein. But tonight, she’s herself. Lily Tomlin will bring out her most beloved stand-up characters like Madame Lupe, Edith Ann, and Trudy, the bag lady with all of the alien stories. For fans of her award-winning work of any age, this night is sure to be a riot. Tomlin, a feminist and gay rights icon, is definitely in the running for Queen of Comedy. She’s been in this business since 1965, and everything she does is still just as original and hilarious as when she got started. Don’t miss out on your chance. If you do, you’re just as bad as Lucille the Rubber Freak.
What’s Going On | Eat |
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Sunday, 10/16
Sunday, 10/23
Ghost Stories of New Baltimore
Oddmall: Emporium of the Weird Hallowondrous Edition
The Mercantile Event
Frank Lloyd Wright Smith House Tour
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Tours are every third Saturday and fourth Sunday. Tours start at 1:30 p.m., 3 p.m., and 4:30 p.m.; 39221 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills; cranbrookartmuseum.org; tickets are $35.
Culture
The event starts at 2 p.m.; 3434 Russell St., Detroit; themercantileevent.com; tickets are $15 in advance and $22 at the door.
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The event starts at 10 a.m. both days; 401 Jefferson Ave., Toledo; hallowondrous.oddmall.info; entry is free, but a $5 donation is suggested.
Known affectionately as Frank Lloyd Wright’s little gem, the Smith House is a unique piece of architecture and a testament to the middle class. Melvyn Maxwell Smith and Sara Stein Smith were both making teachers’ salaries when they met Wright in 1941, and over a shared passion for architecture, commissioned him to build them a new home. The tour takes guests through the L-shaped home and tells them the story of the Smiths, who, in spite of a lack of wealth, worked to create a home that would mean something to them. Also, the home is just plain cool to see.
Arts
The tour starts at 7 p.m.; 35900 24 Mile Rd., New Baltimore; newbaltimorehistorical.org; admittance is $5.
Weird art, collectors, entertainers, cosplayers, and more. Oddmall’s Halloween show is sure to be as strange as ever (and we’re talking pretty strange). Oddmall has pretty much anything you can imagine, honestly. Anything that’s just a little different, you’ll probably run into there, and you’ll be surrounded by people who are just as geeky as you. There will, of course, be a Halloween contest and a variety of quirky activities in addition to the plethora of vendors, and there will be a Kids’ Cave set up for the munchkins to enjoy themselves too.
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If you’re looking to freak yourself out, the New Boston Historical Society invites you to join author Debi Chestnut (Ghosts of Anchor Bay) on a tour of Oakwood Cemetery, which many consider, along with the Hathaway House and the Morris House to be among the creepiest places in New Baltimore. You’ll definitely be spooked as they tell you all about the roaming spirits under that night’s full moon. Paranormal investigators are pretty certain this place has some considerable activity, so go if you dare.
@ Cranbrook Museum of Art
The Mercantile Event, which prides itself on “Commerce. Cause. Community.” is coming to Detroit (as well as Nashville and Los Angeles). There will be dancing, live music by the Shadowboxers, and cocktails. Most importantly, though, are the socially conscious brands that will be featured. The various businesses shown off at the Mercantile Event are all ones that will make you feel like a good person (like Equal Uprise, a company that creates high fashion pieces using ethical methods) for supporting. And also a little bit like a hippie. Or someone from Ann Arbor. Same thing.
Watch
@ Seagate Convention Center
@ The Eastern Detroit
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Music
Saturday, 10/15
@ Oakwood Cemetery
Drink
The show starts at 6:30 p.m.; 318 W. Fourth St., Royal Oak; royaloakmusictheatre.com; tickets start at $102.
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F EATURE
Metamorphosis How Alia Ismail became Issa Ismail Words and photos by Liv Martin
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feature
n “When I think back to that photo, I kind of like that I had no idea what was going to happen,” Issa says. “I had all these scenarios of how things would play out. I was so excited, nervous, and scared. That was every emotion in that photograph, but I was ready.”
F EATURE
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n “The majority of cisgender heterosexual people, anyone outside of the LGBTQ community, tend to believe that trans people follow stereotypical heteronormative roles,” Issa says. “They think that all transgender people feel they were born into the wrong body, but that’s not my story.”
In January 2015 I got a text message from Alia Ismail. She wanted to meet up at a coffee shop. She said she had something important she wanted to discuss with me. She and I had been classmates in middle and high school, but were nothing more than acquaintances. We’d share a passing wave in the hallway, but that was the extent of our relationship. In high school, she’d been popular, a
long, dark-haired, Arab-American beauty who dated stereotypically good-looking guys and dressed in mainstream style. But all that changed during senior year, when her appearance drastically transformed. Her dark locks were chopped into a short crop. Soon loose jeans and buttonups would replace her off-the-shoulder tops and frilly skirts. She came out to family and friends. She was gay, she told them.
As an Arab-American raised in Dearborn, she faced some backlash. Some friends stuck by her, but most of the people in her social circle turned their backs. Some had a hard time comprehending that this stereotypically beautiful girl had traded in her coveted feminine traits for more masculine ones. But that was only the beginning of Alia’s transformation. On a bitter January morning we sat in a
coffee shop and Alia told me she wanted her outward appearance to better reflect how she felt on the inside. She was going to become a man. And she wanted me to photograph her transition. Three thousand images later, Alia is now Issa. He’s been through a year-and-a-half of weekly testosterone injections and now grows wispy facial hair. His voice has lost its femininity. Earlier this year he under-
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It’s Warren MIller tIMe agaIn... and that Means It’s tIMe for our
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n The first testosterone shot. Issa self-injects testosterone once a week and will do so for the rest of his life. went a bilateral mastectomy and a nipple graft to make his body appear less curvy, his chest more masculine. He now identifies as an Arab-American queer transman. Later he’d tell me that he didn’t want to document his transition as a ploy for media attention, although that’s exactly what happened. “I wanted to normalize the transition
process within my community,” he says. “And I wanted these photos for myself. I wanted to remember what I looked like.” In the midst of our photo documentation, a filmmaker named Lorne Clarkson began to film Issa’s transition. He used the footage to craft a documentary called My First Year which Issa says will be submitted to film festivals next year.
n “I wanted to take this journey so people can see how I did it and find their own path to become their true self,” Issa says.
n Lorne Clarkson (pictured) also documented Issa’s transition through film.
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n During the process, many of Issa’s relationships also transformed. He and his onand-off girlfriend share an intimate moment during his top surgery fundraiser.
Issa also wanted to create a body of work that could help people hoping to join the LGBT community. “When I first came out, I had no idea what terminology to use, so I wanted to help other people who are new to the community,” he says. “Documentaries are targeted towards a cisgender audience and that doesn’t help us much. I wanted to take this journey so people can see how I did it and find their own path to become their true self.” He’s quick to add that both the photo series and the documentary are narratives about his personal sojourn. “I want to be very careful,” he says. “I don’t want people to think I’m speaking on behalf of the entire community. This is my journey.” n “I wanted something masculine that sounded like my dad’s name, but nothing fit,” Issa says of his new moniker. “So when a friend suggested Issa, I really liked it because it was short, kind of gender neutral with an ‘A’ at the end. It flowed together with my last name. When I heard it I was like, “Whoa, that fits.”
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n “Issa Ismail formerly known as Alia Ismail.”
Liv Martin is a photo intern at Metro Times and a student at College for Creative Studies.
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feature n “I wanted to be able to look back years from now and see everything from start to finish,” Issa says.
Trans terminology An incomplete glossary of Trans terms Compiled by Aidan Wayne A-gen-der, adj. n. 1. A person who does not identify as having any gender at all; exists outside the gender spectrum. 2. May consider themselves non-binary. See also -non-binary
flows between male, female, and in-between identifiers. Ex: Some days she goes by the name Jennifer, and sometimes he goes by the name Jackson. See also -nonbinary, -genderqueer
Cis, adj: 1. A person who identifies as the gender they were assigned at birth. Ex: Arnold Schwarzenegger was assigned male at birth and still considers himself male. -Cis-gen-der.
Gen-der-queer, adj. 1. Fairly synonymous with non-binary. 2. Sometimes a genderqueer person will consider themselves trans. See also -non-binary, -genderfluid.
Dead-name, n. 1. The name a transperson (/non-binary/genderqueer) was assigned at birth, if they choose to no longer use it. A deadname is often a huge trigger for the individual. Ex: Christopher’s sister accidentally deadnamed him. She felt awful and apologized. See also, -trans, -nonbinary, -genderqueer
Gen-der Spec-trum, n. 1. The idea that there is a range of gender identities; a linear model, ranging from 100 percent man to 100 percent woman, with various states of androgyny in between.
Gen-der bi-na-ry, n. 1. The idea that there are only two genders, 100 percent male and 100 percent female, and that there is no fluidity or wiggle room to exist within or outside of this idea. Gen-der-flu-id, adj. 1. Fairly synonymous with non-binary. 2. Someone who
In-ter-sex, n. 1. a general term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to fit the typical definitions of female or male. Often the parents of intersex children will “choose” a gender for their child and force them to grow up conforming to that gender. Ex: Sam was born with what doctors determined was overlarge clitoris, so his parents
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As Issa points out, entry into the trans community is often met with trepidation. There is a great deal of nuance that comes with the territory and those out the outside, or even the outskirts, can feel intimidated by unfamiliar terms. We solicited our non-binary transgender intern Aidan Wayne to compile a glossary of terms to help those outside the community get a better grasp on both current and outdated trans terminology.
surgically reconstructed his genitals as a baby and raised him as a woman. Ex: Miranda was born with Swyer Syndrome, a condition that prevents the body from producing sex hormones, but was raised female based on their outward genitals. However, they identify as non-binary and use they/them pronouns. Non-bi-na-ry, adj. n. 1. A person who does not fit in the gender binary. 2. Not identifying as either male or female. Usage. A trans person might also consider them non-binary in the sense that they are not female, but are not 100 percent male either. Often does not enjoy using he/ she pronouns. Sometimes a non-binary person will consider themselves trans. Ex: Cory? Yeah, they are a pretty cool person! See also -gender spectrum Trans, adj. n. 1. Going through a gender-related transition. Not necessarily 100% from one to the other. -Trans-gender See also gender spectrum. Trans-fem-i-nine, adj. 1. A person who identifies more on the feminine side of the
gender spectrum. See also -trans, -transwoman. Trans-gen-der, adj. n. 1. A person whose gender does not match what they were assigned at birth. Ex: Laverne Cox was assigned male at birth, but she is definitely a woman. Trans-man, n., pl -men. 1. A man who was assigned female at birth based solely on genitalia. See also -man. Trans-mas-cul-ine, adj. 1. A person who identifies more on the masculine side of the gender spectrum. See also -trans, -transman. Trans-per-son, n. 1. A person who identifies as trans in some way, shape, or form. May be used in lieu of -woman or -man if the individual identifies as non-binary. See also -trans, -non-binary, -gender spectrum. Trans-wo-man, n., pl -women. 1. A woman who was assigned male at birth based solely on genitalia. See also -woman.
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BEAMS
COLUMNS BUILDERS STEEL
Cut & Fabricated To Your Order
Braking, Sawing, Punching & Welding Available
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Parks & Rec
1942 Grand River Ave. | 313-446-8360 parksandrecdiner.com/ 8 a.m.-3 p.m. daily $2-$15 | Wheelchair accessible
n Shrimp and grits. Photo by Scott Spellman
A breakfast beauty
Parks & Rec is downtown’s designer diner By Serena Maria Daniels The Detroit diner (often referred to as a “coney island”) is the unsung hero in the restaurant world. Its purpose is rooted in utility, a place where busy lunchers can rest their feet for a few minutes, scarf down a quick bite for cheap, and shoot the shit with the surly short-order cook behind the counter. Until pretty recently, that’s the image one sees when envisioning the quintessential greasy spoon. That’s beginning to change, though, thanks to a number of spots that aspire to be finer than your average diner. One such bright update to the diner is the fairly recent arrival of Parks & Rec situated inside the beautifully restored GAR Building downtown. The building was brought back to life in 2014, after many years of remaining vacant, by the video production company Mindfield, which occupies the upper level. The 30-seat eatery’s kitchen is shared with the Republic tavern and, in many ways, outshines the larger fine dining establishment, in particular for its ability to elevate the otherwise underdog meal of breakfast. The 1899-constructed Grand Army of the Republic building was used by the city of Detroit’s Parks and Recreation Department during the 1940s, hence the name. Thus the interior is chock-full of eraappropriate decor, with its retro-looking white laminate bar, muted blue-green walls, stools designed like giant Oreos, a reclaimed wooden sign from the James
Scott Memorial Fountain on Belle Isle, terrazzo flooring, and green folding chairs that seem as if they came out of a community rec center. As for the kitchen, it’s headed by chef Sarah Welch, who took charge after the departure of Kate Williams, Republic’s opening chef. In the first 18 months on the job, she’s since opened the diner, and has managed to find a way to balance the work of running both concepts simultaneously. The result: a chef-driven spot that has grown from being known for scratchmade pastries and comfort foods to a finely edited menu that changes with the seasons and that works no matter what time of day you visit. To bring Parks & Rec to the next level, Welch brought on sous chef Allie Lyttle, who’s introduced a number of savory offerings that so far have proven to be a hit. As with Republic, much of what you’ll find in the kitchen is made on the premises, including sausages and bacon, breads, pastries, pickles, jams, and fresh-squeezed orange juice; ingredients are sourced locally whenever possible. You’ll note when your meal is served that the plating at Parks & Rec is a departure from the old-school lunch counter, with dishes made not simply to satiate your hunger but also to appeal visually, as many entrées are accented with local floral garnishes. The brisket and cornbread, for example, is exquisite and complex. It starts with a
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generous, subtly spicy, crumbly layer of house-made cornbread covered in sweet, marinated brisket sourced from livestock at Michigan State University, and topped with a yolky duck egg, sunny side up. The sweet and savory is cut nicely with the acidity from a side of pickled green tomatoes. There’s also the nostalgia-inducing bologna sammy, with a formidable slice of tasty bologna, with a fried egg, maple pub cheese, bright yellow house-made mustard, and pickles — all tucked into a brioche bun. It’s the kind of sandwich that will have you longing for that Tiny Toons lunch box (sans the Wonder Bread and fruit snacks). Lyttle also comes up with a divine peach and black pepper bread pudding that summons up a unique spiciness not often associated with the otherwise sweet dish. The leek anglaise soaked bread is covered in a peach and cilantro salad, goat cheese, and macadamia nuts, offering a strong contender for a filling breakfast or lunch. Several items have remained on the menu from the beginning, including a flavorful shrimp-and-grits, with locally raised shrimp that are sauteed with vegetables and harissa atop popcorn grits with hot sauce; and a hearty biscuits and gravy, which offers a richly brown, complex sausage gravy on top of warm buttermilk biscuits and a poached egg. Even keeping it simple with the socalled standard breakfast, you’re in for a treat with rustic toast, homemade jam, eggs, and your choice of pork or lamb bacon. We highly recommend the lamb bacon. It’s thick and somehow comes out with the slightest hint of maple so there’s no need for dunking in syrup. For finicky eaters who’d rather control what goes in their breakfasts, there’s the
ever-popular build-your-own section. Choose between a potato hash, omelet, or benedict, and add your choice of veggies, cheeses, (including a heavenly burrata, feta, or Brie), meats, or salmon. As for those sweets, the baked goods have become standbys, including a rotation of delicious cookies and muffins (the back-of-the-house staff are encouraged to research different recipes each week to mix things up). There’s also the massive cinnamon roll ($10) that’s ideal for sharing, coil by buttery coil. It’s baked to order and is drenched in an orange zest-goat cheese icing that evenly coats the walnut infused, cinnamon and brown-sugary roll. The atmosphere feels relaxed during off-peak times, enough so that you could pull out the laptop and get some work done or chat with the personable staff, but during the busy weekday lunch rush or weekend brunch crowds, expect the vibe to liven up considerably. Prices are a step up from the typical diner and have, in fact, gone up since it first opened. That standard plate goes for $8, biscuits and gravy for $9, and the brisket and cornbread is the most expensive item on the menu (as of now, as we mentioned the offerings are seasonal) at $15. Still, you’re not getting typical. Also added: a full cocktail program, including a double beer tap installed in time for the Tigers season early this year. We usually reserve our reviews for fine dining experiences or hidden treasures off the beaten path. In this case, we were excited to break from routine and explore a diner that goes beyond the norm.
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Beard House invite
One of the most prestigious organizations dedicated to greatness in the culinary world has tapped three metro Detroit chefs to cook at the Beard House The James Beard Foundation has asked Detroit Athletic Club executive chef Kevin Brennan, Mabel Gray chef-owner James Rigato, and Katoi executive Brad Greenhill to participate in separate dinners — this first of which is this week. The Oct. 14 event, “High Society,” will introduce foundation members and New Yorkers alike to Brennan’s cooking. Then on Nov. 4, Rigato (whose Hazel Park eatery was named a 2016 finalist in the James Beard award for Best New Restaurant) will hit the Big Apple along with Ryan Burk of Angry Orchard for an “Autumn Cider Celebration,” featuring the chef ’s Michigan-centric style paired with the quintessential fall beverage. The Detroit Free Press quotes Izabela Wojcik, director of house programming for the foundation, in a news release: “The significance of the invitation shows that you have reached a certain point in your career, a certain level of achievement and that you lead a team [focusing] on quality ingredients, sophisticated techniques and apply only the highest standards.” If you’re in New York City on Nov. 4, tickets can be had for $135 for JBF members, or $175 for the public, by going to the events page on the James Beard Foundation website. Also in talks with the Beard House to cook some time next is Greenhill, the Free Press reports. The awards handed out by the nonprofit James Beard Foundation are considered the Oscars of the country’s culinary scene. Prime + Proper New details about a swanky steakhouse and an adjoining bar coming to Capitol Park have been reported and include a number of prime amenities for its clientele. As reported by D Business, among the fringe benefits of frequenting the new eatery, to be called Prime + Proper, a butcher counter where customers can select their own cuts of dry aged steak, custom steak knives for repeat customers available upon arrival in the dining room, as well as
n James Rigato. Photo by Joe Vaughn access to the private cash only bar in the lower level. Behind Prime + Proper, at 1145 Griswold, is Jeremy Sasson, who opened last year the unapologetically extravagant Townhouse Detroit on Congress and Woodward. We noted at the time that it was a louder, flashier version of Sasson’s original Townhouse bar in Birmingham, complete with a “libations library,” a loose take on a dim sum cart, and a statement-making atrium that allows diners to eat and drink in a controlled outdoor-like setting. Prime + Proper appears to be taking the concept of exclusivity up quite a few notches (in fact the D Business headline goes as far as to suggest the Capitol Park restaurant “may be the finest steakhouse in America”). The restaurant area will also house a lounge and raw bar. The 80-person capacity bar will not accept credit cards. Nor will cellphones or cameras be allowed. Checks will be handwritten using quill pens, and the cocktails will be “interactive,” to “cultivate the eyes, nose, and mouth.” As for those custom steak knives,
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D Business reports the restaurant will work with knife and metalsmiths to craft them. The steakhouse will use 100 percent USDA prime beef and lamb, and jidori chicken, and a dry aging facility will be onsite. In addition to allowing diners to pick their cut, they can also opt to have meats wrapped up at the butcher counter to cook at home. In all, the space is about 11,000 feet, with the restaurant area seating 180. Brought on to design is Birmingham-based McIntosh Poris Associates. The kitchen will be headed by Townhouse executive chef Michael Barrera. The restaurant’s dining room is set on the ground level of the upcoming Capitol Park Lofts. Prime + Proper’s addition further lends an air of exclusivity in Capitol Park, a destination for city dwellers and visitors with an abundance of disposable income. Already in surrounding area are a number of high-end restaurants and businesses, including Wright & Co., the John Varvatos store, Kit and Ace clothing retailer, and the Albert apartments (which boast onsite dog-grooming, a gym, and dry
cleaning delivery). In the works are several other eateries, including La Lanterna, Go! Sy Thai, and the Bad Luck Bar (from the Detroit Optimist Society group). Grey Ghost brunch Just as many other eateries across metro Detroit have wrapped up seasonal brunch service, Grey Ghost in Midtown is just getting started. The meat-centric restaurant commenced its Sunday brunch service from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Oct. 9. The menu consisted of a number of comfort foods to welcome fall, including a corned pork belly benedict with Thousand Island hollandaise, Boston cream pie pancakes, and caramel apple French toast. Also on deck: a variety of boozy brunch drinks, like a mezcal Bloody Mary to ease you out of that hangover. Grey Ghost, the brainchild of Chicago chefs John Vermiglio and Josef Giacomino, opened its doors in August. The duo relocated to Detroit a little over a year ago and ran a series of pop-ups throughout the city to introduce locals to their concept
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and to work on the build-out of the restaurant. The spot is one of three tenants taking over the space that once occupied Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe. Others include the recently announced Bakersfield Mexican food chain (to open early next year) and New Order Coffee, which will reportedly open by the end of the year. Grey Ghost Detroit is located at 47 E. Watson St., Detroit. Reservations are highly recommended. Call 313262-6534 or book online at OpenTable. Dine for a cause A swanky multi-course dinner prepared by award-winning chefs, plus a way to help a Detroit student attend culinary school? Sounds like good ways to spend $200, amiright? Regenerate Detroit, launched by Detroit Lion DeAndre Levy and chef James Rigato (Mabel Gray, the Root), is a dinner series that promises just that. On Oct. 24, the benefit will take place at Chartreuse Kitchen & Cocktails, where Rigato will team up with the restaurant’s chef, Doug Hewitt, to prepare an eight-course meal. While the price tag per ticket may seem steep, it includes tax, tip, and wine pairings, plus all the money raised goes toward a culinary school scholarship for a Detroit Food Academy student. The nonprofit Detroit Food Academy helps prepare youths for careers in cooking through after-school programs, leadership training, and foodbased projects. The first Regenerate Detroit dinner took place in July at Mabel Gray and raised more than $16,000 — money used to send food academy alumni Brandon Johnson, 19, to Schoolcraft College. Tickets must be purchased online at RegenerateDetroit.BrownPaperTickets.com. Chartreuse is at 15 E. Kirby St., Detroit. All pumpkin everything Thought pumpkin was confined to pies and Starbucks lattes? You’re wrong. Chef Nick Rodgers at the Root Restaurant & Bar in White Lake (coowned by Rigato) is setting out to show the many ways that the autumn gourd can be infused into a meal with the fine dining establishment’s annual Pumpkin Feast. On Oct. 27, he’s whipping up a five-course dinner
n Grey Ghost. Photo by Serena Maria Daniels
using Michigan-grown pumpkins. On the menu: oysters with pumpkin butter, pumpkin lasagna, kabocha pumpkin bisque with apples, pumpkin sorbet with cognac, and more. Cost is $65 excluding tax and tip and for another $20, you get a local
metro Detroit, with the recent addition of Sushi Coup in Rochester Hills. The spot, at 147 W. Auburn Rd., dubs itself as a “build your own” sushi bowl, wherein customers can pick and choose their favorite bite sized morsels of fish, rice,
n Kitchen Ramarj, via Facebook beer pairing. Reservations are recommended by calling 248-698-2400. The Root is at 340 Town Center Blvd., in White Lake. Korean chicken wings in style The customized poke bowl trend continues its infiltration into
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and veggies. They can also select a variety of signature bowl combos, including a spicy salmon, California, tempura, and tuna poke — most of which also are accompanied with an avocado mash (ahem, you mean like guacamole?). What sets Sushi Coup a part from
places like Yuzu Sushi Co. in Royal Oak, is its offering of Korean-style chicken wings. Similar to the sushi bowl fad, we’ve been noticing that these extra crispy, twice-fried wings are enjoying a moment in the spotlight, with an increasing number of restaurants across the country offering some variation of them. At Sushi Coup, they’re handbattered, dusted in a trio of dry rubs, and come with a soy garlic or “Asian Fling” sauce (whatever that means). In metro Detroit, we’re aware of Gangnam Chicken in Royal Oak and Seoul Street, both of which specialize in Korean-style wings, but we’ll be adding this spot to our must-try list. We’ll be sure to share our first thoughts here. In the meantime, do any of you know of other restaurants around here that serve a tasty Korean chicken wing? Email all your wings tips to eat@metrotimes.
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Taste for Thai
Katoi’s Courtney Henriette on staying grounded while running a restaurant by Serena Maria Daniels Set foot inside Katoi on any given night and you’ll immediately be hit by a frenetic energy. It’s in the crowds that linger in the bar’s tight quarters while they wait to be seated. It’s in the mashup of psychedelic, modern, and industrial decor in the dining room. And if you’ve ever met Courtney Henriette, who makes up one-third of the popular northern Thai restaurant’s ownership, you’ll feel it the moment she greets you. Somehow, whether she’s making her rounds to say hello to regulars on a busy Friday or meeting up bright and early for a cup of coffee (she has a weakness for Astro Coffee’s milk lattes), Henriette contains a burst of vitality. That exuberance has served her well. In the two-plus years that Henriette, an event coordinator by trade, has worked with partners chef Brad Greenhill and Phil Kafka, she’s helped to grow the concept from the occasional food truck parked outside of Two James Distillery,
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to one of the most critically acclaimed eateries to open this year. We had to ask, what keeps Henriette balanced? How does she sustain? Some of her answers reveal her secrets to success. Metro Times: What is one thing people don’t know about you that you wish they did? Courtney Henriette: I enjoy intensely dark chocolate and nut milk lattes from Astro and am super appreciative when people bring these things to me. Also, I am not married to the chef. When you are a female and a partner in a business with two men, so many people assume you are married to one of them. MT: What daily ritual is non-negotiable for you? Henriette: I write every morning. If I do not, I cannot think. At
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‘I write every morning. If I do not, I cannot think. At Katoi, we light sage every day to protect ourselves from the heaviness some people carry into restaurants.’
Katoi, we light sage every day to protect ourselves from the heaviness some people carry into restaurants. MT: If you could have any superpower, what would it be? Henriette: I wish I could talk to the dead. MT: What is the most positive thing in food or drink that you’ve noticed in Detroit over the past year? Henriette: Last week Emily Staugaitis showed me the hidden Bangladeshi gardens of Hamtramck and her friend invited us into her home to feed us one of the most delicious meals I’ve had in forever. MT: Who is your Detroit food crush? Henriette: I am in love with the work Trevor Naud (especially Blues Build the Temple) and the records my friend Vinnie Massimino puts out on his label Chambray and Chris Koltay is making magic in his studio down the street — he is always sending the dearest and most talented musicians into Katoi (like my friend Graham A. Parsons). The fact that these people, who I admire, bring their energy into a space that is sacred to me, and I have the opportunity to shape an experience for them — this is awe-inspiring. Great food arises from great crushes! MT: Who’s the one person to watch right now in the Detroit dining scene? Henriette: Takeamegabite (on Instagram) aka Megan DeKok. She’s internet famous, carries sprinkles in her handbag, and runs social media for Kotex (I have never been so excited about tampons!). MT: Which ingredient is most representative of your personality? Henriette: This is the type of question someone else is supposed to
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answer for you. Which ingredient do you think is most representative of my personality? MT: I suspect you would be ginseng for your ability to promote relaxation and your abundance of energy. MT: If you weren’t working in the restaurant business, what would you be doing? Henriette: I would be reading and writing and bringing people together over food — and since life is as good as you make it, I get to do these things! Maybe I would learn another language or climb a giant mountain? Probably not. Perhaps I will climb a mountain one day. MT: Name an ingredient never allowed in your kitchen. Henriette: Me! Chef Brad and I have an arrangement: He makes the food and I run wild. MT: What is your after-work hangout? Henriette: My bed where I read books, light incense, and talk to my dogs. MT: What’s your food or beverage guilty pleasure? Henriette: No guilt. MT: What would be your last meal on Earth? Henriette: Papaya salad made by Chef Brad. Not because he’s the only person capable of making a perfect papaya salad but because I want my last meal to be infused with the energy of someone I love. And the mouth-burn feeling might help diminish impending death anxiety.
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What’s Going On
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News
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M usic
Drink
by Adam Woodhead We live in a time when popular metanarratives are either being unraveled on a global stage, or else taking a turn for the weird. Just look at the stories that have captivated our imaginations over the last decade. A supernatural child of MK-Ultra unlocks the door to a dark parallel universe. Ruling-class families vie for power in an elaborate chess game where the only rule is self-preservation. Mulder and Scully reappear on the scene. Like the rest of us, Natalie Hoffman, lead singer and guitarist for the Memphis, Tenn.-based punk quartet Nots, has been swept up in this larger pattern. But unlike most, she seems keenly aware of the effect her surroundings have had on her consciousness. Hoffman has spoken previously of using dystopian literature as fodder for her songwriting, channeling Philip K. Dick’s The World Jones Made on “Insect Eyes” from their debut album We Are Nots. Her lyrics are frequently bleak, cynical, or absurd, and speaking to her on the phone from the band’s home in Memphis, I leave the conversation feeling as though the
Classifieds
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Memphis quartet Nots traverses the upside-down psychogeography of modern America
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Stranger things
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n The Nots of Memphis, Tenn. L-R: Meredith Lones, Alexandra Eastburn, Natalie Hoffmann, and Charlotte Watson. Photo by Don Perry.
world we actually inhabit is just as strange as that of science fiction. The band consists of Hoffman, drummer Charlotte Watson, bassist Meredith Lones, and keyboardist Alexandra Eastburn. This Wednesday, Oct. 19, they appear at Marble Bar in support of their new album, Cosmetic.
Metro Times: How did you and Charlotte [Watson] first start playing together? Natalie Hoffman: Charlotte and I met in Memphis. We both moved here for school, and we kind of both ran around with the same circle of people. I was here for art school, so I was hanging out with the crowd that went to Memphis College of Art, and she was here for philosophy at Rhodes. We met at a party and started talking about music and movies, and just spontaneously and drunkenly decided we should play music together. MT: Can you give us a brief history of the Memphis music scene, as you have experienced it?
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Hoffman: Yeah, so I came here 9 years ago so. There was lots of stuff going on. It was pretty rowdy, but I actually didn’t get out too much. I’m actually sort of a homebody in some ways. I went to a lot of Barbaras shows. There was this band called the Magic Kids that kind of formed after the Barbaras. There’s always been a bunch of punk stuff going on, but I was sort of later to that train. Then I started playing music with Ex-Cult; I played bass. And there’s True Sons of Thunder, they’ve been around forever. They’re great. And Charlotte was playing drums with the Manatees at the time. There was one point where I was in three bands. I was in my other band called Moving Fingers. So we were all playing tons of shows all the time. A lot of these people have just sort of been playing as long as I’ve been here. There’s another band called the Sheiks that’s really good. They’re a garage band, rock ‘n’ roll sort of thing. And then Jack Oblivian, of course. I’ve gone to see the Oblivions here a couple times, which is great, and Jack
is great. And Reigning Sound. They actually played last night. They’re also playing Gonerfest. People tend to do something and sort of do it for a long time.
MT: What’s the story behind your appearance on the local Memphis morning news? That video is amazing. Hoffman: It was really early. I think it was like 9 in the morning. And none of us are morning people, so I had to wear sunglasses. And we were all out the night before, of course. So we got there early and tired and hungover, and everyone who works the news is like super peppy, because that’s their time. So we got to talk to them and we got to play punk music with them pretty loudly. It was just a pretty funny experience all around. I don’t think they realized what they were in for when they booked us. I think they might have thought we sounded a little sweeter. MT: Did they cut your last song short on purpose, or was the inten-
M usic tion for you guys to play them out? Hoffman: No, they cut it short. I’m pretty sure I say something that’s not proper for news in that song, and I’m not sure if they heard that or they just cut us off because they were done with it.
MT: Do you think your music goes down better with the coastal crowd, or the rest of the country? Hoffman: Definitely Cleveland, Detroit, Memphis, Atlanta. Something about what we’re doing people get it. Those are our favorite cities to play. Of course we love playing in Memphis. It’s not like we struggle in New York or the coasts, but it’s just so different. I’m not sure how to describe it. Maybe it just doesn’t resound quite as much. And that’s not true for everyone of course — everyone watches the show in different ways and whatnot. I will say every time we’ve played, even when the shows are small, in Cleveland or Detroit we have a really good time. I don’t know what that means. MT: This is a very Detroit-centric question, but are you a Stooges fan? Hoffman: Oh, yeah, absolutely. Fun House is my favorite Stooges album, because the B-side is just insane. I feel like the Stooges were really good at being a really catchy rock n’ roll, prepunk band, but they also were really good at pushing the boundaries and making some completely insane and difficult to categorize music, and I’ve always respected that about that band. Of course their stage presence is incredible. There are a few bands where you hear the music and you feel like, a really good visceral reaction, and the Stooges has always been that for me. Especially listening to live Stooges. They didn’t give a fuck if people just didn’t get it. Like “We get it, and we made it so here you go.” Memphis has that attitude too. MT: Is there anything in the popular media that fed into the new album? Or just stuff that you are particularly enjoying? Hoffman: As far as the album goes I watched a really good interview with David Simon. I love The Wire. That show is kind of older now but, there’s a really good interview with him on Democracy Now! about “Two Americas” and how this country is really split. Half the country is profiting off of it, while the other half is just completely being trampled by that. That was really influential for a lot of the lyrics on Cosmetic.
feature MT: What were you reading? Hoffman: Human Landscapes by Nazim Hikmet, which really takes a stark look at people and their stories, and it doesn’t romanticize people whether they’re poor, rich, or whatever. It really does a good job sort of showing people existing within this pattern and system that has been set before them. And also it’s just beautifully written. I was reading another book called Neon Vernacular by Yesuf Komunyakaa. That book is incredible. It’s got sort of a beat poet vibe, but not quite as pretentious as it can sometimes be. I read a lot of short stories. I’ve got a short attention span sometimes. I read some of the Pablo Naruta book Canto General. It’s hard to remember everything. I read some cinema critiques. I read a lot in the car. MT: You and your synth player Alexandra Eastburn produced the “Reactor” video. Why do you like using archival footage? Hoffman: So the “Reactor” video I put together from stuff that was on the Internet Archive and then Allie gave me a couple of old videos she shot while she was working and traveling. I think I wanted to create sort of a narrative where I was looking for a lot of contrast between human bodies, like hands, and machines, sort of playing on that idea of mass production again. Which I think is why I like archival footage. I like to make collages so all of that’s from mass-produced pieces, magazines or whatever. Or just like... garbage [laughs]. And then the Internet archive I thought was really cool because it felt like making a collage to me. Music videos are such a pain in the ass. Unless they’re really well done I’m not into the whole “Let’s make a story with the band [thing].” You know, we’ve kind of done that but that’s not really what we’re about. MT: How do you think living in Memphis has affected your perception of what’s going on in the country? Hoffman: I think we’re really not insulated here. I don’t know, I haven’t lived in Brooklyn or San Francisco, but I kind of get the suspicion that the general populace might be a bit more progressive. I’m sure there are parts that aren’t, but in Memphis and in Missouri you really get to see every side of the coin. Memphis is interesting because it’s the only Democratic, consistently democratically voting city in Tennessee. The rest of Tennessee is red, and Memphis is consistently blue. You get a mixed bag of opinions here, and
it’s interesting because people want to talk to you about what’s going on in the country. I’m a bartender and a server so I get into these conversations. You naturally get into these conversations with people that get really big really fast, and you’re both just sitting in a bar. It’s interesting. In my experience talking to people, of course you run into people who are strictly like, “I’m voting for Trump, I don’t give a shit,” and there’s nothing you can do. Or it’s hard to talk to that person because they’re so racist. But then you get people who have their opinion, but they really want to hear yours and they really want to talk it out. We’re big talkers in the South, of course. But I think it’s interesting. I don’t feel insulated at all. I mean I am insulated. Everyone is, you know. But how I go about my day I get to run into a lot of different kinds of people with all sorts of opinions. So that definitely has had an effect on how I process everything. And of course Memphis is just a really working-class city — workingclass and just downright poor in some areas. So everybody is just busting ass trying to make things work here. So that factors into people’s opinions. And the Midwest, as you know, is like that too.
MT: Do you have a real life story that was the basis for “Black Mold”? Hoffman: Oh, I do. I had a house; me and a bunch of my friends
lived in a house in Memphis that became infested by black mold, and it was making everyone sick. So I lived in a casino hotel for a week because it was the cheapest place. We went down to the casino to stay at the hotel for like three days, which also really influenced my mind while I was there [laughs], and a lot of the songs on that album. Our landlord lived in another city, so he had to send people. It was this big mess and the house was making us sick, so we all moved out really abruptly after I had been living in the casino. And of course I’m working and everything, and also gambling obviously since I’m staying at the casino. It was ridiculous. So, yeah, we moved out, and then the landlord tore apart the house and got this black mold out, and now people live there and they seem fine. Scary! Of course I was reading a bunch about black mold because I was worried about it, and that influenced the lyrics of the song. Yep. Based on a true story. Nots perform with the Johnny Il Band on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at Marble Bar; Doors at 9 p.m.; 1501 Holden St., Detroit; Tickets are $12 in advance, $14 at the door.
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Take back the night ‘Carpe Noctem’ creeps up on Detroit by Debbie Miszak Joshua James, Detroiter and director of the Theatre Bizarre Orchestra, has been active in the city’s theater and jazz scenes since 1999. David Haskins (David J/MC Nightshade), a legend in the “goth” world, pioneered the genre in the 1980s as a founding member of Bauhaus. While different in disciplines, both have a passion for the shadowy side of life, and for music. Out of these two fundamental similarities, Carpe Noctem was born. The album, the first of its kind for the Theatre Bizarre Orchestra, will debut Thursday, Oct. 13 at Third Man Records Cass Corridor. Haskins, James, and the orchestra will perform at that release party, and at both Theatre Bizarre masquerade galas at the Masonic Temple. Haskins says that fans who can’t make it to any of the events (or their Oct. 20 show in Grand Rapids) may have to wait until next season, at best, to hear Carpe Noctem live. “We’d like to do more shows with the Theatre Bizarre,” Haskins says. “But it’s more problematic because it’s expensive to tour with something that big.” Theatre Bizarre Orchestra, the house band of the interactive, vaudevillian Halloween party, is only in its sophomore year. It came into existence partially because of Haskins, who, in 2014, DJed at the gala. He and James came together to arrange a new version of the Bauhaus classic “Bela Lugosi’s Dead,” and were compelled to record an entire album. “It’s a groovy new sound,” Haskins says of Carpe Noctem. “It’s a trip to the dark side of the carnival and what’s going on behind the tents.” For Haskins, to have an influential founder of both Bauhaus and Love and Rockets working with Theatre Bizarre Orchestra was unlike anything he had ever experienced. This comes from a man who has performed with everyone from actress Fairuza Balk (The Craft) to Cuban folk singers. “It was a challenge,” Haskins says. “It
n David Haskins and Joshua James. Photo by Trever Long was way out of my comfort zone, playing with a 12-piece orchestra. I’m used to playing with a couple of guys in a band.” The experience was so monumental to Haskins that he tattooed its name onto his wrist once they wrapped up recording. “These guys are from the jazz world, which is also a difference for me, but Joshua James was a mediator between the jazz world and my world of more alternative rock,” Haskins says. “ I’ve met jazz guys before, and they have a great sense of humor. There is a wealth of enthusiasm in that band. It was great. I just loved it.”
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Two years ago, James jumped at the chance to collaborate with Haskins, and this is an experience that has also touched him. “The best part has been all of the interesting rabbit holes I’ve gone down without expecting to,” James says. “ The music we did turned out in a way I didn’t expect it to. It led us down some very different, and sometimes weird, paths.” By both accounts, the effort was a true and pure collaboration. James says that the process of writing “Vaudeville Ghostlight was the example that stuck out
most. “David would send me ideas he had,” James says. “Maybe it was a line of text or a little melody he had, and I would hear it and I would write parts on the piano, and then we’d figure out all of the other parts. The first time we really played it was in the recording studio.” Carpe Noctem is being manufactured and distributed by a brand-new Detroit label, Hold Fast, which moved up its launch date in order to put the record out. Part of the appeal of the album, according to both James and Haskins, was the
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M usic SATURDAY, OCT. 15
THIRST WAVE
DJS ELEKTROSONIK, PLEASURE KITTEN AND AARON HINGST SPIN NEW WAVE, ALT-RETRO DARK ‘80S AND ‘90S ALTERNATIVE 9 P.M. DOORS / NO COVER BEFORE 10 P.M.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUNDAY, OCT. 16
ELEPHANT STONE
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FRIDAY, OCT. 21
INDUSTRIAL IS NOT DEAD
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SATURDAY, OCT. 22
GARRETT KLAHN
WITH EMPATHY AND FLOAT HERE FOREVER -----------------------------------------------------------------------
THURSDAY, OCT. 27
SATAN (U.K.)
WITH CAULDRON, DESTRUCTOR AND COVEN 13
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FRIDAY, OCT. 28
COVENFEST A BENEFIT FOR TURNING POINT SHELTER
LOCAL BANDS PERFORMING AS RAMONES, JOAN JET, FLYING BURRITO BROS., MISSY ELLIOTT, ROB ZOMBIE AND MARILYN MANSON -----------------------------------------------------------------------
SATURDAY, OCT. 29
THIRSTWAVE AND INDUSTRIAL IS NOT DEAD HALLOWEEN BASH WITH
3TEETH
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way in which it was recorded by sound engineer Dave Feeny (White Stripes, Loretta Lynn). “With the style that we recorded, we didn’t do any overdubbing, which means that everything you hear is the band playing live, being recorded all together,” James says. “And if there was a take we didn’t like, we would just take it from the top. We recorded everything live, in that moment, making it happen.” The album is the embodiment of a dark sci-fi carnival, which is fitting for an album that reflects Theatre Bizarre and was inspired by Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes, where Haskins took his name, MC Nightshade, from. James hopes that listeners get the eerie vibe that the duo intended. “It’s a bit like classical music played backwards,” James says. “It is this carnival sound that is so frightening, but it’s not seasonal. It’s not just Halloween music.” In addition to new material, it also features covers of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Beck, and Bauhaus. When it comes to continuing to play Bauhaus material, particularly “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” (an arrangement will be on one out of four copies of the album, and every deluxe edition), Haskins has oozed nothing but
feature positivity. “What keeps it alive for me is reinterpreting it,” Haskins says. “It’s a very original piece of music. There was nothing like it before — or after for that matter. It’s a magical piece of work that conjures up so much. The moment [Bauhaus] wrote it, we knew it was something special.” James and Haskins believe Carpe Noctem is just as spooky and insane as Theatre Bizarre itself. And they hope that Detroiters get to hear their original take on the twisted, horror-spiked carnival live. David J and the Theatre Bizarre Orchestra perform Thursday, Oct. 13 at Third Man Cass Corridor; doors at 7:30 p.m.; 441 W. Canfield St., Detroit; 313-209-5205; $7. They will also play at both Theatre Bizarre masquerade galas on Friday, Oct. 14 and Friday, Oct. 21 at the Masonic Temple; 500 Temple St., Detroit; theatrebizarre.com; $260. Debbie Miszak is a Metro Times editorial intern.
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The
Old
Miami
OUR PATIO NIGHTLY BONFIRES ON THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13TH
DJ GOFUNK YOURSELF • R TOOF D2 10PM/ DOORS @ 9PM FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14TH
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FEAT. BARKER (OSTGUT TON / LEISURE SYSTEM, BERLIN), TONY NOVA (DJ INTERNATIONAL RECORDS, CHICAGO), BEN CHRISTENSEN + RADIO BROVOLD + BLK_OUT
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SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15TH
SCARY WOMEN • BLACKMAIL LUXURY FLUX • JUMP THE FOCUS 10PM/ DOORS @ 9PM
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A BUNCH OF DEAD PEOPLE FIVE POUND SNAP • GRAYBLISS 10PM/ DOORS @ 9PM
MONDAY, OCTOBER 17TH
(2 WEEKS TIL HALLOWEEN) FREE POOL - ALL DAY • NO COVER HAPPY BASEBALL/HOCKEY RON
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18TH
HAPPY BIRTHDAY PATIENCE Y.
~UPCOMING SHOWS~
THE CREW OF THE HALF MOON BATTERSBY TAKES BRONZE BLACK SHAMPOO • DJ THORNSTRYKER WE DO THIS! Y FOOD B D E R E CAT S ERVING H N S O N NOW S O EJ
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FACEBOOK: THEOLDMIAMI CALL US FOR BOOKING! 313-831-3830
The Old Miami
3930 Cass • Cass Corridor • 313-831-3830
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Livewire
This week’s suggested musical events by MT Staff
Saturday, 10/15 Okkervil River @ The Magic Bag
Newly invigorated Okkervil River comes to town on the heels on an album called Away. Singersongwriter Will Sheff remains at the core; the backing musicians are completely different. Sheff packed up and left Austin for Brooklyn, N.Y., and rebuilt the group from the band up. The sound is still rootsyfolky, but it veers toward visionary territory. Sheff is a smart dude — his band’s name comes from a story by Tatyana Tolstaya that he read in a 20th century Russian literature class. His music is a bit deeper these days, and darker, still. This is truly real and good shit; it’s no longer simply NPR/coffee shop good — it’s damn-some-kid-gonna-find-thisin-a-used-bin-20-years-from-nowand-start-a-band good.
Doors at 8 p.m.; 22920 Woodward Ave., Ferndale; themagicbag.com; tickets are $18.
nnAudra Kubat. Courtesy photo. Okkervil River. Courtesy photo
Wednesday, 10/12
Thursday, 10/13
Friday, 10/14
Loreena McKennit
Andy Ortmann, Hogg, Tarpit, Little Princess
Book of Love
@ The Michigan Theater
@ The Magic Bag
@ UFO Factory
Loreena McKennit, a pianist, composer, accordionist, harpist, and all-around extraordinaire who has been active in World Music since the mid-1980s will be in Ann Arbor performing Celtic and Middle Eastern themes. The accomplished Canadian musician will be playing pieces from her nine studio albums, and you can probably count on hearing her most popular hits “Snow” and “Ancient Pines.
Doors at 7 p.m.; 603 E. Liberty St., Ann Arbor; michtheater.org; tickets are $35-$89.50.
Here is a show of experimental noise music that is bound to be fun and diverse. Ortmann, who runs the Nihilist Records label and has a show on WFMU called The Eternal Now, has made eclectic electronic experimental music since 1990. Hogg is a Chicago-based duo whose music is crude and unintelligible and awesome. Tarpit is everyone’s favorite doomy, slurred, weirdly poppy, tapeaddled noise dude. And Little Princess is Davin Brainard in disguise. So, show up early, and don’t be on a downer trip, or we won’t be able to hang with you.
Doors at 9 p.m.; 2110 Trumbull Ave., Detroit; ufofactory.com; $7.
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1980s dance quartet Book of Love has regrouped for a 30th anniversary tour. Hits like “I Touch Roses,” which reached No. 1 on the dance charts in 1985, and the socially aware “Pretty Boys and Pretty Girls” will surely be played, along with the infectious “Tubular Bells,” as well as previously unrecorded tracks. The group, which got its start opening for Depeche Mode, is going to be a must-see for any former new wavers.
Doors open at 8 p.m.; 22920 Michigan Ave., Ferndale; themagicbag.com; tickets are $20.
Saturday, 10/15 Battle Trance @ Trinosophes
n Battle Trance. Courtesy photo
Saturday, 10/15
Saturday, 10/15
Sunday, 10/16
Die Antwoord
Futuristic
Brian Charette
@ The Fillmore
@ El Club
@ Kerrytown Concert House
South African rap group Die Antwoord brings its special kind of ridiculousness to the Fillmore. So bust out your glow sticks and your South African slang dictionaries, it’s time to party. They’re sure to pull in a big crowd to the Fillmore as they bring their “Zef” movement to the United States. They’ve worked with Marilyn Manson and Diplo, and since their genesis in 2008, they’ve been gaining steam worldwide.
Growing up around music, it was inevitable that Futuristic would follow the path of his elders. His dad was a drummer, and his siblings made everything from metal to hip-hop. The youngest of the gang, Furutristic left his Illinois home and moved to Arizona, where he quickly began to open up for respected hip-hop artists until now he is one himself, traversing the country with fans yelling “I had to do it!” at the top of their lungs at him.
Talented jazz organist Brian Charette will grace the Kerrytown Concert House in Ann Arbor with Jordan Young and regular Trio member Paul Keller. They will take the audience through the history of organ trios and give guests more of an insight into the world of jazz. Charette, who performs the night before in Clawson, is no stranger to Detroit. He’s performed previously at Cliff Bell’s, and is worth seeing, even if you don’t consider yourself a “jazz person.”
Doors at 7 p.m., 2115 Woodward Ave., Detroit; tickets range from $25 to $50.
Starts at 8 p.m.; 4114 W. Vernor Hwy., Deitroit; elclubdetroit; $15 in advance, $18 at the door.
The show starts at 2 p.m.; 415 N. Fourth Ave., Ann Arbor; kerrytownconcerthouse.com; tickets are $5-$30.
metrotimes.com
Travis LaPlante’s face-melting saxophone quartet is so good at weaving thick lines of sound together in a hypnotic and rhythmic way to make this giant um, sound-quilt, just for you. It’s obviously informed by the fringes of minimalist music, but it’s a music as sensitive to improvisation and nuance as the finest jazzers. Classical heads, rock ’n’ roll meatheads, and way-out hop-heads will all swoon, fall in love, and fight one another over the Battle Trance effects on sale at the merch table. There might not be a better-named band out there. And if you actually go to this show and do not enjoy the fuck out of it, you are legally and ethically entitled to pelt this reviewer (Mike McGonigal) in the face with a very rotten tomato.
Doors at 8 p.m.; 1464 Gratiot Ave., Detroit; trinosophes. com; $10.
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Lady geeks, rejoice!
n ComiqueCon is coming. Courtesy art.
ComiqueCon is back by Sarah Rose Sharp Half of comic book readers are female, and yet, as with most forms of media, women are radically underrepresented, both as protagonists and creators. But metro Detroit lady geeks are in for a treat: The second annual ComiqueCon, a one-day celebration of female comic creators co-sponsored by Green Brain Comics and the East Dearborn Downtown Development Authority, will take place Oct. 22 at the Arab American National Museum, and it promises to be a super good time. “We really wanted to bring creators on board that exemplify feminist ideals in their work and beyond,” ComiqueCon chair Chelsea Liddy says. “If they exemplify feminist ideals, and want to encourage young girls to love comics, then they are behind the mission of ComiqueCon.” Panelists for the event include Nneka Myers (artist, Powerpuff Girls), Carolyn Nowak (artist, Lumberjanes), Jennifer Camper (editor of the influential Juicy Mother anthology of queer comics), Arielle Jovellanos (orchestrator of the Hamilton-themed Ham4Pamphlet), and Megan Rose Gedris (artist on Food Porn Anthology), along with others. “There have always been female creators — several books and documentaries will confirm that,” Liddy says. “But men, both creators and characters, are more visible because they get more exposure through the major publishers — and we have the data to back that up. Female creators and characters rarely top 30 percent of the makeup at DC and Marvel.” The recent breakout of some highprofile comic book creators, including Kelly Sue DeConnick (Pretty Deadly, Bitch Planet), and mainstream fare centered around female characters (such as the wildly popular Jessica Jones Netflix series) has been proving to the mass market that women bring much to the table, in terms of both content and readership. “It’s worth noting that when publishers adjust to the desires of their readership, they reap the financial benefits — and it’s not just women that are interested in these stories,”
Liddy says. “People from all kinds of backgrounds want to see these things happen. Kamala Khan’s Ms. Marvel is a huge testimony to this.” “Also Saga,” she adds, referring to an Image Comics book created by writer Brian K. Vaughan and artist Fiona Staples. “All the Saga,” she enthuses, in the parlance of a true comic book fan. The day’s events include a series of panels seemingly designed to encourage and cultivate a new cohort of comics creators, including A Day in the Life of a Villain: Alternative Perspectives in Comics (Making Comics #1). This is a creative writing workshop in which attendees will explore alternative perspectives and give the villains a chance to tell their tale. Plus, Now Let’s Draw It: All-Ages Mini-Comic Workshop (Making Comics #2), which is a pretty self-explanatory event. Both workshops will be facilitated by 826Michigan, which just celebrated the official opening of its new Detroit Robot Factory location at the Eastern Market. Aside from the practical skills of writing and drawing, women in the business need a super-set of professional skills, and these will be bolstered by panels such as Making Diversity Mainstream: Stop Talking, Start Doing with Natasha Alterici (creator, HEATHEN), Sarah Kuhn (author, Heroine Complex), and Mariko Tamaki (writer, This One Summer; The Hulk; Supergirl: Being Super), and Breaking into Comics: Strategies to Survive and/or Avoid Working for the Man, with Janelle Asselin (publisher, Rosy Press), Emmy Award-winning Megan Rose Gedris (creator, Meaty Yogurt), and Arielle Jovellanos (artist, Fresh Romance). “It really warms my heart to hear from several of last year’s ComiqueCon attendees that their daughters had a plethora of role models to look up to in our featured guests and exhibitors,” Liddy says. “If a 10-year-old girl walks away from ComiqueCon thinking that she can create comics for a living, then I’ve done my job.” Other events of the day include a cosplay contest with prizes for the best
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costumes and an exhibitor area featuring up-and-coming comic creators. Cosplay (short for “costume play”) is a thriving collective practice of all-ages dress-up, wherein cosplayers re-create and interpret their favorite characters. “Cosplay is so popular right now, and I think there is still a lot of work to be done to make it an inclusive activity for everyone,” Liddy says. “A duo that cosplayed Halo Kitty won last year! I would really love to see more young cosplayers because of the adorable factor, and I definitely expect to see more Star Wars characters and Ghostbusters.” This year’s ComiqueCon is making an all-ages push, with all-ages activities including a photo booth, children’s comic workshops, Etch a Sketch portraits, and more — and children ages 12 and younger can attend for free. Whether you’re a female or femalefriendly comic book fan, a cosplayer or just eager to test run your Halloween
look, a parent looking for a day of family-inclusive fun, or a creator hoping to get a handle on how to succeed in the business, ComiqueCon 2016 has something to offer. ComiqueCon will take place Oct. 22 at the Arab American National Museum. Tickets for ComiqueCon are $12 in advance and can be purchased at comiquecon.com. Tickets at the door are $15. Comic fans 21 and older can attend an exclusive Drink & Draw event at 8 p.m. on Oct. 21 at Green Brain Comics, to meet and mingle with ComiqueCon’s featured guests in an intimate setting while enjoying local music, casual sketching and coloring, and hors d’oeuvres. Tickets for Drink & Draw are $25 in advance.
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C ULTURE
HIGHERground
Growing good cannabis businesses in Detroit by Larry Gabriel The original Bena Riamba — or “Sons of Hemp” — lived in equatorial West Africa in the 1800s. They were a cannabis cult that had spiritual and medicinal uses for the plant. The Bena Riamba were credited with changing the warlike nature of the Bashilange tribe from which they emerged. Detroit’s Sons of Hemp has also cast a favorable eye on cannabis. According to a press release they recently sent out, the “Sons of Hemp is … a diverse group of herbalists, caregivers, and medical patients in the hemp/cannabis industry whose sole purpose is to unite, educate, create opportunities and support ownership in every facet of the hemp and cannabis industry.” According to Ron Jones, founder of the organization, the Sons of Hemp grew from a series of informal coffee meetings with various people in the
industry. About a year ago when the city began its push to regulate and shut down dispensaries, they were concerned that the few black-owned establishments would get squeezed out of business. “Because I’m a caregiver, I saw that all over the country we minorities had no representation on the business side,” Jones says. “In seeing that and then seeing what was happening in the city of Detroit, we needed to come together, pool our resources, educate people and develop good relationships. This group of like-minded individuals saw this industry was here and going to stay. We recognized that unless something changed that indigenous Detroiters were not going to be part of it — another billion-dollar industry that we don’t have ownership in.” So they formed Sons of Hemp
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(SOH). The name came up because someone in the organizing circle happened to have read an article about the Bena Riamba and brought that to the table. “We came across the meaning of that culture,” says Jones. “It was us. When you research it you find it’s about love, peace, coming together in unity, a family in harmony. It was something that brought them together. It’s the same thing here; were just coming together.” The group has been around for less than a year, and to date the biggest thing it’s done is bring a suit against the city of Detroit alleging that the zoning ordinance regulating dispensary locations is unconstitutional. That was filed in the spring and the case is still alive in circuit court. While that issue kicks around, SOH is moving forward with other issues.
Most crucial at this point are plans for a cannabis school in Detroit. Like any other industry, cannabis businesses can use an incubator to help nurture them along the way. SOH intends to focus the school around Michigan cannabis law, cultivation, how to successfully run your cannabis business, and the
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C ULTURE endocannabinoid system. The endocannabinoid system is a series of receptors in the human nervous system that interacts with the cannabinoids in marijuana. These receptors are why we feel the effects of the plant. It was discovered in the late 1980s by researchers trying to figure out the mechanism through which marijuana affected people. They also discovered that the human body naturally produces its own endocannabinoids. Although your doctor probably doesn’t know much about cannabinoids, they are the keys to the medical side of marijuana. They are what researchers experiment with and they are the reason little kids with epilepsy can reduce their seizures from hundreds each week to a handful. “Instead of budtenders, we’re going to have an herbalist who specializes in the endocannaboid system,” says Jones. “That’s the concentration, learning about that system.” The idea for a school comes is a natural outgrowth of SOH’s focus on education. The more factual information people have about marijuana, the lesser the stigma against people who use it. And that stigma, probably more than anything else, keeps a lot of African Americans from trying to get into the cannabis business. Well, that and the fear of getting busted. It is well known that although minorities use marijuana at about the same percentages as whites, minorities get arrested and go to jail for it at much higher rates. That factors in when someone considers getting into the business, or speaking up in support of marijuana in the community at all. “To be honest with you, I’m not comfortable, but it has to be done,” Jones says. “We want to protect people’s rights. We want people who are interested, who feel like they want to come out, we’re all doing it together. We all feel that we are in the right lane and we are helping people. That takes a little bit of the burden off.” So maybe it takes a village to get into the marijuana business, or at least a school. Certainly there are people — supporters and haters — who need schooling on the subject. Oaksterdam University, the California medical marijuana trade school, attempted a Michigan-based spinoff that didn’t take off. Maybe Detroit can be the place where education fosters a solidly rooted industry. And it’s all the better that SOH is focused on helping to bring blacks into the business. The Bena Riamba called their land Lubuku, which means friendship. Maybe Detroit’s Bena Ri-
HIGHERground amba can bring more cannabis friendship to the city. SOH can be contacted at sonsofhemp420@gmail.com. We don’t smoke … oops, we do — Developing your own strain of marijuana is not that difficult. Basically, if you get two different strains to mate, whatever grows is your unique strain. Now getting a great strain and reproducing it is a little harder. Then getting other people to want that strain is a next step. That’s where celebrity branding comes in. The latest (and I mean “late” as in “dead”) celebrity to have his name associated with a brand of marijuana is country music star Merle Haggard, who died this past April. Merle Haggard’s family is working with a Colorado company to release a line of connoisseur strains called Merle’s Girls. Haggard — who got famous singing “we don’t smoke marijuana in Muskogee” — has apparently been at it. He reportedly initiated negotiations on the deal before he passed on to honky-tonk heaven. Merle joins Snoop Dogg, Bob Marley, Tommy Chong, Willie Nelson, Ghostface Killah, Wiz Kalifah, and Melissa Etheridge, whose names also appear on a cannabis product. The practice looks lucrative. The Canadian Canopy Growth Corp. saw its stock rise to an all-time high recently after it announced a partnership with Snoop to release a line of Leafs by Snoop in the Canadian market this month. Medical marijuana is legal across Canada and the government is working on a plan to roll out legal recreational use. Keeping it clean — If you already use Dr. Bronner’s soap, then you already use a hemp product. But the tingly soap people apparently want you to find other uses for cannabis. Dr. Bronner’s announced that it has donated $660,000 to marijuana legalization campaigns in California, Massachusetts, Maine, Arizona, and Nevada. A Dr. Bronner’s press release stated: “The expected sweep of these states will exert enormous pressure on federal lawmakers to end the racist outdated policy of cannabis prohibition, that shreds productive citizens’ lives and families for no good reason, and focus law enforcement resources instead on actual crime.” Couldn’t have said it better myself.
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letters@metrotimes.com @gumbogabe
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savagelove
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I’m 64 years young, a musician, chubby, full head of hair, no Viagra needed, no alcohol, I don’t mind if you drink, smoker, yes I am. I am also faithful, loyal, and single for five years. No health issues, nada, zero, zilch. Not gay, not prejudiced against gays, pro-woman, Democrat, MASCULINE. Except I only like the younger women and women without tattoos. And I like them FEMININE. Ladies my age are a shopping bag of issues with children and ex-hubbies. NO THANK YOU. So what’s my problem? Young women see me as an old gizzard. I am not ugly, and I look younger than 64. But I see what younger women go for. These girls are missing out on me because they would rather be abused, cheated on, and kicked around by some young prince. Be my guest, dear! Another problem is that I don’t go to bars or really go out at all, so how the hell am I going to meet a girl? But I long for a girl I can cherish. I’m even willing to marry the right girl if she wishes, no problema. Who cares about age? I sure don’t, but they sure do. Of course, I will die first; she can keep the car and everything else for that matter. I can’t take it with me. So I have about 24 more years of life and I don’t want to wait. Dreaming is free, of course, but I want it right here, right now. Am I asking for too much? Oblivious Ladies Disregard Elder Romeo
A
Who cares about age? You, OLDER, you care about age. You rule out dating women your own age and then toss out two and possibly three stupid rationalizations for not staying in your actuarial lane: Women your age have children, ex-husbands, and tattoos(?). All bullshit. Women your own age might be likelier to have children and ex-husbands, but there are plenty of childless women out there in their 50s and 60s, OLDER, younger women are likelier to have tattoos, and everyone (yourself included) has exes. And excuse me, but women your own age are a shopping bag of issues? You’re a shopping mall’s worth of issues yourself, OLDER. Issue number one: You can’t be honest, even in an anonymous forum, about why you wanna date younger women—they make your grizzled old dick hard—so you take a dump on all older women. Issue number two: male entitlement syndrome. (The universe doesn’t owe you a younger woman, OLDER; the universe doesn’t actually owe you shit.) Issues three, four, and five: an inability to spot your own hypocrisy (I mean, come on), a clear preference for nursing a fantasy (the young woman of your nicotine-stained dreams) over accepting reality (there’s no settling down without settling for), and the probability that
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by Dan Savage
you’ve watched way too many movies with actresses in their 20s playing the romantic interests of actors in their 60s and 70s. If I may be blunt(er): You’re an older man, you’re a smoker, you’re out of shape, you don’t leave the house much, and, most fatally of all, you harbor resentment for the objects of your desire (“Be my guest, dear!”), something objects of desire always pick up on and are almost always repulsed by. (Let’s all light a little candle for the ones who aren’t.) So unless you’re a billionaire or an A-list actor, OLDER, the young woman of your dreams is unlikely to break into your apartment. (There’s not a lot of overlap between the young gerontophile community and the burglar community.) Not even the prospect of inheriting a used car 24 years from now is going to land you a young woman. My advice, OLDER: Keep dreaming. And if you want to be with a young woman once in a while, consider renting. But please don’t misconstrue anything I’ve written here as encouragement to date women your own age: They deserve better.
Q
I am a 63-year-old man and I am engaged to a wonderful woman in her 50s and our sex life is great. My libido is off the charts when I am with her, and she is always initiating. She told me she used to enjoy teasing and watching guys online shoot while she played with (and exposed) herself, and she loves to see huge loads. It is a massive turn-on for her. But I’m at an age where I produce hardly anything when I ejaculate. Is there a way to increase my production? Is there some way to increase the volume of my loads by a large amount? We watch porn that has guys shooting seemingly endless streams and she gets crazy horny watching them. I would love to be able to do the same! Need To Fill The Girl
A
Hydrate more, NTFTG, and go longer between orgasms (days, weeks), and you might see a moderate increase in volume. But you’re never gonna blow loads like you did in your teens and 20s, and you’re never gonna blow loads like guys do in porn. Remember: Porn producers, professional and amateur, select for big load blowers, NTFTG, so those samples (and those loads) are skewed. So what you’re doing now—enjoying your fiancée while not denying her the pleasure of watching her porn (and then reaping the rewards yourself)—is without a doubt your best course of action.
C mail@savagelove.net L@fakedansavage
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C ulture ARIES (March 21- April 20):
You have all kinds of stuff whipping up the dirt in your relationship department. Some of it is worth the drama — some of it is nonsense. Only you can tell what’s going on here. The stakes will be high or low. It’ll be easier to live with the consequences of your actions if you’re too young to know any better. If you’ve been down this road before, it’ll be fun until the law of karma steps in to knock you to your senses. In other areas, too much is at stake to be careless, or overconfident. Self sabotage comes in all shapes and sizes. Thin ice is everywhere. This test could kick your ass. TAURUS (April 21 -May 20):
Give yourself whatever it takes to stay on track. Slipping back into old patterns could squelch the better part of what you came here to do. Torn between the idea that you need to preserve your security and keep working for the man, and the thought that you have better things to do, it feels like it’s time to go out on a limb. I am here to encourage you to take that leap. The things that made life worth living before your world got filled up with fear and expectation are where your attention needs to go. It’s pretty simple. Everything will turn around once you flip this pancake. GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Getting back on track is where it’s at right now. Heavy doses of PTSD are driving you to need to settle down and simplify everything. It’s one thing to have a positive attitude and quite another to assume that it erases any chance of sadness or negativity ever showing up in your life again. Your story is way too complex to reduce it to pat prescriptions and over-the-counter solutions. It would be great if you could haul back and give yourself a little more time to access both the damage and the grief, with an eye to allowing all of it to resurface and accelerate your healing process. CANCER (June 21-July 20):
Things are picking up and this could be the start of something big. If it’s hard to believe, your doubts are unfounded. The next few weeks will roll out possibilities, one at a time. Don’t let yourself be distracted by blasts from the past, or people and things that crop up to make you think you owe them something. Too much matters for your priorities to be intruded upon by anything but what’s next. It’s taken about a year to see the light. Now that you’re here, your viewpoint has changed enough for your current goals and plans to reflect a clearer vision of you.
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horoscopes by Cal Garrison LEO (July 21-Aug. 20):
The way things look, you’re having a tough time in a situation that appears to be totally blissful from here. Isn’t it funny how life has a flip side? As you try to figure out why everything feels less than perfect, know that regardless of how you see things, your lessons revolve around being here for as long as it takes to bring everything back to balance. You won’t know why, or have a clue about how important this is for a few months. There’s enough incentive to hold steady, knowing that Karmic debts are getting paid off in a saga that is spinning out one day at a time.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 21-Dec. 20):
You’ve been out on a limb more than once. If anyone knows how to make things work when there’s nothing to work with, it’s you. At this point, you might as well go for it because there is no other option and time is of the essence. Lots of stuff is getting churned up. Family matters, along with decisions that are about to test all of your faith, need to be addressed when you’re less preoccupied with externals. None of this will be easy if you don’t give yourself room to breathe. As you put your affairs in order, keep in mind that other people can only be there for you up to a point.
VIRGo (Aug. 21-Sept. 20):
You can’t make any hard and fast choices at the moment. As much as the desire to move, or get out of Dodge, or get out from under the stuff that keeps all of us enslaved, propels you to wish you could walk off the set, it’ll be at least two months before you know what you want to do. Avoid the impulse to micro-manage things that require more faith in the idea that you’ll be OK no matter what. Even if you’re totally content with your situation, aspects of it are slated for upsets that will make you question your investment in things that have outlived their purpose.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 21-Jan. 20):
You could be in over your head, in ways that are hard to pin down. Nobody can tell how hard this is for you — mainly because you’re geared for situations that turn out to be more than you can handle. As you keep your chin up and your mouth shut, more than one thing is not going as planned. I see more chaos than usual. I see people and things testing your limits, along with a need to set clearer boundaries and stop being so wishy-washy about making tough decisions and sticking by them. This is a huge karmic milestone. Don’t mess it up. Everything matters right now.
LIBRA (Sept. 21-Oct. 20):
Before you jump down anyone’s throat, make sure you have your facts straight. The tendency to assume way too much is making it hard for you to get what you want out of this. Whoever’s driving you nuts might as well be 4 years old. The next time you get into a tiff with them it will help you to remember that it took them forever to get this messed up. Stop needing to be right about everything. If you can detach enough to stop judging them and listen to their story with an open heart you will be able to communicate well enough to fix what isn’t working here.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 21-Feb. 20):
This is easier than you thought. After a whirlwind, things are settling into stable patterns that you can begin to identify. In the midst of all this people’s true colors are shining through — for better or worse — and you’re looking at what this might require from you. When one thing changes, everything changes. Give yourself a few months to observe and regroup. People are bound to test you. Remain alert to their machinations, and just as aware of the need to refuse to put up with any further bullshit. The less drama the better. You have lots of power and are calling the shots.
SCORPIO (Oct. 21-Nov. 20):
You are in a discovery process that is about to take you out of the box, beyond your comfort zone, into situations that are due to challenge your well-ordered perceptions. Don’t be surprised when there are comings and goings that overwhelm your defenses. There are a raft of issues about to be cleared in encounters with people who are finally ready to reciprocate. You don’t need to do much but stay on top of your game and pay attention to the signs. Hard work will pay off, and so will every effort you make to keep your stuff from interfering with what is about to unfold.
PISCES (Feb. 21-March 20):
There’s more than enough to distract you. On top of everything else, you’ve got your hands full with personal issues, and multiple pressures that would cause anyone else to snap. I don’t know what goes on in your head when you fall asleep at night, but there’s no way to wrap your mind around a situation that defies definition. As far as other people are concerned, it’s hard to know for sure who you’re really dealing with and what you’re really up against. Trusting anyone? You have been burnt too many times. Strap on your discernment. There’s a good chance it’ll happen again.
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