Detroit Civic Action Center

Originally Posted on February 24, 2018

A Hardee’s employee in Woodhaven, Michigan, has accused other Hardee’s employees of discriminating against him for his sexual orientation. The employee recounted that after an incident where he accidentally spilled ketchup on his shirt, his employees laughed it off and the jokes seemed harmless. The jokes eventually led to him discovering that homophobic slurs were allegedly being used against him when he was not around. Higher-ups allegedly knew about this inappropriate behavior, but no one took action. The employee recounted that his general manager, Scott Papineau, threatened that if he kept working like a “f*ggot”, he could walk off the floor and never come back. This incident allegedly occurred today. The employee feels that he was being bullied by other Hardee’s employees. He recalls being lied on by another employee, causing a customer to yell at him and accuse him of saying something inappropriate that he insists he never said. He believes that other employees were involved in an attempt to get him fired. 

#LGBTQIAIssues #homophobia #lgbtq #LGBT #homophobia

Originally Posted on December 22, 2017

The Church Militant Group prides themselves on being a peaceful group, unlike the “Anti-Christian group of Antifa radicals, Satanists, and Gay activists” who protested on Wednesday. This "peaceful" group has took to doxxing, harassing, and insulting people who have attended the protest. Vengefulness isn't peaceful or Christian-like.

The “Catholic” Group doxxed one of MDPAN’s newest members. They used his picture, full name, and place of employment in their coverage of the protest. He has lost his job because of it but was given a new one by a local activist. Church Militant Group has included the full name of another protester in their article and she is currently being harassed on social media by the group’s followers. Group members have resorted to insulting another MDPAN member’s looks, who’s picture was also featured in the article. They even misgendered her. MDPAN’s Facebook page has also been full of Church Militant Group members looking for arguments. The comment section under the protest’s article on their official website has several people insinuating that the protesters will “burn in Hell”. There are even homophobic, transphobic and ableist comments. So much for a peaceful Christian Group right?

Here's a few of their "nice" comments towards the protesters:

#faith #christianity #mdpan #christiannationalism

Originally Posted on October 15, 2017

Kneeling protests have been the topic of discussion for the past few weeks. The NFL has received backlash for players kneeling during the national anthem in protest to police brutality. Unfortunately, people are more outraged about the kneeling than they are about police brutality. Patriotic Americans have taken it as a protest against the American flag and disrespect towards our veterans. Many have called for boycotting the NFL. Players who participated have received death threats. The president has even suggested that they lose their jobs. One of the first NFL players to do it, Colin Kaepernick,  was blackballed because of it. 

Last Sunday, MDPAN went to Ford Field to kneel in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick and the other brave players. We divided into two groups. The inside group protested inside of the stadium, revealing a banner that read “Detroit Kneels with Kaepernick and the Lions” during the national anthem. The outside group protested at one of the nearby gates with signs like “Hold Killer Cops Accountable” and “Take a Knee Against Racial Injustice”. The outside group was met with hostility from Lions fans. One man repeatedly shouted “All Lives Matter” as a way to silence protesters. Another man argued that there was no point of kneeling and that we should be ashamed of ourselves for doing this during the national anthem. Many fans screamed, “Get a Job!” as they walked pass protesters. Some people were even disrespectful towards the veteran who protested with us. What happened to respect for our veterans?

Overall, I think we can say that the protest went pretty well. Although there were plenty of angry Lions fans, no violence occurred. Opposing sides protested at the other end of the stadium, but we never crossed paths. Everything remained peaceful. 

#racialjustice, #blacklivesmatter #takeaknee #colinkaepernick

Originally Posted on September 16, 2017

Tuesday, Little Caesars Arena finally opened their doors to the public. To celebrate, they paid Kid Rock, the self proclaimed "King of Detroit Love" to perform for six nights straight. Kid Rock also has his own restaurant with the arena. Which is pretty odd considering his support of President Trump and the confederate flag. Why is it odd you ask? Well more than 80% of Detroit is black and Detroit's taxpayers involuntarily paid $300 million for the $863 million dollar arena to be built. Many Detroiters criticized Little Caesars Arena's decision to have Kid Rock perform. Many wanted his concerts to be cancelled. But did the arena listen to the taxpayers who paid for most of their arena? No.

On Tuesday evening, hundreds of protesters took to the streets so their voices could be heard. Starting from Grand Circus Park, protesters marched to Little Caesars Arena. Screaming chants like: No justice, no pizza; No hate, No KKK, No Fascist USA; The Anti-Kid Rock protest was met with opposition from the Michigan Militia/Bikers for Trump. Bikers revved their motors as an intimidation tactic and to drown out the words of the protesters. The bikers even had their own Pro Trump and Kid Rock float with quotes like "Drain the Swamp", "Make America Great Again", and ironically, "Unite America". Protesters were also met with jeers and boos from the arena's restaurant goers on a balcony. Concert goers often ran past the crowd shouting words such as "Four more years!", "Kid Rock for America!", and "Get a job!". Kid Rock fans who wore Confederate flags or "MAGA" hats faced ridicule by the crowd. The protest also featured a "Walk of Shame" where protesters made space for concert goers to walk while also heckling them for supporting someone like Kid Rock.

Kid Rock's concert is going on night five. We are expecting his announcement on night six, his last night, to see if he will actually be running for Michigan Senate or not. Hopefully not, but if he does decide to follow Trump's path and run for public office, expect opposition. We also encourage you to boycott Little Caesars Arena who has shown they care more about taxpayer money than the taxpayers themselves.

#Politics #RacialJustice #kidrock #gentrification #littlecaesarsarena

Originally Posted on September 11, 2017

Recently, I attended a Slutwalk protest in Detroit. I had been anticipating it for weeks. I was so excited to see all the signs and the outfits. But the Slutwalk is so much more than signs and outfits. It's not just about women walking around half naked. It's about taking a stand against rape culture. It's about speaking out against victim blaming, slut shaming, transphobia, sexism, homophobia, racism; I can go on and on. Contrary to popular belief, it isn't just about women being proud to be sluts. It does play a part in it ,though. And I'm not mad about that.

Detroit's Slutwalk took place in Palmer Park. One of the bordering streets of Palmer Park, is Woodward Avenue and West Seven Mile. Woodward Avenue is a notable street for sex workers. Many transgender sex workers have lost their lives on Woodward Avenue and West Seven Mile, making it an important street to have the protest at. I remember one of the speakers asking everyone to have a moment of silence to think about all of the sex workers who had lost their lives on the street we were standing on. That was the first time I had heard about that. I remember riding past those women as a child. I never thought about how dangerous it was for them. I never realized how many had actually died on that street.

Counselors had took the time out to support the cause and to also provide support to people who could be triggered by the stories of the speakers. I will be honest and say that a lot of the stories about rape were triggering for me. I tried to hold it in and distract myself, but my friend encouraged me to talk to one of the counselors. The counselor understood that I was angry. She told me that attending the protest was a step forward to me, and I agree that it was.

Hearing stories from victims of sexual assault and domestic violence gave me mixed emotions. I balled up my fists from anger as I listened to the things they experienced. It felt like I would burst into tears at some moments. I also thought about how much courage it took for everyone to share their stories.

Screaming "Sexual assault is not our fault!" with the other protesters was empowering for me. We also screamed, "Who's streets? Our streets!" and it made me feel so happy. It felt better to know that I wasn't alone. There was no judgement. No one was there to spread violence and hate. The protest was filled with love and support. I hope to see more of it in the future.

 #Feminism #GenderEquality #LGBTQIAIssues #Peace #slutwalk #detroitslutwalk