Jesse Jackson’s Pearls of Wisdom: Should voters diversify, split vote?

Jesse Jackson’s Pearls of Wisdom: Should voters diversify, split vote?

Black leaders and organizations have launched an aggressive outreach campaign to get out the vote in November. But more than a large turnout this year, the Democratic Party faithful needs to vote with more sophistication than past elections. Blacks consistently practice one party politics in a two-party system. Despite giving the Democratic Party more than […]

Searching for the Mythical Yeoman Landlord: Detroit’s Rental Registration Ordinance

Searching for the Mythical Yeoman Landlord: Detroit’s Rental Registration Ordinance

Public champion Bill Johnson recently penned an article on his blog about how Detroit’s rental registration ordinance will exacerbate blight in Detroit neighborhoods. Financially struggling landlords will be unable to comply with the new regulations, he argues, and this untenable burden will displace countless Detroit renters. Johnson is hardly averse to taking strong positions, having […]

Code Enforcement = Blight Removal?

Code Enforcement = Blight Removal?

Detroit’s campaign to bring the nearly 40,000 rental properties into compliance with the city housing code by 2020 defies logic. These codes were intended to prevent neighborhood deterioration. This blitz, however, will accelerate abandonment and decimate both low-income and middle-class communities. Rental property owners will have six months to register their units, bring them up […]