Stateside

Three years into the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), more commonly known as bird flu, experts say there's no sign of infections slowing down. While this isn't the first time Michigan has seen a bird flu outbreak, the containment strategies used during the 2015 outbreak, such as euthanizing entire flocks quickly and investing in biosecurity facilities, haven't been as effective this time around. GUESTS ON TODAY’S SHOW: Kate Wells, health reporter for Michigan Public Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Laken Riley Act, which puts new restrictions on immigrants without legal status who are accused of committing nonviolent theft, received unexpected support from some Michigan Democrats, passed Congress this week. We unpack why they voted the way they did, and what the Act would mean for Michigan's immigrant communities without legal status. GUEST: Michelle Jokisch Polo, producer, Stateside Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Peterson, owner and co-founder of Castalia at Sfumato in Detroit, spoke with Stateside about his menu and the growing trend of mocktails in Michigan. The business is a natural botanical perfumery by day, and a bar by night. Each scent is paired on the menu with at least two cocktails - one alcoholic, and one non-alcoholic. GUEST: Kevin Peterson, owner and co-founder of Castalia at Sfumato in Detroit Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In his first 24 hours in office, President Trump signed a slurry of Executive Orders having to do with immigration, including a eliminating birthright citizenship, which is protected under the U.S. Constitution. GUESTS: Michelle Jokish Polo, producer, Stateside Susan Reed, Attorney/Director, Michigan Immigrant Rights Center See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Palisades nuclear plant is in Michigan, right on the shore of Lake Michigan, just south of South Haven. It stopped operations in 2022. The company that was in charge of decommissioning Palisades has decided instead to try to reopen it. The goal is to reopen sometime this fall. But after a meeting last week with the nuclear regulatory commission, that timeline is a little bit in question. GUEST: Dustin Dwyer, reporter, Michigan Public See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you feel like you're emotionally frozen this month? Are the endless Michigan gray days weighing on you? Or maybe your misgivings about true love, success and renewal are coming out again. Whatever the gloomy feeling, it means it's probably time to put on Frontier Ruckus' On the Northline (released in Feb. 2024). Today, we're revisiting the in-studio conversation and performance with Michigan’s own Frontier Ruckus. Matthew Milia, lead vocalist, says the key to art is making it specific. "It's seen in the best literature in filmmaking," Milia said. "Like the more specific you can be, somehow people out there can do their own like interior translation, and it actually makes the universal amplified within those specifics." The band isn't always in a hurry to release more albums. That's because they see themselves as friends first. But, as Milia points out, their albums provide both a light into their lives at the time and the music industry of the time. "[The music industry has] unrecognizably changed, especially post-pandemic," Milia said. "But, like looking back at every record, it came out in a different music industry climate." GUESTS: Matthew MiliaDavid W. Jones,Zachary Nichols, multi-instrumentalist Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fans all over the world have been following the Detroit Lions as they make history. That includes viewers from the UK, including Matthew Turner and Anthony Fitzpatrick. The two fans, along with five other UK-based co-hosts, produce Roar of the Lions UK, a podcast featuring seven Detroit Lions fans from the UK. They joined Stateside to share how they became fans of American football, and their thoughts on the team's historic season. GUESTS ON TODAY’S SHOW: Matthew Turner, co-host of the Roar of the Lions UK podcast Anthony Fitzpatrick, co-host of the Roar of the Lions UK podcast Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's a series of increases in minimum wages coming for tipped workers in Michigan. Some restaurant owners are worried what will happen to their businesses if they have to raise prices on the menu to cover the increase for their staff. GUEST: Gricelda Mata, owner of Lindo Mexico Restaurante in Grand Rapids See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We walk the showroom floor at the Detroit Auto Show, and catch up with the City of Detroit's official historian, Jamon Jordan, about the history of the Auto Show dating back to 1899. GUEST: Jamon Jordan, official historian, City of Detroit See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What a time to be a Detroit sports fan! The Lions are on their way in the playoffs. The Pistons just cleared .500. And the Red Wings? It’s been a long time since the team was swigging from the Stanley Cup. But things seem to be looking up, after some changes in the Wings’ coaching staff, and the team has shown much-needed new energy. We talked to Helene St. James, who covers the Red Wings for the Detroit Free Press, about how the team's new coach Todd McClelland seems to be turning things around. GUEST: Helene St. James, journalist covering the Red Wings for the Detroit Free Press Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you love "The Moth" you'll want to listen to this hour of storytelling from Detroit's StoryFest, recorded at the Detroit Film Theater last Fall. Thanks to StoryFest producers and organizers - Tay Glass, McArdle Hankin, and Ellison Libiran. STORYTELLERS (in order): Laura Weber Davis Bryce Huffman Samuel L. Jackson with "The Pelican" Shannon Cason Dame Wilburn See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the fervent years of the 1970s, a group of Latino and Latina students formed a collective of makers and artists at the University of Michigan. This community-minded group, La Raza, was about everything, from art to history and movement. Dave Choberka, curator for University Learning at the University of Michigan Museum of Art, and Félix Zamora Gómez, program coordinator with the university’s Arts Initiative, display these works in an exhibition titled La Raza Art and Media Collective, 1975 – Today. The contents of the display, which runs until July 20, 2025, include poems, artwork, gallery proofs and journal editions that discuss Chicano and Latino representation in the media and contain experimental visual art. According to Choberka, these editions marked the evolution and history of the organization. GUESTS: Dave Choberka, Mellon Foundation curator for university learning at the University of Michigan Museum of Arts Félix Zamora-Gómez, program coordinator for engagement, U-M Arts Initiative Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Detroit Auto show, and the auto industry overall, has seen a lot of change since the pandemic. This year, the show has returned to its original January schedule after a few slow years when the event was held in late summer. Longtime autos reporter Phoebe Wall Howard provided some inside perspective on the 2025 Detroit Auto Show, what it means to generations of folks who have attended, and what companies and dealers anticipate in the coming year. Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The cabins scattered throughout the Porcupine Mountains each holds a logbook for guests to complete. Since the 1940s, parks staff have collected about 200 completed books full of decades of stories. Special thanks to John Carlisle and Ryan Garza of The Detroit Free Press for their coverage of the Porcupine Mountains' logbooks. GUEST: Katie Urban, Park Interpreter for the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The next few years will be big ones for Detroit. In the last ten years, there’s been a national reawakening to Detroit’s possibilities. The incumbent mayor, Mike Duggan is moving on, and the city will have a very public conversation about the way forward, as his successor is chosen. And leadership will come in other forms, as well. One of the city’s non-profits, the Institute for AfroUrbanism, has come up with a series of grants supporting research into the infinite possibilities of Black futures. Today, a look at how the institute is empowering visionary leaders with innovative ideas for equity, opportunity, and transformation in the city. GUEST: Lauren Hood, founder and executive director of the Insitute for AfroUrbanism Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ducks are one of the first animals little kids learn about--rubber duckies anybody? But if you head to your local river or lake during the winter, the waterfowl you find there might be a bit...weirder than the kind you see during warmer seasons. Today's episode is all about those weird winter ducks and the people who love them. GUEST: April Campbell, doctor and birding enthusiast Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The new Congress is being sworn-in today in Washington D.C. That means there are some current members set to retire, including Michigan’s long-time Democratic Congressman Dan Kildee. He’s been serving as a U.S. Representative for over a decade, and representing Michigan’s 8th district since 2003. His successor, Kristen McDonald Rivet, will take office with the 119th Congress on Jan. 3rd. Michigan Public’s Zoe Clark spoke with the outgoing Representative from Flint about his dozen years in office. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the most-streamed films online is the original Star Wars: A New Hope. You can watch it in a bunch of different languages. Now, that includes Anishinaabemowin. That means Ojibwe people in Michigan and all over North America can see an absolute classic in their language. We talked to one of the actors involved in the Anishinaabemowin dubbing of the film about the project and what it meant to see one of Hollywood's biggest blockbusters in a language that many of his ancestors were once forbidden from speaking. GUEST: Niigaanii-Animikii Inini Kalvin Hartwig, filmmaker and voice actor Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Earlier this month, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad fled the country after a surprise offensive launched by opposition groups, ending the 50-year rule of the Assad family. For many Syrians living outside of the country, it's opened up the possibility of returning home, or visiting loved ones who stayed. We met one Syrian immigrant who built a life with his family here in Michigan after fleeing Syria over a decade ago. He reflected on his time in Syria, and his hopes for the nation's future. GUESTS: Adam Yahya RayesBasel Alyasin Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joe Cedillo was released Tuesday, December 10, 2024 from the Muskegon Correctional Facility after spending 38 years behind bars for a crime he committed when he was 18 years old. Cedillo’s case marks a significant milestone as the first in Kent County to regain his freedom following a state supreme court ruling that declared unconstitutional automatic life sentences without parole for people 18 years old and younger. We had the chance to meet him on the day of his release. Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way. If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work. Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.