BY SHARON GITTLEMAN
DETROIT – Politics brings plenty of disappointments and disillusionments to those who battle to make the world a better place to live.
Over the years, Brad Kenoyer, 28, has had more than his share of ballot-based miseries – including Sen. John Kerry's loss to President George Bush in 2004 – but he hasn't given in to bitterness.
When a ballot measure banning marriage equality in Michigan surfaced two years ago, Kenoyer offered out-of-state volunteers fighting against Proposal 2 the use of his empty Ferndale home during the months-long campaign.
"At any one time there were three or four people living in the house," said Kenoyer, who resides in Detroit with his partner Jordan Medeiros, 28.
The couple, who work as engineers in the auto industry, were glad to help, said Kenoyer.
"I wanted to be able to give something but I wasn't in a financial position to give thousands of dollars," he said. "We didn't think about getting married before, but the fact that we would be second class citizens is outrageous to me. The thought of someone wanting to write something in the Constitution that would make our relationship forever not equal made me feel enraged."
Kenoyer was devastated when the measure passed.
"I at least felt like we'd done what we could," he said.
That battle wasn't Kenoyer's only political effort.
His neighbor, Sharon McPhail, asked for the couple's help setting up fund-raisers during her bid to become Mayor of Detroit in 2005.
Kenoyer said he organized house parties for McPhail, coordinated volunteers and helped write policies about neighborhood revitalization, city structure and diversity.
The couple hosted a gathering in their Indian Village home when McPhail was mulling over endorsing incumbent Kwame Kilpatrick after her own campaign fizzled.
Kilpatrick came to the meeting and owned up to some of his past mistakes, said Kenoyer.
"He truly impressed us that evening," he said. "He said how he learned how important it was to have a thriving gay and diverse culture in the city of Detroit."
While many people talk about the downside of living in the Motor City, they don't mention the pleasures Detroiters experience, said Kenoyer.
"There are a lot of benefits in living here. The obvious one is the architectural diversity – the lofts, the cute bungalows, the mansions and even some of the new high rises downtown," he said.
People residing in his neighborhood tend to have a more urban, worldly outlook, he said.
"It makes them interesting, fun and unique," said Kenoyer. "You get blue and white collar, all the different races and tons of gays and straights."
Getting to know their neighbors is the best part of making their home in the city, said Medeiros. "People are really friendly and excited to see people living in Detroit," he said. "It's a big city but it has the friendliness of living in a small town."
Neither Kenoyer nor Medeiros are Michigan natives.
Kenoyer is from Seattle, Wash., and Medeiros is from Hawaii.
"We were shocked when we moved to Detroit at how open and accepting our neighbors were," said Kenoyer. "It needs to be seen as a welcoming and diverse city."
An LGBT social organization promoting living in Detroit is a vital step to achieve that goal, he said.
The gay community also needs to get more involved in the political scene, said Kenoyer, a "staunch Democrat."
"It's very easy for us to be invisible. It's very hard for us to come out," he said. "It would be nice to see one unifying cause moving people forward."
