Republicans turned back

The mid-term elections are over and the voters have spoken in a loud and clear voice that the politics of fear, division and greed are no longer welcome in Michigan. Both Gov. Jennifer Granholm and U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow were reelected by wide margins, and voters rejected Republican incumbents in the Michigan House of Representatives and the U.S. House, enough so that both of these bodies are now controlled by Democrats. The GOP has also lost seats in the Michigan Senate and the U.S. Senate. (Senate results were not finalized at press time.)
Congratulations Ferndale on passing that city's first human rights ordinance that includes LGBT people! Despite attacks and funding from right-wing groups outside the city, the Ferndale committee worked hard to pass this important measure, and their efforts paid off handsomely. This ordinance is another feather in Ferndale's cap, and further enhances the city's image as a hip, progressive, growing and dynamic community.
We breath a collective sigh of relief that Dick DeVos will not become Governor of Michigan. He is no friend of the LGBT community and under his leadership we would have not seen any progress on domestic partner benefits, second parent adoption rights, hate crimes legislation and certainly not on inclusion of LGBT people in the state's civil rights legislation. We know Gov. Granholm will support all of these measures. It is now up to us to call on her to champion them as well.
With control of the Michigan House and the Governor's office, the Democrats are now in a position to set more of the agenda. In her first term Gov. Granholm had to deal with a hostile Michigan legislature that drove her to use her veto power over 100 times. In her second term we look forward to progressive measures being introduced and passed, and then signed by Gov. Granholm. It will not be easy, and the conservatives that remain in the legislature will put up a spirited fight, but that only means we must work together, smartly, and in concert with our allies to build the coalitions we need to move our community forward to a safer place. We also need Gov. Granholm to speak up loudly and clearly for our rights and our lives, and we must keep the dialog going between her and the LGBT community.
With all the celebrating, we are also deeply saddened that it appears the discriminatory Proposal 2 has passed. It is naive and short sighted to even imagine that affirmative action is no longer needed. Of course it is. After decades – centuries – of disenfranchisement we must always be aware that people of color, women and disabled people deserve to be appreciated for the unique gifts they have to offer, and that our society is structured in such a way that we are hindered from appreciating those gifts. This amendment to our Constitution is bad for Michigan and sends a terrible signal to employers that minorities may not be welcome here. It is self-defeating, at a time when Michigan needs to attract the best and the brightest people from every walk of life. We hope that it will be successfully challenged in the courts, and we would support any and all efforts to remove this negative amendment from our Constitution.