Ellen Shanna Knoppow
County Commissions Take Lead on Expanding LGBTQ Rights in Michigan
Editor's Note: This piece originally incorrectly listed Oakland County as "taking the lead" in passing a resolution supporting the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. Shortly after publishing this original piece, BTL learned that commissioners in [...]
Ann Arbor Pride Co-Director Talks Community and Connection
Inspiration Born from Tragedy One year after Joe Schoch attended his first Ann Arbor Pride, formerly known as OUTFest, he knew he wanted to become actively involved with the festival and sign up to volunteer. But it wasn't just because he had a [...]
Grosse Pointe Pride Features 2 Notable Grosse Pointe South High School Graduates
An Unlikely Pair, an Unlikely Pride Equality Michigan Chairman of the Board Michael Rowady and up-and-coming New York drag queen Sierra Misst might seem like they have little in common. Yet both are alumni of Grosse Pointe South High School and [...]
Kalamazoo Pride: 1 Festival, 4 Perspectives
Kalamazoo Pride, a two-day festival celebrating southwest Michigan's LGBTQ community, was at Arcadia Creek Festival Place June 7 to 8. Between The Lines spent the second day at the park, and spoke with individuals while they staffed vendor tables, [...]
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib Walks the Walk: In the Pride Parade, and Beyond
Sharing the Love "You just felt pure love," Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib said, of the cheers she received at this year's Motor City Pride parade as she and her team marched down Griswold St. "It was an energy that…was empowering. You felt it in your [...]
NextGen: Take Pride in Your Vote
After registering young people to vote in unprecedented numbers prior to the 2018 midterms and contributing to the massive youth turnout for that election, NextGen America is only gaining momentum. According to Staci Lowry, Regional Organizing [...]
Pride Month Kick Off: A Hazel Park Double Header
Hazel Park: "The Friendly City" Just a few miles east and a few hours prior to the opening of Ferndale's big event, Pride month kicked off in Hazel Park with two much smaller, but no less significant ones: First, a flag-raising at city hall, then a [...]
Mayor Dave Coulter: Reflections on Nine Years of Service
Thank You, Ferndale "I am forever thankful that my political career was here in Ferndale, because I'm not sure it could have happened somewhere else," said Mayor Dave Coulter, who announced in April at the state of the city address that he will call [...]
Free Hugs, Fundraisers and Festival Organizers: How Volunteers Make Pride What It Is
Alexandra Beninda (right) sitting next to Transgender Michigan founder Rachel Crandall-Crocker. Beninda is a volunteer at Ferndale Pride this year who will be giving out free hugs. Alexandra Beninda: Have Hugs, Will Travel Free hugs. That's [...]
Your Parents are Going to Hell'
A Harsh Reality It's no mystery why 17-year-old Ellie Nagel-Bennett is so passionate about the Equality Act: she's experienced discrimination and homophobia first-hand, despite not identifying as LGBTQ herself. "You know that your parents are [...]
Amritha Venkataraman: From HRC to Hoadley Headquarters
"I had to say yes" What do you do when you're the Human Rights Campaign's state political director who just oversaw Michigan's blue wave and your old friend calls and asks you to manage his historic run for U.S. Congress? For Amritha Venkataraman, [...]
Justice Elizabeth Clement: On Politicizing the Courts, Child Welfare, the LGBTQ Community and RBG
An Unlikely Scenario Why would Between The Lines request an interview with a Republican justice on the Michigan Supreme Court? To begin with, Justice Elizabeth Clement, like many in the judiciary, would bristle at labeling judges Republican or [...]