- We've got a great show coming up for you on "American Black Journal."

We are checking in on new efforts by two nonprofits to eliminate chronic homelessness here in Detroit.

Plus, an organization that supports Black-led businesses is preparing for a seven-day bike ride to bring awareness to their cause.

And Detroit DJ Whodat talks about her love, music.

Don't go away.

"American Black Journal" starts right now.

- [Announcer] From Delta faucets to Behr paint, Masco Corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support also provided by the Cynthia & Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit Public TV.

- [Announcer] The DTE Foundation proudly supports 50 years of "American Black Journal" in covering African American history, culture, and politics.

The DTE Foundation and "American Black Journal," partners in presenting African American perspectives about our communities and in our world.

- [Announcer] Also brought to you by Nissan Foundation and viewers like you.

Thank you.

(upbeat music) - Welcome to "American Black Journal."

I'm your host, Stephen Henderson.

Chronic homelessness is a major issue here in Detroit and all across the country.

My first guests are from two nonprofit agencies who are tackling homelessness by building new facilities that will meet the complex needs of the homeless.

The Pope Francis Center's Bridge Housing Campus will provide temporary housing and intensive support services, including medical and substance abuse treatment, mental health counseling, and social and job readiness skills.

And Mariners Inn is raising funds to construct a facility called The Anchor and it's gonna provide permanent supportive housing, addiction treatment, a computer lab, exercise areas, and much more.

Here's my conversation with the CEO of Mariners Inn, David Sampson, and Father Tim McCabe, who is executive director of the Pope Francis Center.

I wanna start off by saying that this is a subject that I think all of us come into contact with as we move around our city, but so few of us actually stop to think about what's going on or what could be done.

And so upfront, I wanna say kudos to both of your organizations for leaning in and trying to figure out how we do better by folks who really need the help.

But I wanna start by talking with you, David, about this new idea that you have, where it comes from and how you think it will affect the homelessness problem that we have here in the city of Detroit.

- Yeah, well, thank you, Mr. Henderson, I appreciate it.

Thank you for having me here and allowing us, me an opportunity to talk about something that's really been near and dear to my heart for quite some time.

And that's the homelessness issue, especially as it relates to people who are disadvantaged and suffering from some sort of a dysfunction like mental illness or addiction, which is where we specialize in the most.

And you mentioned the new project that we have going on here at Mariners Inn, it's called The Anchor.

And what The Anchor will really allow us to do is to expand those services to people who need it most.

Right now we operate a permanent supportive housing program and a recovery housing program in our current building.

And what the new structure will allow us to do is take those two programs and put 'em into the new building, and thereby expanding our services in our current structure.

And mind you, this will all be going on while construction is underway.

So it will expand those beds to about 82 in total.

44 of those beds will be permanent supportive housing beds, 100% affordable, section eight, which is something that I'd be extremely pleased about.

And the other thing that I'm pleased about about this new venture that we're embarking on is it opens our services up to men and women.

- Yeah.

Father Tim, I'm pretty familiar with what goes on at the Pope Francis Center as an occasional attendee at Peter & Paul Catholic Church.

But tell our viewers about the work that goes on there, which is so critical for the homeless population in downtown.

- Sure, so we've been at it for about 32 years now.

We have a day center at the back of the church, which has been renovated so that we're able to provide a couple of nutrient dense, balanced meals for those who are experiencing homelessness, along with showers, laundry, medical, dental, legal clinics that are anything we can do to help them in their daily lives.

But we did decide, about five years ago, that this approach, while what we do is beautiful, I think we treat people with dignity and respect, but I wanted to do more.

I wanted to be more involved in the transformational aspect of this and to help people really get off the streets.

So I went around the country and I looked at 27 different programs in about 10 different cities and I looked at what was working and what wasn't working, who was the most effective at treating chronic homelessness and what were they doing, and I came back and designed a program, and like Mariners Inn, we're in the process of building a campus where folks can come and stabilize from the presenting issues that are causing the homelessness.

And while they're with us, we'll begin to work with them on finding them permanent housing.

- Yeah, yeah.

So there's an interesting kind of spectrum represented in the two ideas here.

One is kind of aimed at, I guess, emergent and transitional homeless issues.

The other is more anchored in the idea of current solutions.

I wanna talk a little about the population we have here in Detroit and how fluid it is.

It's one of the things I think people don't quite understand, that there is this spectrum of people who find themselves without a place to live.

And their problems fall along that spectrum.

Sometimes it is a temporary issue, sometimes it is something that we can really fix quickly.

Other times, it's something that really needs long-term attention.

Father Tim, I'll start with you and what you see there at Pope Francis.

- So we're seeing about 150 to 200 people a day.

That's steadily increasing since the pandemic.

And I think the latest point in time count is that we're around 1700 homeless.

That's counted in January, so it's an inaccurate number, as we all know, but it's the best we've got.

And of those numbers, probably around 200, a little over 200 are chronically homeless, which means that they've been on the street for a year or longer or four times in the last three years.

So those are the different populations.

And we do see, especially since the pandemic, I've seen a lot more men in their 50s, first time homeless, some crisis has happened, a lot revolving around the pandemic has led to their homelessness.

So those folks without significant mental illness or addiction issues are generally pretty easy to move into, get them back into housing.

The others, those who are folks that are on the streets longer term, habituated a lifestyle and have a much harder time getting housed.

And that's why we really wanted to focus on those folks who are seeming to fall through the cracks.

- Yeah, yeah.

David, what about you?

- Yeah, I concur with Father Tim.

I think one of the things that kind of upsets, that has been setting the trend since COVID, it's impacted everybody, everybody in the world, really, is that we've noticed a lot of mental illness co-occurring disorders with the people that we serve.

And they've gotten more severe in terms of what we have been traditionally focused on, which was substance abuse, treatment, and recovery.

And now, with co-occurring disorders and the mental health illnesses more severe, we have to now focus on not just getting them into treatment and into care, but maintaining their care, maintaining their sobriety on top of maintaining housing.

You know, part of of what makes this new structure unique and what we're doing is that those permanent supportive housing apartments will be theirs, it will be something that they can call their own.

It will be something that they won't be forced out of, unless of course something that's just out of our control that we can't control.

But I think by providing them with that sense of, as Father Tim mentioned before, dignity and respect and something to call their own, a place of their own, actually promotes the idea of long-term recovery, long-term sobriety.

And it's more important to us to see people in that atmosphere versus seeing them on the streets with no place to go and no place to call their own.

I think it helps us to be able to help them because in turn, after doing that, it's amazing how much then they decide to help someone else.

And you know, we have an aspect of our program we call it our Alumni Peer & Recovery Support Program that gives back in a way that's phenomenal because what better way for someone to get the help that they need than to hear from someone who's actually been there themselves.

So that's another unique aspect of what we do here.

- Yeah.

I started off the conversation talking about how this is an issue that all of us come into contact with in the city from time to time.

I can't imagine an existence in Detroit without seeing the problem that we have with people not being able to find shelter or adequate shelter.

You know, I'm a graduate of U of D Jesuit High School and I remember spending time over at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen, trying to make sure people had food during the day.

I wonder if you can talk, each of you, just a little about how we get people the opportunity to be more proactive about support for the homelessness.

As I say, we walk by them all the time in this city.

I think for a lot of us, it never clicks that, hey, there's some role that I could play.

There's something I could do.

There's something I could be a part of that could alleviate that.

David, I'll start with you this time.

- Yeah, thanks.

Thanks, Stephen.

I get asked that question a lot, especially by people who want to help us and volunteer for us and donate items for us to help care for the people that we serve.

They'll typically say, and we see it a lot in the city, whether it's over at an overpass or on a corner of a busy intersection or something where someone's holding a sign, saying whatever it is that has to do with being homeless and needing food, what do you say?

What do you do?

What do you do in those circumstances?

And I always say to them, "They are people.

They are people just like we are and they had a life before the life that you see them living now.

Stop and talk to them.

Stop and ask 'em if there's anything you can do to help support them getting better."

And sometimes you might run into some people that say, "You know, I'm fine, just leave me alone.

I'm trying to do whatever."

But it shouldn't prevent you from at least knowing their story.

The more stories that you know and the more things that you understand about why people end up in the circumstances that they're in, it gives you a better opportunity to support what it is they're trying to do if they want to get better, while they're trying to get better.

So I say you talk to them, you learn their story, you find out ways that you can help.

We're always open to providing the resources necessary to lead them in the right direction.

You can refer them to us and then we can refer them to a place that will best fit their needs.

But we don't pass up opportunities to help people by not addressing, in some circumstances, the elephant in the room.

Because I've seen a lot where people just go right by, don't say anything, unless it's something that's labeling or stigmatizing.

So treat 'em like people.

- So Father Tim, I was at St. Peter & Paul the Sunday that they dedicated the "Homeless Jesus" statue out front, which I think is a really important reminder of just what I'm talking about, the idea of walking past and not noticing, not feeling empowered or obligated maybe to do very much.

Talk about the way we draw people in to the process that you're involved in.

- Yeah, that statue is a great reminder that we all carry within us that human, the divine, right?

The divine life that requires respect and dignity and is seen as worthy.

So I think David hit it right outta the hat.

I think relationship is key to understanding and being a part of it.

I always say over and over again, "When we all do our part, miracles happen," and I get to see that on a daily basis when, as volunteers come in, as donors help fund the program.

But it really is, really, it ultimately is about relationship and knowing, understanding the folks that are experiencing homelessness.

I think trauma is the underlying cause of all homelessness.

I've seen that over and over again.

And to begin to recognize that as the core issue that is causing homelessness, and there's a lot of it, there's racial trauma, there's generational trauma, there's childhood trauma, there's trauma of becoming homeless.

Like the idea of going into a lifestyle that's unsheltered is a traumatic event for so many folks.

And then there are continually abused on the street with people panhandling that are yelled at and just treated terribly.

So understanding that that's what's underneath a lot of the mental illness and addiction that we're seeing can allow us to begin to see, let them show us our humanity by revealing their humanity.

And I think that that's the core of how if people wanna help, they can come down to the Mariners Inn, they come down to the Pope Francis Center.

There's multiple ways in which they can get involved, but really getting to know their stories.

Like David said, this is not the life that they imagined when they were children.

And a lot of 'em are, there's a lot of shame around mental illness and addiction, there's a lot of struggles with homelessness around those areas.

Understanding their humanity and their struggles allows us to engage and find our own brokenness, understanding our own trauma, our own struggles with addiction.

And that's when one, as David said, it's one person talking to another, the same thing, that's where healing and miracles happen.

- Yeah.

Okay, David Sampson of Mariners Inn and Father Tim McCabe of the Pope Francis Center, really great to have both you here.

Congratulations on the new projects and thanks for joining us on "American Black Journal."

- Thank you, Stephen.

- Thank you, Stephen.

- The really cool nonprofit organization Black Leaders Detroit is gonna hold its annual bike ride from Detroit to Mackinaw City later this month.

The Ride for Equity is designed to raise money for African American entrepreneurs in Detroit and to bring attention to the importance of equitable funding practices.

"American Black Journal" contributor Will Glover spoke with the group's CEO, Dwan Dandridge.

- So the Ride for Equity, it's a seven-day ride, 377 miles across the state.

So we ride from Detroit to Mackinaw the week before the Mackinaw Policy Conference every year.

And it's an effort to raise awareness for our cause as well as a fundraiser for the organization and the work that we do.

One of the things that we do in several cities over the course of those seven days is we add community conversations that we call Speak for Yourself.

And we invite people from some of the cities to come out and have honest conversations with us about what does it mean to be good neighbors to one another across boundaries and borders, but also honest conversations about equity and how that shapes out and plays out and our role in creating it.

- Right.

So, wow, kudos to that, because that is amazing, an amazing thing to do.

So to change gears a little bit, you are a businessman in southeast Michigan, you are a CEO of a company that does wonderful things for other businesses in Detroit.

So now I want to get your opinion, as someone who has a unique perspective and experience on things.

So when we're talking about Black business in particular, a lot of times in the conversation people will point to places like Atlanta, Houston as being bastions of Black business and Black excellence and leadership and all these kinds of things.

Do you feel like Detroit gets its proper recognition in that conversation when it comes to the Black entrepreneurship, Black business, and Black business environment here in Detroit and southeast Michigan?

- I would say first, like huge shout out to Atlanta and Houston, right?

Like they're doing some amazing things and when we are talking about Detroit, as Detroiters, it's no slight on anything that's happening in some of those spaces, but I think that one of the things that we need to do is make sure that we're making it easier for the Black entrepreneurs here.

- The Black Leaders Detroit Ride for Equity takes off at 8:00 AM from University of Detroit Mercy on May 21st.

You can find more details at blackleadersdetroit.org.

It's almost time for the Movement Electronic Music Festival, which will take over Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit over the Memorial Day weekend.

One of the scheduled performers is Detroit DJ and producer, Terri McQueen, better known as Whodat.

one Detroit contributor Chien-An Yuan spent time with the artist and has this report.

(soulful music) ♪ When all the love is gone ♪ ♪ My heart to be all alone ♪ ♪ Sunshine, it's what you are to me ♪ (people chattering) ♪ Can't imagine my ♪ - Becoming an artist takes a lot of work.

For me, actually, the beginnings of it is learning to become an artist.

Believing that I was an artist.

I never considered myself an artist.

I think early on, I was trying to help other people with the things that they were doing and understanding things that needed to be done and helping them navigate through things.

And over time, I just realized you really have to take care of these things like a job.

(upbeat music) I started to understand promotion better when I heard people talking about visibility.

So by the time I did Movement, you know there's not many people that look like me that do Movement.

There's usually just a certain few.

So understanding that, like people need to see that because that's not something that I seen when I was younger.

And probably after Movement, I started seeing more people that look like me and they're like, "Yo, I seen you here.

I heard you here.

I had heard about you, but now I'm seeing you more, and you inspire me to do it, it lets me know that I can do it.

When I get frustrated it's like, well, if she got here, then I know I can get there.

I'm just gonna have to work through whatever I need to work through to get there."

And it's important.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) Being from Detroit and making music is we stick to what we know.

This is what I'm doing and how I'm going to do it.

And I'm not changing my mind.

I don't care what you think.

I don't care what you like.

I don't care what you don't like.

When you're creating art, you're not necessarily thinking about like, "Yeah, everyone's gonna love this or like this."

You're just getting your creative output out.

It's what people need to do.

But when the money comes into it, you're like, "Oh man, I might lose my livelihood," or "I might lose my house," or "I might, well, I already lost my house, I don't really care.

I have nothing to lose 'cause I've already been through that.

What else you got?"

And that's a Detroit thing.

People getting laid off or losing their job and plants closing and somebody being on drugs or somebody dying at a early age or them just having a hard life growing up or you getting like in a car accident or just whatever.

It's just like our makeup.

Like yo, I don't really care.

I'm working to get here and this is where I'm going.

You either in it for the ride or you can get out.

That's it.

(keyboard bass humming) My new toy, my first, maybe second mode 'cause this actually is the first one that works that, but you had to put together like a little kid.

(keyboard bass humming) So probably mostly basslines with this and experimentation.

So we made the main bassline on "Don't Know" from this sequential, but we have no idea what patch was.

It's somewhere in here.

But that's fine 'cause that song's finished.

(laughs) I wanted to make it a new one.

Timeless.

(quirky music) (upbeat music) If you're a good person and you have a good heart, most things'll probably just coming to you.

For a long time I've felt undeserving of the things that were coming to me 'cause I hadn't been doing this for a long time but my mom was like, she explained to me, "You have to understand, you never look at all the things that you do for other people and you've always done that and you've always been that person.

So everything that you have coming to you, those are just things that you have already done."

Knowing that, I understand, well, this needs to be seen so that people can start understanding, okay, you can do this too and you can get over there.

You can be where I am.

(upbeat music) - That's about it for us this week.

You can find out more about today's guests at americanblackjournal.org and you keep connect with us anytime on Facebook and on Twitter.

Take care and we'll see you the next time.

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] From Delta faucets to Behr paint, Masco Corporation is proud to deliver products that enhance the way consumers all over the world experience and enjoy their living spaces.

Masco, serving Michigan communities since 1929.

Support also provided by the Cynthia & Edsel Ford Fund for Journalism at Detroit Public TV.

- [Announcer] The DTE Foundation proudly supports 50 years of "American Black Journal" in covering African American history, culture, and politics.

The DTE Foundation and "American Black Journal," partners in presenting African American perspectives about our communities and in our world.

- [Announcer] Also brought to you by Nissan Foundation and viewers like you.

Thank you.

(bright music)