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• Why I Joined The Suit

• Edith Lee-Payne

  “Since marching with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 48 years ago (Detroit-June 23, 1963 and Washington DC August 28, 1963), most of my life has been advocating for civil rights and social justice. Family, friends, and others seem to regard me as the “Go To” person for resolution to matters bureaucracy tends to complicate.

  “As a Christian, mother of two sons, grandmother of eight, and civil rights activist with experiences of racial and social injustices, I have a personal and moral duty to ensure my family and community continue to inherit the constitutional provisions they are entitled to morally and legally in every area of their lives. PA-4 returns this State to an unpleasant, unfair, and unconstitutional past. This legislation is a painful reminder of the sacrifices and ultimate sacrifices, people paid to have a better life for themselves and others while mandates were disregarded then too. Countless Black Americans met their death with freedom papers in their hands because a select few people refused to acknowledge their rights and freedom.

  “PA-4, the Emergency Manager law, severely compromises rights by excluding people from the legislative process and alters the separation of powers. This legislation denies participation and access to the decisions that affect our lives presently and in the future in ways from which we may never recover.

  “The danger represented by PA-4 can be seen by the impact of the Emergency Manager appointed to the Detroit Public Schools system, Robert Bobb, who left DPS with a greater budget deficit. When Emergency Managers appointed under PA-4 do damage like this, there will be no way for taxpayers to recover wasted funds or institute legal action against the individual responsible.

  “The legislators that enacted PA-4 did so willfully, knowing it is an affront to the Constitution under which we live. Unless the Constitution has been repealed—and it has not—PA-4 should and must be struck down.”

  Tameka Ramsey

  “I have been voting since I was 18, because my father instilled in me that people died for this right. I now have someone telling me that my vote and voice does not matter.”

  Born and raised in Pontiac, Tameka Ramsey is 32 years old, married and the mother of two. A manager at a social service agency, Tameka holds a bachelors degree in social work from Wayne State University and is now pursuing a masters degree in Urban Planning/Community Organizing. She is focusing on community organizing in her graduate studies because she wants to make a difference “at a larger, community level than helping one person at a time.”

  “My personal stake in this lawsuit is, JUSTICE! I have been voting since I was 18, because my father instilled in me that people died for this right. I now have someone telling me that my vote and voice does not matter. I live and work in Pontiac and now I have someone that is not affected by any of services that are cut, not asking me for my opinion or even bothering to give me information about issues that directly affect me.

  “Pontiac is starting to look like Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. All of the City’s assets are being sold off and none of the money is coming back into the city to provide improvements. There are no activities for the youth; crime is on the rise, the people attend City Council meetings in hope of being heard and the EM then threatens to stop the meetings.

  “I understand that the finances in the City of Pontiac are bad and that some elected officials might not have done what is right; but that is no reason to disregard a right that people fought and died over.

  “I think this is the first step to a dictatorship. When urban, majority minority, communities are targeted, to take away the voice of the people–the people that have fought for the right to vote someone in and if they don’t like the job that they are doing, vote them out–then I think we are one step away from Cuba. Why are our troops fighting for freedom in other countries if we don’t even have it in our own?”

  Libby (Elizabeth) Brown

  “The Declaration of Independence states that ‘governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.’ I  believe not in revolution in the streets, but rather a revolution in the courtroom. I teach my students that power in a democracy is in the hands of the people.”

  Libby Brown has taught in the Jackson schools for over 30 years.She teaches her students in United States Government classes that democracy is a system of selecting leaders and establishing government mechanisms so that policy reflects citizens’ priorities.

  “This is not happening in Michigan today. Our Governor and legislators have decided that this process can be abolished and decisions can be made by one appointed ‘emergency manager.’ What became of a government of the people, for the people, by the people? If one emergency manager can come into a city or a school district and do away with collective bargaining, local decision-making done by local officials that have been elected by the public,etc. it is NOT a democracy.

  “I teach my students that power in a democracy is in the hands of the people. I teach them that every man’s vote is important in a democratic society. Am I not telling the truth?

  “The Michigan State Constitution—the highest law in our state—has been violated by our Governor and legislators and the proper way of stopping this is through the legal system.

  “If one person can come into a school district and make arbitrary and capricious decisions involving local, hard-working people, we are moving backwards in our society. What the Governor and legislators are doing is a direct attack upon the middle class for society’s economic problems, and we are not the cause of them.Don’t punish the majority  of the people for the mistakes of a few. Give the power back to the people, where it belongs.

  “I believe you should stand up for what you believe in, I am passionate about teaching about the Government, and I care about being a good role model to my students. By joining this lawsuit challenging clear violations of our Constitution, I believe it will not only help my students in the long run, but the citizens of Michigan, as well.”

  Sr. Suzanne Sattler, IHM

  “I strongly believe in the value of individuals working together to improve the quality of life in our local communities.”

  Sue Sattler has been a Catholic nun since 1965, a resident of Detroit since 1968, and an attorney since 1976. She has been active for decades with nonprofits concerned with education, mental health, social services, environment, housing, etc.

  “My interest in this lawsuit stems in part from my experiences as a high school teacher of United States history and as an attorney. Both roles have emphasized for me the importance of promoting meaningful voting practice among citizens. To enact a law that basically states the decisions of the voting public can be nullified undercuts the premise of voting. When I look at the U.S. history of intense, valiant struggle to achieve the right to vote for women, first, and then, finally, for all adults in the US, I am appalled that this constitutional right can be usurped in Michigan via PA-4.”

  “How can we call ourselves a democracy  when a state’s legislators can pass a law that in effect nullifies the voters’ decisions? How do we teach children of the importance of voting in a state when the choice of the majority of voters can be nullified?”

  
  

  Jacquie Steingold

  “Although I may not like or approve of some government officials, they were elected by the people! I cherish the vote and what many in the past went through to secure this basic right.”

  Detroit resident Jacqueline Steingold earned a Masters degree in social work from Wayne State University and has served on the faculty of her alma mater as well as Marygrove College, Madonna University, and Siena Heights University. Previously she was Legislative Aide to two Michigan State Senators and has also worked extensively with youth in both preventative programs and the courts system.

  Jacqueline has joined with others in taking legal action against the Emergency Manager law because “I have a personal stake in this lawsuit. I am a citizen of this state and country, and I believe my inalienable rights are being taken away by a law that fundamentally threatens the democratic process. This Act will negatively impact me and my community because it is a form of dictatorship. Although I may not like or approve of some government officials, they were elected by the people! I cherish the vote and what many in the past went through to secure this basic right. This can now be cavalierly taken away.

  “PA 4 is a scary piece of legislation. Allowing Emergency Managers to run school boards, cities and townships fundamentally threatens our democratic form of government and takes away my local and state rights.

  “I am a lifelong Detroiter and I vote in every election. The candidate I might prefer may not be elected, but I can expect the elected person to represent me. When he or she is sworn into office, a pledge of accountability is made. With an Emergency Manager, where and how is accountability accomplished? Where is the check and balance?

  “I fear that the appointment of an Emergency Manager means my voice won’t be heard because my elected representative will be able to be removed without cause. My rights won’t be a concern of an Emergency Manager. It is dangerous to invest an individual with such complete power. I can recall losing a job that I did very well in because my supervisor just decided he didn’t like me and said ‘it was a wrong fit.’ I clearly recall he referenced what a good job I had done.

  “An Emergency Manager can do the same to any elected official. I don’t want to see decisions made on such a cavalier basis at the whim of one who has illegitimate authority.”

  Dave Frederick

  “It is simple-minded to think that a single dictatorial, unaccountable, minimally trained individual can adequately replace the combined knowledge that local citizens have about their own community or school district. Taking away the people’s right to elect and hold accountable their representatives is undemocratic, unconstitutional and exemplifies an abuse of power.”

  Dave Frederick is a lifetime Michigan resident and currently lives in a small energy-efficient home in Montague. He retired after 40 years as a teacher and administrator in Michigan public and private schools. Dave served a term on the Executive Committee for the Sierra Club West Michigan Group and has volunteered with Earth Institute of West Michigan since 2007. Dave is a founding member and current co-chair of Reviving Our American Democracy, a West Michigan civic action group.

  Having served on numerous non-profit and community boards and also operated as the CEO under other boards, Dave has experienced the wisdom and experience provided by a diverse group of citizens. Dave votes in every national, state and local election. He finds it unbelievable that, in America, his votes on issues and candidates could be overruled by an unelected bureaucrat.

  “I have never wanted for food, shelter, education or work. For most of my life I have enjoyed freedoms and a way of life that others in this world don’t have and for which many are willing to die. I cannot begin to understand why I have been given such abundance and happiness while others live under oppression, poverty and despair. I am greatly disturbed that powerful people in our country do not want to share the good and just life with others. In their quest for wealth, they seem equally intent upon destroying our democracy and taking rights, freedoms and a reasonable standard of living away from their fellow citizens.

  “I am driven by my perception that I must show appreciation for the exceptional life I have been given. To be who I am, I must give back and I must fight back. This is my personal stake in this lawsuit.

  “While I have only lived in this community for four years, I consider my towns to be the twin cities of Montague and Whitehall. Each of these cities seems to have its own identity. Likewise, the two school systems in Montague and Whitehall have their identities. I am concerned that the bigger-is-better corporate thinking of the Snyder Administration, cuts to municipal revenue and school funding, and an eventual emergency manager takeover will bring consolidation to one or all of these entities.”

  
  

  George Reeber

  “I am challenging PA-4 because it is essential to protest any legislation that violates our constitutional, democratic rights.”

  Now retired, George Reeber worked in the auto industry for 35 years. He and his wife, who is also a plaintiff in the action opposing the Emergency Manager law, have been married almost 50 years, lived in Detroit most of those years, and raised five daughters.

  “We were social activists for peace and justice and tried to instill these values in our daughters. We raised them to be socially responsible and respectful of differences. We emphasized the benefit of living in a democracy in which everyone had the right to vote to elect at the local, state and national level those who we thought would best represent us.

  “There are valid ways to address misfeasance and malfeasance in local communities through the courts, the criminal justice system, and yes, through the ballot box. PA-4 now puts that essential democratic right and process in jeopardy. PA4 allows the State to usurp and invalidate the roles and rights of duly elected officials of communities and school districts whenever the State decides an Emergency Manager that the State has selected and appointed can do better job than the elected officials have done.

  “I am challenging PA-4 because it is essential to protest any legislation that violates our constitutional, democratic rights.”

  Brenda Reeber

  “I am speaking out because I believe that the gradual erosion of democratic rights that we have all experienced over the years has become a landslide in our state.”

  Now a resident of Ludington, Brenda Reeber and her husband George (also a plaintiff in the lawsuit challenging the Emergency Manager Law) previously lived in Detroit.

  “Detroit is where we grew up, went to school, married and raised our five daughters. It was also where we became very aware of the social and economic disparities that divide us into haves and have-nots. That gulf has become deeper over the years and the middle class, the buffer zone, has shrunk dramatically.

  “I am speaking out because I believe that the gradual erosion of democratic rights that we have all experienced over the years has become landslide in our state under Governor Snyder and the Republican legislature. That is most evidenced by Public Act 4 which allows unelected outsiders to be sent into a local community or school district and take over its affairs whenever the state deems the community or school district incompetent.

  “There is no check and balance in this process. There is no court hearing, no debate, no democratic process. The state just declares incompetence and takes over. This paternalistic legislation hastens the erosion process and must be repealed if we are to slow the landslide.

  “I am a registered nurse with a specialty in rehabilitation. I recognize that some communities and school districts, like individuals who have become disabled, aren’t able to overcome their disabling condition without some therapeutic intervention, and successful rehabilitation must be based on acceptance of differences and respect. Nowhere in the elements of this legislation do I see any of those elements. This is about takeover, not about rehabilitation.”

  Michael Merriweather

  

  “There is not an Emergency Manager in Ann Arbor, the community where I live. Some people might wonder why I care, but when I turn on the television and see local governments in Benton Harbor or Detroit being dismissed, assets and services taken over and sold off, by an unelected, unaccountable, bureaucrat, it is impossible for me not to feel outraged.

  “America prides itself on being a free and open democratic society, but in Michigan the state government can seize control of any local government and do with it whatever it wants. That is tyranny. There is a lot of talk about what we should be doing to foster democracy abroad, but what we need is a conversation about restoring democracy at home. People have a right to participate in the institutions that govern their lives. In Michigan that right has been taken away. It is time to take it back.”

  Evelyn Foreman

  “Citizens in the Middle East are rebelling against the absolute power of abusive dictators. Yet Americans are violating the rights of other Americans.”

  Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Evelyn Foreman has spent most of her life in Detroit. A retired teacher, mother of three and grandmother of four, she has been active in her community through Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, her community association and block club, her children’s schools, and as a leader of Gray Panthers of Metro Detroit.

  In 1968, she was especially affected by the by the struggles of the striking Memphis sanitation workers and the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “Dr. King’s assassination led me to conclude that that I could and would have to do all that I could for as long as I could when and wherever I had a chance to make a positive difference.”

  “I can see what PA-4 will mean by looking at the anti-democratic measures and practical failures of the Emergency Manager in Detroit Public Schools,” Evelyn says. “The state appointed an Emergency Manager after crippling the system through inadequate funding. I have worked as a teacher in buildings where the ceiling has fallen in, where heating and cooling was a threat to one’s health, and the tools of the profession have been inadequate. But the Emergency Manager has not been able to give the children in my community the highly qualified professionals and supportive working-learning environment they need.

  “In social studies, we begin teaching children in first grade about core democratic values and the power of the vote. Emergency Managers are a poor real-life example of our core democratic values in action.”

  “I feel violated as an American citizen. Citizens in the Middle East are rebelling against the absolute power of abusive dictators in Libya, Yemen, and other autocratic nations. Yet Americans are violating the rights of other Americans by assigning dictatorial financial managers whose voice overrules the voice of ‘we the people.’”

  Patrick O’Connor

  Patrick O’Connor is a wetlands biologist, currently employed by the U.S.Army Corps of Engineers as a biologist. He has lived in the Washington Park neighborhood in Pontiac for eleven years. He also sits on the board of directors of a non-profit community art studio in downtown Pontiac, “The Art Experience” and particularly enjoys hiking and bike riding on the Pontiac rails-to-trails behind his lovely neighborhood.

  I have lived in the Washington Park neighborhood of Pontiac, Michigan for eleven years. The neighborhood borders Sylvan Lake and West Bloomfield, and the Clinton River flows through Beaudette park and then through my neighborhood.

  When neighbors of mine and I heard of a proposed concrete crushing plant on city land that would inject relentless noise and unhealthy concrete dust into our neighborhood, we went before the Pontiac planning commission and told them the negative impacts the plant would have on our neighborhood. The Planning Commission listened to our concerns, heard that it was a bad project, and prevented it. The land borders a rails-to-trails that I helped get a $90,000 grant to build. Other people obtained funds to connect the Pontiac rails-to-trails to surrounding communities.

  Now, thanks to the current Pontiac Emergency Financial Manager there is a junkyard proposed on the city land, which lies beside the Clinton River and a marsh that expands into Crystal Lake. 33 acres of woods and wetlands beside a rails to trails holds great possibilities for science education, public recreation and building bridges between Pontiac and surrounding communities.

  But the so-called emergency manager can plunk down a junkyard that would be an eyesore and a source of pollution for the sole purpose of making a few bucks to pay off a debt. He has no sense of Pontiac’s past or its future; his sole concern is to pay some bills. He is not accountable to the citizens of Pontiac or to their children. Having an unelected emergency manager who is not accountable to me or my neighbors is anti-democratic, anti-American, and it’s wrong.

  Betsy Coffia

  Now in her early thirties, Betsy Coffia has lived in northern Michigan since she was 5. Homeschooled through 12th grade, she graduated with an associates degree from Northwestern Michigan College and earned a bachelor’s degree in social work from Ferris State University. While in college she spent two spring breaks building homes with Habitat for Humanity. Betsy spent six years as a journalist before becoming a full-time community volunteer.She tutored and mentored elementary school students, and then took a position with Head Start to help children and families in poverty.

  “I grew up in Rapid City, rural Kalkaska County and used to ride over a mile on my bicycle with my brother almost every day in the summer to one of Torch Lake’s public accesses to swim. Our family didn’t have lake frontage, but we got to enjoy this fantastic and famous lake because of PUBLIC accesses. We also swam and played in Rapid River in Freedom Park, Clearwater Township. This too was available to us because the park was free and open to all.

  “One of the worst things about PA-4 is that it gives the power to an Emergency Manager, who is unelected and unaccountable to local citizens, to make decisions about what happens to public parks, river frontage and lake accesses like the ones that linked my siblings to our wonderful summertime ritual. Lake frontage is coveted andcould be a poor community’s most valuable asset. If a community is struggling financially, an Emergency Manager could say, ‘You can’t afford to have free public accesses. Golf courses make lots of money. The kids can find somewhere else to swim.’

  “I grew up in a poor community. Many of us did and in these tough times, many more children in Michigan are now growing up in towns that are struggling. These beautiful parks and lakes and wild places are our havens. They are where we play, where we dream and grow.

  “As a social worker, I now work with many families in poverty. I cannot bear to think of these beautiful (and often few) opportunities to enjoy Michigan’s natural beauty being made “for profit” and forever off-limits to kids who can’t afford to pay for a membership. Michigan’s natural resources belong to ALL. No one person should have the power to take them away, without even being required to consult with the people of the community! This law totally erodes the idea of local control and of my vote as a citizen having any value.”

  Dave Ivers

  After graduating from high school in Detroit, Dave Ivers attended Wayne State University and subsequently joined the Navy, where he spent three years in the Submarine Service. He then became an engineer and served for many years as a business agent for International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 547.

  Dave and his wife Nancy have been married 41 years and have two children and four grandchildren. They are active in their church, Historic Trinity Lutheran, located in downtown Detroit.  They have worked on behalf of many social justice causes. Dave serves on the board of the Macomb County Interfaith Center for Racial Justice, the Opportunity Resource Fund and Elder Law of Michigan.

  “I am proud to be part of the lawsuit because it fights back against the total lack of concern for the citizens of Michigan shown by our legislature and our Governor. These lawmakers think they know more than our own citizens on how to run a community or a school district. I think it’s significant that this mistrust and paternalism are aimed particularly at communities that are predominantly African-American.

  “Our legislature and Governor are hell-bent on eliminating all services that help the least of us! And this action of Lansing shows that they have no respect for the will of the people. They are attacking all the institutions that make a middle class, and every process and right that makes for a real democracy.”

  Ahmina Maxey

  My family left Detroit and moved to Oakland County during the 1980′s, and that is where I grew up. My parents left because they wanted a better life for their children, and saw leaving their community, culture, and home as the only way to do this. I, however, have been drawn back to metro-Detroit and now live in Ferndale and work in Detroit with an environmental non-profit. Although I did not grow up in Detroit, it has a place in my heart like nowhere else. I want to come back to my people, my culture, and my family’s home and am working hard to see Detroit rise up as a great city. However, I am fearful of living somewhere where I have no democratic rights as a citizen.

  This law squanders my rights as a citizen of Michigan, a resident of Ferndale, and a potential Detroiter.

  Paul Jordan

  “Over two hundred years ago, some of my ancestors fought the most powerful empire in the world to end the rule of kings and dictators on American soil. For the first time since our Revolution, dictators are being imposed upon our citizens. This is not being done by some foreign power, but by our own state government.”

  Paul Jordan runs the the Social Work Technician program at Mott Community College in Flint. He and his wife Cheryl have been married for 32 years and have two grown daughters and a grandson.

Paul has been active with the Flint Symphonic Wind Ensemble, and as a member of the Flint school board. He served on the board of Planned Parenthood of Eastern Michigan and was a founding member of the Progressive Caucus of the Genesee County Democratic Party. But he believes he has made the most difference in his community “by raising daughters who have a high degree of social consciousness, and the knowledge and determination to effectively attack injustice.”

  “While on the school board, I helped develop strategic plans that assisted the district to maintain its focus while dealing with continuing dramatic losses of the city’s population and associated per-pupil funding. The financial distress of Michigan’s cities and school districts results not from incompetence by city councils and school boards, but from state government’s failure to keep its promises. The state promised but failed to provide adequate funding. At the same time, it imposed new requirements, shifted costs to local governments, and sharply limited their ability to tax themselves. These policies create a catastrophic financial burden that falls particularly hard on cities and school districts that are, like my city, predominantly black and poor.

  Paul has joined in taking legal action against the Emergency Manager Law because “People have an inviolable right to rule themselves. My greatest stake is as a citizen and elector who lives in an economically-distressed and predominantly black Michigan city.

  “PA 4’s threat is not abstract. Benton Harbor is now being treated, as a result of that law, as a colony whose citizens have no right to govern themselves. Instead, the governor has imposed a viceroy who may rule with no accountability to the people whom he governs.

  “This situation is unjust, un-American, and totally unacceptable. The principle of government by and for the people has been important enough for Americans to fight and die for over the years. It is certainly important enough to fight for in the courts.”

  Kym Spring

  “Before I was old enough to vote, I went door-to-door encouraging others to participate. And for more than 30 years, I have continued to engage citizens in the democratic process.”

  Grand Rapids resident Kym Spring is a lifelong educator whose experience includes appointments in the White House and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as well as work on the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 50th Anniversary NATO Summit. Today, Kym works throughout Kent County to prevent foreclosure and fight its negative effects.

  “In 1992, teaching second grade, I worked hard to incorporate environmental science with math and reading. The President was leaning towards not attending an unprecedented Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. My students decided to write letters imploring the President to attend. Luckily, I knew someone that could deliver the painstakingly crafted letters my students wrote directly to the White House before Bush announced he was going to Rio.

  “My students believed their letters made a strong enough case to convince the President to go. And maybe they did. But more importantly, they felt empowered by participating in our democracy.”

  Now Kym has joined the lawsuit against PA 4 because “I believe that our government, our democracy, can work, but it has been undermined by the Emergency Manager law. The motivation for people to engage because they think it makes a difference has been sabotaged.

  “A hired gun can now remove the people we elect to represent us. When an unaccountable bureaucrat has carte blanche, our democracy and our rights are violated.

  “I’m joining this lawsuit because it reflects the sage words of Lincoln at Gettysburg: ‘That government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.’”

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• The Maurice & Jane Sugar Law Center for Economic & Social Justice is a national nonprofit public-interest law center, dedicated to defending the rights of working people and their communities. When people anywhere in the US face workplace or social injustice, the Sugar Law Center and its broad network of cooperating attorneys provide representation to enforce their legal rights.

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