Detroit, MI
Kwanzaa begins in downtown Detroit with kinara candle lighting
Detroit — A few hundred people braved a cold and gray Friday afternoon in downtown Detroit to warm their hearts in preparation for 2026 as the Kwanzaa season got underway with the lighting of the first kinara candle.
Now in its fourth year, the annual event in Campus Martius marks the first of the seven days of Kwanzaa with traditional African drumming and dance performances, as well as speakers discussing Kwanzaa’s significance. It culminates with the lighting of the world’s largest kinara.
“As the Sankofa symbol of West Africa tells us, ‘Return to the source,’ Kwanzaa has returned many to being mindful of their African heritage while strengthening community connections through culture and celebration,” said Nubia Morenike Wardford Polk, from the Detroit-based Nubian Archaeological Project.
Kwanzaa continues through Jan. 1. The celebration was established in 1966 to honor Black communities, culture and heritage.
The event incorporates seven principles — unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith — which are collectively called the Nguzo Saba and are each represented by the seven candles on the Kinara.
An additional candle is lit each day until all seven are lit on Jan. 1, representing activation of the principles for the new year.
“This is a favorite time for family and community to come together,” said Njia Kai, programming and special events producer for the Downtown Detroit Partnership, one of many local groups that help coordinate the annual event. “We discuss the principles, we re-establish our bonds, we have our children engaged … it’s just a wonderful seven days of fellowship.”
Kai was encouraged by Friday’s strong turnout despite the cold weather.
“Folks come. We expect the space to be packed out,” she said as people began filing into the seating area in front of the stage, where drummers were already banging out a hypnotic rhythm. “Like any other holiday that has a community associated with it, that community loves to come out and celebrate it.”
Event organizers say Detroit’s Kinara, officially dubbed the Motor City Kwanzaa Kinara, is the largest in the world.
City Council Member Scott Benson said Detroit is an appropriate home for the 30-plus-foot-tall structure, which was built by a team of Black architects, engineers and carpenters from the Detroit area.
“At a time when institutions around the U.S. are backing away from celebrating diversity, we warmly embrace it in Detroit,” the District 3 councilman said.
Friday’s celebration was hosted by John Mason, the longtime 105.9 KISS-FM morning radio host and Detroit Pistons public address announcer.
Mason said he studied under Maulana Karenga, the activist and author credited with establishing Kwanzaa, when he was a student and Karenga a visiting professor at Kent State University. At the time, Karenga went by the first name Ron.
“To the honorable Ron Karenga, we say thank you, and enjoy Kwanzaa,” Mason said.
mreinhart@detroitnews.com
@max_detroitnews
Detroit, MI
Preview: February 28 vs. Detroit | Carolina Hurricanes
RALEIGH, N.C. – The Carolina Hurricanes will try to extend their point streak to a dozen games on Saturday, when they go head-to-head with the Detroit Red Wings.
—
When: Saturday, February 28
Puck Drop: 7:00 p.m. ET
Watch: FanDuel Sports Network South, FanDuel Sports Network App | Learn More
Listen: 99.9 The Fan, Hurricanes App
—
Canes Record: 37-15-6 (80 Points, 1st – Metropolitan Division)
Canes Last Game: 5-4 Win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, Feb. 26
—
Red Wings Record: 34-19-6 (74 Points, T-2nd – Atlantic Division)
Red Wings Last Game: 2-1 Win (OT) over the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, Feb. 26
Detroit, MI
Terrion Arnold ‘maintains complete innocence’ in kidnapping, theft case
I represent Mr. Terrion Arnold in connection with an incident that allegedly occurred on February 4, 2026, in Tampa, Florida, which resulted in the arrest of five individuals on serious felony charges.
To be clear, Mr. Arnold had no involvement whatsoever in the activities that led to those arrests. He did not participate in, nor was he present for, any conduct related to the alleged offenses. There is no evidence in police reports, text messages, or witness statements that implicates Mr. Arnold in any way.
In fact, after direct communication with the lead prosecutor, it has been confirmed that no charges have been filed against Mr. Arnold in connection with this matter.
Recent media coverage has referenced an Order issued by Circuit Judge J. Logan Murphy, which improperly suggests Mr. Arnold’s involvement in the incident. That same Order also incorrectly identifies Ms. Devalle as Mr. Arnold’s girlfriend. Both assertions are false, misleading, and entirely unsupported by the record.
Mr. Arnold categorically denies these unfounded claims and maintains his complete innocence. He was not involved in the crimes allegedly committed on February 4, 2026, in Tampa, Florida.
We strongly urge members of the media to refrain from perpetuating inaccurate or speculative narratives. The facts are clear, and they do not support any claim of wrongdoing by Mr. Arnold.
Detroit, MI
Robert ‘Fish’ Jenkins helped Detroit students soar in sports and life
There was a time when many Historical Black Colleges had swimming teams. The late Robert ‘Fish’ Jenkins benefited from that era and then he spent much of his adult life lifting up youths in Detroit.
Black heritage tours teach travelers what they missed in history class
So much of America’s Black history isn’t taught in schools, but travelers can learn about some of those experiences on the road.
Cody Godwin, USA TODAY
The celebration of Black History Month throughout February provides an opportunity to share stories about Detroiters that have positively impacted the lives of others in a variety of ways.
And included among those stories that have been shared this month is a “Fish” story that is unique, without exaggeration.
That is because this story is about the late Robert “Fish” Jenkins Sr., a longtime Detroit educator and a groundbreaking coach, whose superpower was his ability to create life-changing opportunities for young people in unconventional spaces.
In 1969, Jenkins arrived at Detroit’s Northern High School as a physical education teacher and coach. During Northern’s heyday, the high school, formerly located on Woodward Avenue at Owen in the city’s North End, produced a host of high-profile sports stars, including basketball greats Bill Buntin — a two-time All-American center at the University of Michigan during the 1960s — and Derrick Coleman — the first overall pick in the 1990 NBA draft. And record-breaking sprinter Marshall Dill, Track & Field News’ High School Athlete of the Year in 1971, who set world records in the 300-yard dash while running for Michigan State University.
However, Jenkins specialized in coaching sports that were a little less popular among young people in Detroit, particularly Black students. Jenkins coached teams at Northern — and for one year at East English Village Preparatory Academy after he retired from teaching in 2001 — to 24 Detroit Public School League championships in swimming, golf and soccer.
“No matter what the sport was, he had the formula to make a team a champion,” Robert Jenkins Jr. said about his father, who died on Jan. 14 at the age 86.
“But more than that, my father had a profound impact on the minds of every student he touched. He brought golf, and all the lessons golf teaches, to the North End. And, in the summer, he had members of the swim team teach the younger kids in the neighborhood how to swim, which taught his swim team members how to give back to the community.”
During the evening of Feb. 22, Robert Jenkins Jr. took pride in sharing stories about young people who were coached and mentored by his father across multiple decades that went on to become “doctors, educators, business leaders, and parents” that have made positive contributions to the city of Detroit.
Robert Jenkins Jr. also described some of the friendly interactions that his dad had with notable people like U.S. Olympic sprint champion Wilma Rudolph and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Dick Barnett at Tennessee State University, where the elder Jenkins received the education and training that he needed to teach and coach student-athletes in Detroit.
But earlier that day, an equally compelling “Fish” story was told by another community member.
“Mr. Jenkins was a very important person in my life and he is one of the reasons why I have always tried to do my part when it comes to providing opportunities for young people in our city,” said Gary Peterson, who has coached young swimmers in Detroit for 47 years, including at Detroit’s King High School, where he coaches boys and girls swimmers today.
Long before Peterson coached high school swimmers — and youth swimmers of virtually all ages when he was a full-time swimming instructor for the city of Detroit’s Recreation Department — Peterson was on the swim team at King High School (Class of 1974), when Robert Jenkins Sr. came into his life.
“There were coaches at other schools that helped young swimmers that wanted to improve and go to another level, and Mr. Jenkins was one of those coaches,” said Peterson, who was coached at King High School by Clyde James, a lifelong friend and teammate of Jenkins on the Tennessee State University swimming team during the late 1950s and early 1960s, when they brought national attention to the school’s swimming program.
“Mr. Jenkins would make his pool at Northern available to students from other schools that wanted to get in extra practice. Then, as I got closer to going to college, Mr. Jenkins was the person who introduced me to the colleges that were recruiting Black high school swimmers.
“At that time, there were more than 20 HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) that had competitive swimming programs. Today, there is only one (Howard University in Washington, DC). But back then, Mr. Jenkins wanted to make sure we had the opportunities and exposure, which included sending a small group of us to South Carolina State for a recruiting trip.
“Afterwards, Mr. Jenkins even came over to King from Northern to present me with my scholarship to South Carolina State, while I was sitting in a King classroom. I couldn’t believe it and I was ecstatic, but everything that he did for me and other young swimmers in the city he did so willingly. And that’s what I always thought I was supposed to do as a coach.”
Peterson said he would do even more with Jenkins when Peterson returned to Detroit from Orangeburg, South Carolina, after graduating from college.
“In the late 1980s, a team I was coaching at Johnson Recreation Center and Mr. Jenkins’ team at Northern, traveled to Washington DC as one team in February to compete in the Black History Invitational Swim Meet. And that tradition of Detroit competing as one team at that meet continued every year until COVID,” said Peterson, who also recalled that Jenkins coached softball and even junior varsity football for a time, in addition to swimming, golf and soccer.
“Just as Mr. Jenkins thought it was critical for us to come together and take our kids to DC for that swim meet because it was the biggest showcase for Black swimmers, he wanted all the young people he coached to have good training and exposure. And in my case, as the son of sharecroppers, I can say that Mr. Jenkins inspired me as well, as a swimmer and a coach.”
Every time Peterson walks into King High to coach the current group of swimmers at the school, he said he is reminded of Jenkins and other important people that paved the way for Black swimmers in Detroit.
For example, in 2023, the natatorium at King was rededicated as the Clyde James Natatorium by the Detroit Public Schools Community District. Peterson says the renaming was not only a salute to James, who was a finalist in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Championships in the 100-yard butterfly during the 1960-61 season while swimming for Tennessee State, but also a tribute to the fabled swimming program that was once housed at the Brewster Recreation Center, which helped to develop James, Jenkins and many other Detroit swimmers that competed nationally. Brewster’s early swimming program was led by the legendary Clarence Gatliff, an all-city swimmer at Cass Tech during the 1920s.
Another pleasant reminder of the history and evolution of Black swimmers in Detroit that Peterson sees when inside King High is 54-year-old Robert Jenkins Jr., an educator like his father, who is teaching personal finance this school year at King and hopes to honor his father’s legacy this summer by offering a swimming and golf program to students.
“I want to make sure that Detroiters understand my father’s legacy,” said Jenkins, a 1989 graduate of Northern High School, who explained that his father and mother (Norma Jean Jenkins) taught him and his sister (Dr. Marlo Rencher) that “we don’t half do anything.”
And that includes community service.
“My father was a servant leader and he would offer encouragement to any young person he was around, not just the students he coached. And paying it (that support) forward was a lesson he always taught in the process.”
Scott Talley is a native Detroiter, a proud product of Detroit Public Schools and a lifelong lover of Detroit culture in its diverse forms. In his second tour with the Free Press, which he grew up reading as a child, he is excited and humbled to cover the city’s neighborhoods and the many interesting people who define its various communities. Contact him at stalley@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @STalleyfreep. Read more of Scott’s stories at www.freep.com/mosaic/detroit-is/. Please help us grow great community-focused journalism by becoming a subscriber.
-
World2 days agoExclusive: DeepSeek withholds latest AI model from US chipmakers including Nvidia, sources say
-
Massachusetts3 days agoMother and daughter injured in Taunton house explosion
-
Montana1 week ago2026 MHSA Montana Wrestling State Championship Brackets And Results – FloWrestling
-
Louisiana5 days agoWildfire near Gum Swamp Road in Livingston Parish now under control; more than 200 acres burned
-
Denver, CO3 days ago10 acres charred, 5 injured in Thornton grass fire, evacuation orders lifted
-
Technology7 days agoYouTube TV billing scam emails are hitting inboxes
-
Technology7 days agoStellantis is in a crisis of its own making
-
Politics7 days agoOpenAI didn’t contact police despite employees flagging mass shooter’s concerning chatbot interactions: REPORT