Metro Detroit School Closings: Here's A List Of School Closings

Published

2 years ago

January 23, 2024

Metro Detroit School Closings: Here's A List Of School Closings

METRO DETROIT — Hundreds of schools across metro Detroit are closed Tuesday due to a winter storm that’s expected to bring snow, freezing rain and ice to the area.

All of southeastern Michigan is under a winter weather advisory through 4 p.m. Tuesday.

Here are the metro Detroit area schools (unless where noted) that are closed Tuesday:

Last updated: 12:32 a.m.

Macomb County

4K Learning Center Southgate

Anchor Bay School District

Angel’s Corner Center

Armada Area Schools

Arts Acdmy in the Woods

Assumption Center

Assumption Nursery

Austin Catholic High School

Bethlehem Lutheran Early Learning

Boys and Girls Club – Eastpointe

CSDD New Haven

CSDD Shelby

CSDD Warren

Center Line Prep. Acdmy

Center Line Public Schools

Chippewa Valley School District

Chiquitos Bilingual Montessori

Clintondale Community Schools

Creative Employment Clinton Twp.

Creative Employment Washington Twp.

Cross of Glory Lutheran

Crown of Life Lutheran

DeLaSalle Collegiate High

Eastpointe Community Schools

Eaton Acdmy

Faith Christian-Clinton Twp

First Friends Montessori

Fitzgerald Public Schools

Fraser Public Schools

Frontier International Academy(K-5)

Great Lakes Child Dev Ctr. Warren

Great Oaks Acdmy-Warren

Harper Woods CCI Center

Huron Academy

Immanuel Lutheran-Macomb

International Acdmy of Macomb

L’Anse Creuse Public Schools

Lake Shore Public Schools

Lakeview Public Schools (Macomb)

Life Skills New Haven

Life Skills Roseville

Little Turtle Prschl

Lutheran High-North

Macomb Acdmy

Macomb Children’s Acdmy

Macomb ISD-Edu Service Ctr

Macomb ISD-Special Ed Pgms

Macomb Life Skills

Macomb Montessori Acdmy

Merritt Acdmy

Michigan Collegiate

Michigan Math and Science Academy

Michigan Montessori Childrens Acad

Montessori Childrens Acdmy-Clinton

Mt Clemens Community Schools

Mt. Clemens Montessori Acdmy

New Dawn Academy

New Haven Community Schools

Noor International Acdmy

Parkway Christian

Peace Lutheran-Shelby Twp

Prevail Acdmy

Reach Charter Acdmy

Regina High

Richmond Community Schools

Rising Stars Acdmy

Romeo Community Schools

Roseville Community Schools

Spark’s Little Learners Acdmy

St. Anne Catholic

St. Augustine Catholic

St. Clair Shores Senior Center

St. Germaine Catholic

St. Isaac Jogues Catholic (No PM Activities)

St. Joan of Arc Catholic

St. John Lutheran-Fraser

St. Joseph’s Acdmy-RAY TWP

St. Lawrence Catholic School

St. Mary Catholic-Mt Clemens

St. Peter Lutheran-Eastpointe

St. Peter Lutheran-Macomb

St. Peter’s Lutheran-Richmond

St. Thecla Catholic Elem

Trinity Lutheran-Clinton Twp

Trinity Lutheran-Utica

Utica Community Schools

Van Dyke Public Schools

Warren Consolidated Schools

Warren Woods Christian

Warren Woods Public Schools

Wee Love Day Care

Westfield Charter Academy

Oakland County

4K Learning Center Southgate

Academy of the Sacred Heart

Archdiocese of Detroit

Aim High School

Alex-Marie Manoogian

Arts and Technology Acdmy

Avondale School District

Babes in Toyland-Troy

Berkley School District

Bethany Christian

Beverly Hills Acdmy

Birmingham Public Schools

Bishop Foley Catholic High

Bloomfield Hills Schools

Bloomfield Maples Montessori

Bradford Acdmy

Brookfield Acdmy-Troy

Brookfield Acdmy-W Bloomfield

Brother Rice High

Clarenceville School District

Clawson Public Schools

Cook’s Acdmy

Cranbrook – All Schools

Cranbrook Art Museum

Cranbrook Institute of Science

Creative Employment Pontiac

Crescent Acdmy (Building Closed-ONLINE classes still meet)

Detroit Catholic Central High

Detroit Country Day-All

Eagle Creek Acdmy

Early Impressions

Eton Acdmy

Farber Hebrew Day School

Farmington Public Schools

Faxon Academy

Ferndale Public Schools

Flex High School of Pontiac

FlexTech High School-Novi

Foster’s Childcare and Learning Cen

Four Corners Montessori Acdmy

Frankel Jewish Acdmy

Great Lakes Academy

Guardian Angels Catholic

Harper Woods CCI Center

Hillel Day

Holy Name Catholic

Hope Christian Academy

Huron Valley Schools

Japhet School

Keys Grace Academy

Lahser Pre-Voctnl Ctr-Clarkston

Lakecrest Baptist

Lakes Area Montessori

Lamphere Public Schools

Lutheran High NW

Madison Dist Public Schools-Oakland

Madison Heights C.E.O.

Marian High

Marketti Acdmy of Cosmetology

Mercy High (Building Closed-ONLINE classes still meet)

Milford Montessori

Momentum Academy

North Hills Child Care

Notre Dame Lower Division

Notre Dame Prep (Building Closed-ONLINE classes still meet )

Novi Christian Academy

Novi Community School District

OLHSA/All Headstart Locations

Oak Park Schools

Oak Park Service Learning Academy

Oakdale Academy

Oakland Children’s Acdmy

Oakland Family Services-CLC

Oakland Tech-SE Campus

Oakland Tech-SW Campus

Oakside Scholars Charter Acdmy

Our Lady Queen of Martyrs

Our Lady of Refuge

Our Lady of Sorrows

Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic

Our Shepherd Lutheran Daycare

PACE Academy

Pontiac Acdmy for Excellence

Pontiac School District

Premiere Preschool-Welch

Rochester Hills Christian

Rolston Hockey Academy

Royal Oak School District

Saint Catherine of Siena Acdmy

Schoolhouse Montessori-Troy

Servicar-South Oakland

Shrine Catholic Grade

Shrine Catholic High & Acdmy

South Lyon Community Schools

Southfield Christian

Southfield Public Schools

Spanish For Toddlers

St. Fabian Catholic

St. Hugo of the Hills

St. Joseph Child Care Center

St. Mary Catholic-Royal Oak

St. Mary’s Preparatory

St. Patrick Catholic -White Lake

St. Paul Lutheran-Royal Oak

St. William Catholic

Temple Israel Early Childhood Ctr.

Total Education Solutions – Therapy

Troy School District

Walled Lake School District

Walton Charter Acdmy

Waterford Montessori Acdmy

Waterford School District

West Bloomfield School District

West Highland Christian Acdmy

Westfield Charter Academy

Wixom Christian

Wayne County

2 days Child Learning Center

4K Learning Center Southgate

ABT High

ASA Higher Learning Prep

Achieve Charter Acdmy

Advanced Technology Acdmy

Al-Ikhlas Training Acdmy

Allen Park Public Schools

Am Montessori Academy Upper

Am Montessori Acdmy-Lower

American Intl Acdmy District

Arc Dearborn

Barack Obama Leadership Academy

Barber Prepatory Academy

Beacon Elem

Boys and Girls Club – Dauch

Boys and Girls Club – Highland Park

Boys and Girls Club – Lloyd H Diehl

Branch Line School

Bridge Acdmy East

Bridge Acdmy West

Brookfield Acdmy-Livonia

Cabrini Elem & Middle

Cabrini High

Caniff Liberty Acdmy

Canton Charter Acdmy

Canton Prep High School

Cesar Chavez High

Cesar Chavez Middle

Cesar Chavez-Martin

Cesar Chavez-Vernor

Chandler Park Acdmy

Charlotte Mason Community

Christ Our Saviour Lutheran

Christ the King Lutheran-Southgate

Civic Park Senior Center

Commonwealth Comm Dev Acdmy

Cornerstone Jefferson-Douglas

Covenant House Academy – Detroit

Creative Academics Learning Center

Creative Empowerment – Westland

Creative Montessori Acdmy

Crescent Academy International

Crestwood School District

DK’s Childcare Academy

David Ellis Acdmy West-Redford

David Ellis Acdmy-Detroit

Davis Preparatory Academy

Dearborn Christian Preschool

Dearborn Early Learning Ctr

Dearborn Heights School District #7

Dearborn Public Schools

Detroit Acdmy of Arts and Sciences

Detroit Christian Schools

Detroit Community Schools (CHARTER)

Detroit Cristo Rey High

Detroit Edison Public Acdmy

Detroit Enterprise Acdmy

Detroit Innovation Acdmy

Detroit Leadership Acdmy-Virgil

Detroit Leadership AcdmyHigh School

Detroit Merit Charter Acdmy

Detroit Premier Acdmy

Detroit Prep

Detroit Public Safety Acdmy

Detroit Public Schools

Detroit Service Learning Acdmy

Detroit Waldorf School

Discovery Creative Pathways H.W.

Discovery Creative Pathways Redford

Divine Child Elem

Divine Child High

Dove Acdmy of Detroit

Early College of Excellence

Ecorse Public Schools

Emmanuel Lutheran

Flagship Charter Acdmy (No PM Activities)

Flat Rock Community Schools

Focus HOPE Child Care Ctr

Focus Hope Training (Building Closed-ONLINE classes still meet )

Fostering Leadership Academy

Gabriel Richard Catholic High

Garden City Public Schools

George Crockett Acdmy (No PM Activities)

George Washington Carver Acdmy

Gesu Elem

Gibraltar School District

Global Heights Acdmy

Grand River Acdmy

Grosse Ile Township Schools

Grosse Pointe Acdmy

Grosse Pointe Nursery

Grosse Pointe Public Schools

Guardian Lutheran

Guidance Ctr-Belleville Head Start

Guidance Ctr-Lincoln Prk Head Start

Guidance Ctr-River Rouge Head Start

Guidance Ctr-Romulus Head Start

Guidance Ctr-Taylor Head Start

Hamtramck Acdmy

Hamtramck Public Schools

Hanley International Acdmy

Harper Woods CCI Center

Harper Woods High School

Harper Woods Middle School

Harper Woods School District

Henry Ford Acdmy-Dearborn

Holy Redeemer Elem

Hope Acdmy

Hope of Detroit Acdmy (No PM Activities)

Huron School District

Inkster Preparatory Academy (No PM Activities)

Inter-City Baptist

Island Kiddie Kampus Mainland

Ivywood Classical Academy

Jalen Rose Leadership Acdmy

Joy Prep Acdmy-Dexter

KIPP Detroit Imani Admy

Keystone Acdmy (No PM Activities)

LACC Childcare Acdmy

Legacy Charter Acdmy

Lincoln Park Public Schools

Lincoln-King Acdmy

Livonia Public Schools

Loyola High

Lutheran High-Westland

ML King Jr Edu Center

MacDowell Preparatory Academy

Madison-Carver Acdmy

Matrix Head Start

Melvindale-N Allen Park Schools

Merrill Palmer Skillman Inst ECC

Metro Charter Acdmy

Metropolitan SDA Junior Acdmy

Mi Cookie Project

Michigan Barber School (Building Closed-ONLINE classes still meet)

Montessori Acdmy Canton

Montessori Center of Our Lady

Montessori Center-Downriver

Montessori Child Development Center

Montessori Children’s-Allen Park

Most Holy Trinity Elem

My Baby And Me

My First Schoolhouse

New Beginning Head Start

New Paradigm College Prep

New St. Paul Head Start

Northville Christian

Northville Public School District

Oakland Int Acdmy-Elem

Oakland Intl Acdmy High

Oakland Intl Acdmy Middle

Old Redford Academy Elem Detroit

Old Redford Academy High

Old Redford Academy Middle

Our Lady Star of the Sea

Our Lady of Good Counsel Plym

Our Lady of Victory

P&A Scholars Beauty-Detroit

Pathways Academy

Peace Lutheran-Livonia

Pembroke Academy

Plymouth Christian Acdmy

Plymouth Edu Center K-8 (No PM Activities)

Plymouth Scholars Charter Acdmy

Plymouth-Canton Community Schools

Plymouth-Canton Montessori

Quality Learning Center

Quest Charter Acdmy

Redford Service Learning Acdmy

Redford Union School District

Regent Park Scholars Acdmy

Renaissance Head Start

River Rouge School District

Riverside Acdmy East

Riverside Acdmy West

Riverview School District

Romulus Community Schools

Rutherford Winans Academy

Sacred Heart-Dearborn

Schoolhouse Montessori Canton

Seeds of Knowledge

Siena Literacy Center

South Canton Scholars Acdmy

South Redford School District

Southgate Community Schools

Southgate Kiddie Kampus

St. Anselm Catholic

St. Clare of Montefalco

St. Edith Catholic School

St. John Paul II Classical Catholic (No PM Activities)

St. John’s Evg Lutheran-New Boston

St. John’s Evg Lutheran-Westland

St. Joseph-Trenton

St. Linus Catholic

St. Mary Child Care Ctr

St. Matthew Lutheran-Westland

St. Michael Catholic-Livonia

St. Michael Lutheran

St. Paul Christian Prschl – Trenton

St. Paul Lutheran – Northville

St. Paul on the Lake Catholic

St. Pius Catholic-Southgate

St. Stephen Catholic-New Boston

St. Valentine Catholic

St. Vincent and Sarah Fisher Center

Star Intl Academy – Canton

Star Intrnl Acdmy-George

Star Intrnl Acdmy-Hass

Starfish F.S Covenant House ECE Ctr

Starfish F.S. Cecil ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Central Ave ECE Ctr.

Starfish F.S. Crestwood ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Fort St. ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Hiveley ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Livonia ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Marygrove Head Start

Starfish F.S. Sal Army ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Thorne ECE Center

Starfish F.S. Westwood ECE Center

Starfish FS Plymouth/Canton ECE Ctr

Starting Point Montessori

Summer Prschl ELC

Summit Acdmy North Elem

Summit Acdmy North High

Summit Acdmy North Middle

Tawheed Center of Detroit

Taylor Exemplar Acdmy

Taylor Prep High

Taylor School District

The Boggs School

The Dearborn Acdmy

Tipton Acdmy

Trenton Christian Preschool

Trenton Public Schools

Trillium Acdmy

Trix Academy

Tyrone Elem

UM-Dearborn Early Childhood Edu Ctr

United Children Head Start

Unity Head Start

Univ Learning Acdmy-Westland

Univ Prep Art and Design Dist UPAD

Univ Prep Science & Math-UPSM Dist.

Universal Acdmy-Detroit

University Liggett

University Prep Acdmy – UPA Dist

University YES Acdmy

Van Buren Public Schools

Vista Meadows Acdmy

Voyageur Acdmy

Voyageur College Prep

Warrendale Charter Acdmy

Washington-Parks Acdmy

Wayne County Meals on Wheels

Wayne Metro Art Space

Wayne Metro Head Start – Dearborn S

Wayne Metro Head Start ACCESS

Wayne Metro Head Start Garden City

Wayne Metro Head Start St. Albert

Wayne Metro Head Start-Hamtramck

Wayne Metro Head Start-Harper Woods

Wayne Metro Head Start-HighlandPark

Wayne Metro Head Start-Taylor

Wayne Metro Head Start-Westland

Wayne-Westland Community Schools

Westfield Charter Academy

Westfield Prepatory High School

Westland Christian Acdmy

Weston Prep Acdmy

Westwood Community Schools (No PM Activities)

Woodhaven-Brownstown Schools

Wyandotte Christian Academy

Wyandotte Public Schools

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Detroit Lions ‘Ready’ for All-Pro Moving to Left Tackle

Published

2 hours ago

March 30, 2026

Press Room

Detroit Lions ‘Ready’ for All-Pro Moving to Left Tackle

The Detroit Lions may indeed have a position switch in the cards for one of their top offensive linemen.

While no final decision has officially been made, the Lions appear to be bracing for three-time All-Pro selection Penei Sewell to move from right tackle to left tackle for the 2026 season.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell addressed the possibility during his media appearance Monday at the annual league meetings.

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Campbell told reporters that Sewell is ready to make the switch from the right side to the left and that the coach would like to make the move. The move would come after the departure of Taylor Decker, who requested his release from the team after 10 seasons playing the blindside spot.

Sewell has quickly become one of the top offensive tackles in the league. He was the first draft pick made in general manager Brad Holmes’ tenure, as the team picked him seventh overall in the 2021 draft.

In his five NFL seasons, the Oregon product has earned Pro Bowl honors four times and has been a First Team All-Pro three consecutive seasons.

Lions coach Dan Campbell says he’d like to move Penei Sewell to left tackle, and while no final call has been made yet, “He’s ready to do that.”
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 30, 2026

Sewell has made 83 appearances for the Lions, all starts, and has performed at an exceptional level. He earned a four-year, $112 million contract extension prior to the 2024 season for his efforts.

The Lions have had somewhat of a topsy turvy offseason, as they’ve parted ways with key contributors in years past such as Decker, running back David Montgomery and linebacker Alex Anzalone.

Decker’s departure came after he initially announced his intention to return after mulling retirement, but talks with the front office broke down after they wanted him to take a pay cut.

As a result, the Lions now need a left tackle. They signed veteran Larry Borom to a one-year deal in free agency, but Borom’s starting experience has mostly come on the right side. As a result, there’s belief that Sewell could transition to the left side full time.

Sewell made the first eight starts of his career at left tackle in 2021, filling in while Decker was on injured reserve. Since then, he’s played exclusively on the right side with Dan Skipper predominantly filling in for Decker when the veteran was unable to go.

Skipper retired this offseason and has joined the Lions’ coaching staff as an offensive assistant.

The Lions also have 2024 fourth-round pick Gio Manu returning for his third NFL season. Manu was drafted as a developmental prospect, and has made just one start in his first two campaigns and spent the majority of last season on injured reserve.

Last season, Sewell earned a 95.2 overall offensive grade via Pro Football Focus and an elite 96.8 run-blocking grade. He’s proven to be one of the most durable players on the roster, missing just two possible starts in five seasons.

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Detroit, MI

Wolverines make Frozen Four

Published

14 hours ago

March 30, 2026

Press Room

The Michigan Wolverines are the last Michigan team standing in college hockey as both Western Michigan and Michigan State lost in the round of eight.
Michigan will face Denver, while Wisconsin and North Dakota face off in the other semi-final game this week.

Posted March 29, 2026 11:45pm EDT

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Detroit, MI

The onlookers who stumble upon a No Kings Day protest in Michigan

Published

1 day ago

March 29, 2026

Press Room

The onlookers who stumble upon a No Kings Day protest in Michigan

For some passersby in Detroit, the thousands of people who took to the streets on Saturday, March 28, to denounce President Donald Trump and his administration’s policies were a comfort. To others, they were an annoyance or worse.

But across the state, protesters sought to catch their eye and share with each other encouragement and concerns on the third so-called No Kings Day in a year protesting the president.

Crowds gathered in Holland, Adrian, West Bloomfield and Lansing. One sign in Ann Arbor read, “I’m tired of this, Grandpa,” and one in Battle Creek read, “End The War.” In Romulus, politicians rallied against the potential for an immigration detention center to be built there, and in Dearborn, a lawyer once detained by such agents called for the dismantling of their department. In Detroit, a teacher described the empty chairs of detained students, and a mother held up a painting of an explosion taking place in front of a child, symbolic of American military actions.

In a statement released ahead of the protests, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson made little of the efforts.

“The only people who care about these Trump Derangement Therapy Sessions are the reporters who are paid to cover them,” she said.

Onlookers, politicians and participants weighed in during conversations with the Free Press.

Onlookers

Jackee Oliver, 37, of Detroit, made her way back from her neighborhood store with her mom and 11-year-old daughter sporting stickers that read, “I Stood Up For Democracy Today,” and included a symbol of a crossed-out crown.

They’d been running their errand when they passed through the No Kings gathering about 11 a.m. on the east side of Detroit bordering Grosse Pointe on Mack Avenue between Cadieux and Neff roads. Oliver said she didn’t realize the protest was happening but hoped to come back out to join.

It was “a good thing,” she said, with her mom, Devita Williams, 58, of Ypsilanti, adding her thoughts on the Trump administration: “I’d like to get them all out the White House.”

Community members eyeing the crowd of roughly 200 people who marched through their Southwest Detroit neighborhood west of Clark Park on Saturday afternoon offered differing takes on the matter.

One man, translated by his nephew, said it was good and should be everywhere. Another said the group probably didn’t live in Southwest Detroit. Still others called it awesome or said the group should take their protest elsewhere.

In downtown Detroit, as at least a couple of thousand protesters marched along Woodward Avenue, several people headed to see the band the Black Label Society at The Fillmore said they got stuck in backups because of the march.

Shawn Roy, 49, drove from the Lansing area on his birthday with his son for that concert, he said while stuck behind a police SUV blocking Woodward for the marchers.

Roy is a Trump supporter but said he didn’t take issue with people using their right to protest. He just didn’t think their tactic was reasonable with so many events in town.

“This wouldn’t sway my mind even if I was on the fence,” he said.

Shortly thereafter, as the marchers started to depart, Milan Anderson-Whitfield, 19, of Northville, strolled up with her teenage little sister to see a group of drummers still playing and learn more. She held a sign she’d been given that read, “Keep your theology off my biology.”

She was tearing up as she spoke to a Free Press reporter, she said.

She’s anti-Trump. Seeing the gathering means a lot when you “don’t have anyone to talk to about this,” she said.

Elsewhere in the region, U.S. Rep. John James, a GOP candidate for governor, attended the Michigan Republican Party endorsement convention and called the demonstrations “just another manifestation of Trump Derangement Syndrome.”

War, immigration, high costs and hope

Speakers across three rallies in Detroit spoke about not giving into despair, how immigration enforcement is causing harm in their view, their concern for voting rights, and how they disagree with Trump’s moves to attack Iran, remove Venezuela’s leader and to eye Cuba as “next.”

Speakers called for local policy change too. Faith leaders spoke, as did union members, activists and politicians such as Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II, a Democrat who is a candidate for Michigan secretary of state, and U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit.

In Clark Park, with more than 600 people listening, speakers called for Detroit police to release unedited video in use of force situations. They also called for college and city institutions to divest from businesses with ties to Israel.

The fight for immigrant rights and the fight against wars are interrelated, said Daniel Weber Alatorre of the Wayne State University chapter of Students for a Democratic Society.

“We create atrocities over there, immigrants come here and we beat them,” he told the crowd.

As those from the Clark Park rally marched, they chanted, “Trump wants war, Trump wants oil, hands off Iranian soil.”

As those at Detroit’s downtown Grand Circus Park marched later in the day, they chanted, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Donald Trump has got to go.”

Before the start of that rally, Rubina Javed, 60, of Warren, held up a painting her daughter had made. It showed a child looking out at the site of an explosion, an apparent bombing of sorts. It represents Iran, Lebanon and beyond, and Trump lied when he campaigned on no wars, she said.

“We don’t need bombing,” Javed said. “We want peace, dignity and love.”

She urged others to join the cause of protesting Trump, saying more voices can make change.

Kristen Schoettle, who said she works as an English as a second language teacher at Western International High School in Detroit, also told the crowd to act after sharing her story of five students being taken by immigration agents. It’s harmed fellow students, too, she said.

She called on people to push back against police cooperation with immigration agents or do whatever else they can, whatever that may look like.

Metro Detroit protests

Robin Gillis and her husband, Michael, both 73, of West Bloomfield, braved the cold in their town with temperatures in the 20s and a dusting of snow on the ground to talk about the Iran war, the economy, worry for upcoming elections, and the president’s imperious tone.

“He likes to label people so he can denigrate them, humiliate them, and make them feel less important,” said Michael Gillis, who was among more than 100 people out on Orchard Lake Road.

In Macomb County, Susan Diliberti, 69, of Clinton Township, walked among hundreds in Sterling Heights with a sign saying “juntos somos América” on one side with the translation “together we are America” on the other.

She came out to the protest at Hall and Schoenherr roads because she’s worried about future generations and wants to fight for everyone to have the right to accessible, quality public education, universal healthcare and the environment, she said.

“I’m hoping that we’re going to have hope to move into something that is even better than what we had before all the chaos happened,” Diliberti said.

The war in the Middle East affects many Dearborn residents with loved ones overseas, said Dearborn Democratic Club recording secretary Diane Hall.

Her group organized the No Kings gathering of about 300 people Saturday at the Henry Ford Centennial Library in Dearborn. It featured speakers from Arab Americans for Progress and the ACLU of Michigan, among others.

“This is hitting hard for the people in Dearborn, and we want to be able to show our support, but also express our rage, and our grief, and our optimism, that we can come together, elect candidates that will stand up against the war, stand up against the regime, and make the pain stop,” Hall said. “So, it’s political, but it’s also moral for us. It’s life. It’s a question of life and death.”

A site of controversy

Bubbles floated in the air, music played and an organizer handed out chalk for demonstrators to leave messages for immigration agents at a Romulus No Kings protest.

By 3:30 p.m. roughly 300 people had made it out to the event at the site of 7525 Cogswell St., a property the U.S. Department of Homeland Security purchased with plans to make it a detention facility.

Demonstrators of all ages joined local politicians including U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, and Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit at the rally. Tlaib made an appearance in Romulus, at least her third protest of the day, along with U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, and Wayne County Commissioner Allen Wilson.

The Romulus protest differed from some others in Michigan because it demands specific, local, achievable action, said Chris Boyd, a member of organizing group Coalition to Shut the Camps.

Boyd said the recently developed group has already sent letters to companies and governmental organizations that would need to approve utilities for the facility.

His group has asked those institutions not to collaborate with the facility and more, and will hold those institutions accountable, he said.

There isn’t a clear timeline for the detention center’s construction. DHS officials previously said the facility’s construction and operation would lead to more than 1,400 jobs and create millions in tax revenue. On March 24, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and Romulus officials announced they are suing DHS to prevent the opening of the planned facility.

Boyd said many protests show solidarity with groups being harmed by ICE, but few explore strategies to prevent people from being harmed. He said it’s going to take a shift to preventative strategies to stop harm.

“It’s not bad but it’s not sufficient,” Boyd said. “It’s OK to bring moms from Ann Arbor to go hang out with each other and hang out in the park and sing protest songs. That’s beautiful. It’s wonderful. It doesn’t change our outcomes. So we have to come up with other strategies that are sufficient and I think that’s what this is an example of.”

That said, he called the collective No Kings protests a powerful message and said the energy of such actions often fuel the practical work that follows.

Staff writer Paul Egan contributed to this story.

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