crossposted at widelantern.com
I live in Los Angeles now, but Southeastern Michigan will always be my hometown. I am a fourth-generation Michiganian, born and raised there. For many years, my family ran the popular Chung’s Restaurant on Cass Avenue in Detroit. Living in the suburbs, I went to Troy High, where I received a great education. There, I was elected Senior Class President and President of the National Honor Society. I graduated from the University of Michigan, earning a degree in creative writing.
I sometimes think about moving back to the metro Detroit area to help revitalize the city. But then I read about people like Janice Daniels, the new mayor of Troy, saying on Facebook, “I think I am going to throw away my ‘I Love New York’ carrying bag now that queers can get married there,” and I realize the idea of moving back is just a fantasy.
You see, I came out as a gay man when I was in Ann Arbor in the late 80s. In fact, I first met my husband there when I was a U of M undergrad and he was in the law school. We both left the state soon after graduating and went on to successful careers outside the area. We now have a very happy life in Los Angeles, where we were married in 2008. My family, who also moved away from the area, has welcomed my husband with open arms.
Two years ago, my husband and I were invited to the White House. As we shook hands with President Obama and the First Lady, I thought to myself, only in America could the son of Chinese restaurant owners from Detroit be invited to the home of the leader of the free world.
As a screenwriter and producer, I have visited Michigan on a number of occasions, and my trips back are always filled with mixed emotions. I feel sadness at seeing the places I used to go as a child now turned into empty lots. I feel joy at meeting a new generation of recent college graduates who have moved into the city core with energy and dreams because they believe in the city’s future.
I have tracked the city’s attempts to build a film and TV community, and considered shooting a film there myself. But then I think, why? Why should I bring my money to an area where some of the leaders are openly hostile to diversity? Why should I encourage my friends to support an area that would not support my right to live my life openly and honestly?
Ms. Daniels has defended her remarks, saying she wants to “acknowledge my First Amendment right to speak freely.” She is trying to divert attention from the real issue: It’s not what comes out of her mouth that’s important; it’s what’s in her heart. And on that front, her choice of words, and the underlying sentiment behind them, is basically intolerance masquerading as “tradition.” Sure, she can say what she wants, but as an elected official, she represents the entire city, including its lesbian and gay residents, as well as those who are protective of lesbian and gay members of their families.
Growing up in Troy, I remember hearing the slogan, “the city of tomorrow… today.” But with Ms. Daniels as mayor, it sounds more like Troy is stuck in the past century.
If cities like the metro Detroit area want to turn things around, they need to attract and retain educated, creative, and tolerant people, the kind who create good jobs and can help revitalize areas that have gone through hard times. Just take a look at Silicon Valley out here in California or various urban cores around the country that are making a comeback.
Only by sending a positive message of inclusion, not a destructive one of intolerance, will the greater Detroit area be able to turn around its fortunes. The attitude exemplified by Ms. Daniels only stands in the way of a better future for all.
–Curtis Chin
Curtis Chin is writer/producer of the award-winning documentary Vincent Who?, a founder and board member of apaforprogress.org, and co-founder of Wide Lantern.