Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mark SchauerCOURTESY PHOTO[/caption] The Michigan Citizen endorses Mark Schauer for governor. One cannot support any other candidate and say they have love or respect for Black people, working people or the historic struggle for equality, self-determination and justice — it’s that serious. Incumbent Gov. Rick Snyder initiated Detroit’s emergency manager-led bankruptcy and effectively created two Detroits. Although Snyder boasts of Detroit’s “comeback,” this narrative is nothing more than a myth. Detroit’s neighborhoods are more destitute than ever. Most will wait forever for the comeback Snyder is touting. His emergency manager-led plan created the mass water shutoffs that have drawn international condemnation as an abuse of human rights. He engineered the loss of Belle Isle. Parking tickets are $46. DDOT fares are expected to rise. He cut pensions for city workers, fire and police officers who served the city for decades and transferred Detroit’s most valuable asset — the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department — to the region, which has been historically hostile to the city and its residents. One white, Republican-governor and his administration have implemented and controlled a plan for Detroit, a mostly Black city that has mostly voted Democrat in recent memory. Snyder and the Republican legislature passed a referendum-proof version of the very Emergency Manager Law that an overwhelming majority of citizens statewide had just repealed. That law, PA 436, paved the way for the emergency manager-led bankruptcy and the so-called “Grand Bargain,” both of which deny public officials or other local input on the policy, budgetary or direction of the city of Detroit for the next 10 years, at least. One cannot overlook the violence and historic resonance of denying Black communities across the state of the right to vote or self-determination. African American cities and school districts are disproportionately impacted by emergency management — don’t be Black and poor in Michigan. Mark Schauer has recognized this injustice and civil rights violation. He has vowed to put an immediate end to emergency management. Without transparency and with no level of accountability, Snyder experimented on Detroit’s children. He championed the Educational Achievement Authority, lifted the cap on charter schools and lobbied for a statewide expansion of a district that fails the city’s most vulnerable children. Using unproven technology, decimating teacher staff and bulking up administrative costs, he has continued to support a network of schools that can only be described as a tragedy for African American children. Snyder’s lack of transparency is troubling, and if he were a Black elected official, would likely be considered criminal. He had a NERD fund, able to collect unlimited donations without disclosure. It was set up under the same code as Kwame Kilpatrick’s civic fund. Snyder refused to name the contributors and paid top appointees out of the fund. After public pressure, the fund was dissolved at the end of 2013. His tax and fiscal policy has burdened seniors, children and everyday people. Businesses pay $1.7 billion less in taxes while seniors, children, the poor and everyday working people pay more. His tax policy burdens Michigan’s most vulnerable. He has taxed pensions and cut deductions including the Earned Income Tax Credit, a proven tool for working families. And his changes aren’t working. Trickle-down was proven to be a failed economic policy decades ago. Michigan’s unemployment rate is abysmal and Black residents fare the worst. This state’s economy is one of the worst in the nation. Any job recovery in Michigan can only be explained by Pres. Barack Obama’s help to the auto industry. Snyder is anti-union and no one can deny the role unions have played in lifting generations of African American families out of poverty. Snyder does not support families. He did not support same sex marriage benefits for state and local government employees and does not generally take a position affirming marriage equality. Snyder limited cash benefits assistance to the neediest and needlessly cut federally funded unemployment benefits. The Michigan Citizen endorses the entire Democratic ticket: Schauer, Gary Peters, Mark Totten, and Godfrey Dillard, and Supreme Court candidates Judge Deborah Thomas and Richard Bernstein. There is no other choice. We need a check on Republican policy in Michigan.