Drew Saunders
Drew Saunders is a freelance business and environmental journalist who grew up bouncing between Whitmore Lake and Ann Arbor. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in journalism from Eastern Michigan University, he got his Master of Science from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Saunders received an award for environmental journalism from the Detroit chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in 2025 for a story entitled “Detroit Underwater.”
Catching Up with Kathy Kozachenko, the Ann Arbor Trailblazer Who Became America's First Openly Lesbian Elected Official
Ann Arbor made history in 1974 when Kathy Kozachenko became the first openly lesbian candidate elected to any city council in the United States. Now living in Pittsburgh and working on her memoir, this pioneering figure in Michigan's LGBTQ+ [...]Read more about Catching Up with Kathy Kozachenko, the Ann Arbor Trailblazer Who Became America's First Openly Lesbian Elected Official
Catching Up With Johnny Jenkins, a Detroit Activist Who Has Devoted Decades to Black LGBTQ+ Advocacy
Johnny Jenkins has spent decades at the forefront of LGBTQ+ advocacy, from navigating the early HIV/AIDS crisis as a young Black gay man in Detroit to helping build vital community resources like Affirmations and LGBT Detroit's Hotter Than July [...]Read more about Catching Up With Johnny Jenkins, a Detroit Activist Who Has Devoted Decades to Black LGBTQ+ Advocacy
Catching Up with Carole Hoke, a Detroit Activist and Illinois Clergy Who Has Devoted a Lifetime to LGBTQ+ Advocacy
Every person's journey is different, and this is especially true for queer people. But there might be a happy Hollywood ending for the LGBTQ+ activist: to come out, become comfortable in your own skin, get involved in social justice organizing, [...]Read more about Catching Up with Carole Hoke, a Detroit Activist and Illinois Clergy Who Has Devoted a Lifetime to LGBTQ+ Advocacy
Catching Up with Influential Early Michigan Trans Advocate André Wilson
André Wilson helped make the University of Michigan one of the first institutions in America to cover gender-affirming care (GAC) in 2005 as lead negotiator for the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO). Today, André is thriving in semi-retirement in [...]Read more about Catching Up with Influential Early Michigan Trans Advocate André Wilson
Michigan Democratic Party LGBT and Allies Caucus Holds Spring Meeting
One of the most often derided cliches of political journalism is to say “a lot is at stake in this election” but it is quite literally true this time, especially for LGBTQ+ people. That was also the message of the spring meeting of the Michigan [...]Read more about Michigan Democratic Party LGBT and Allies Caucus Holds Spring Meeting
Why a Local Academic Is Fostering Queer Discussion and Community Through an Old-Fashioned Book Club
Queer books on public library shelves have come under fire across the country in recent years, but you wouldn’t know it at the Ypsilanti District Library (YDL), where local readers can join a monthly book club focused on books with LGBTQ+ themes. Z [...]Read more about Why a Local Academic Is Fostering Queer Discussion and Community Through an Old-Fashioned Book Club
‘Queer Drunk Punk’ Author Zehava Frieman on How Growing Up in Grosse Pointe Park Inspired Her Debut Novel
When Zehava Frieman finally sat down to write “Queer Drunk Punk” in 2021 on the tail end of decades of what she describes as “creative constipation,” the debut novel all but poured out of her. “It was literally nine months of what you would call [...]Read more about ‘Queer Drunk Punk’ Author Zehava Frieman on How Growing Up in Grosse Pointe Park Inspired Her Debut Novel
Wayne State University Is Getting a Center That Will Bring LGBTQ+ Services Closer to Students
Queer students weigh in on what the project means to them.
Construction Begins on Long-Awaited Affordable LGBTQ-Friendly Housing for Older Adults in Michigan
Affordable housing has been a problem across the country for years and it can be especially problematic for aging LGBTQ+ people who, according to Rev. Dr. Roland Stringfellow of the Metropolitan Community Church – Detroit (MCC-D), can force some [...]Read more about Construction Begins on Long-Awaited Affordable LGBTQ-Friendly Housing for Older Adults in Michigan
Queer Michigan College Students Consider Safety On and Off Campus As New Year Kicks Off
At a time when state legislatures across the country have been presenting hundreds of bills attacking LGBTQ+ rights, Michigan has gone in the opposite direction since the 2022 midterms. A whopping 520 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in state [...]Read more about Queer Michigan College Students Consider Safety On and Off Campus As New Year Kicks Off
After Hamtramck Pride Flag Ban, Local Theater Shows LGBTQ+ Support Through Performance
In early June, Hamtramck’s City Council banned the Pride Flag from being flown on public property, a move that has prompted a wave of backlash across the community, including a surge in social media posts aimed at the move and a stream of angry [...]Read more about After Hamtramck Pride Flag Ban, Local Theater Shows LGBTQ+ Support Through Performance