Detroit's Rising Gay Political Star

by Michael Jones · 2009-08-06 05:37:00 UTC
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Charles PughDetroit's political scene is certainly a little rough for the wear.  There was former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his illicit text messages ("sexting," if you will) and perjury charges.  And then City Councilwoman Monica Conyers pleaded guilty to bribery charges.

But there's one new guy on the political scene who is shedding a fresh, progressive light on the city, and bringing hope that the city might lose its political baggage.  And we're kind of excited that he's openly gay, too.

His name is Charles Pugh, and in this week's primary election for City Council, Pugh came in first.  He'll now head to the general election, where he'll square off with 18 other candidates for nine open seats.  Talk about a chance for a political renaissance in Detroit.  As Michigan Live reported, "As the top vote-getter in Tuesday's city council primary election, Charles Pugh appears poised to prove Detroit is ready to elect its first openly-gay candidate to higher office."

Pugh is earning a ton of praise for his victory, and the way he handled his primary campaign.  Here's what Ferndale Mayor Craig Covey had to say:

This city has had the worst PR of any city in the world and now this will be very good news.  Detroit is going to be seen as a place that can be tolerant and progressive.

And then there's Alicia Skillman of the Triangle Foundation:

We're very happy for Charles. I think this is showing that the region is not so afraid anymore. They are saying he's a gay man and he's my friend and that's OK.

And then there's the official endorsement from the Detroit News, which noted that Pugh is going to bring fresh insight to the city's problems:

The former television anchor and radio host understands the city and brings a fresh insight to its problems. Pugh, 37, proposes a thorough government restructuring, including combining the Human Resources and Human Rights departments, ending the woeful Public Lighting Department and merging the city's bus service with the suburban SMART authority. He wants to sell neighborhood parks to nonprofits, which might do a better job of maintaining recreation areas.

In other words, for a city that has taken a political beating over the past decade, Pugh's victory is being celebrated as an opportunity to turn it all around.

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
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