Going Home

06/27/09 12:25:50 pm, by Michael Happy
Categories: Metro Detroit

Night at the museum

It was the kind of day in Detroit that threatened to zap any remaining hope that we can all come together and rebuild this once great city.

Detroit City Council Pro Tem Monica Conyers goes to court and admits trading her Synagro vote for cash. Oakland County Executive Al Brooks Patterson, during a radio interview on WWJ 950-AM shortly after Conyers' court appearance, essentially calls the City of Detroit a joke and irrelevant to Michigan's future. The city's black newspaper, The Michigan Citizen, has a screaming headline that claims Conyers was framed by the media.

But around 1 a.m. Saturday, none of the above really mattered to me any more. And I was plenty hopeful that the time has come for real change around here -- if only the politicians and media would take a cue from the regular folks who they're supposed to be leading and protecting.

[More:]

Long story short, after taking in a rock concert and then a movie -- "Standing in the Shadows of Motown: The Funk Brothers" -- at Campus Martius Park in the city, I felt compelled to take a drive by the Motown Museum on West Grand Boulevard. My wife, Shannon, and friends Jonathan and Valerie Morgan were with me and, like me, curious to see the site where The Funk Brothers used to work.

All of us being Michael Jackson fans, we also wanted to catch a glimpse of the makeshift memorial that was reportedly growing with each hour in front of the museum since the King of Pop's death Thursday afternoon.

As we passed by the old G.M. headquarters and neared the museum, there was a looming traffic jam, and we could see throngs of people walking and lounging in front of the building. Jackson's hit "Beat It" was blaring from somewhere, probably a monster set of car speakers. A taco truck was parked on the street, just east of the museum, and a couple of T-shirt vendors were parked on the adjacent sidewalk, trying to cash in on Jackson's premature demise.

We slowly snaked our way through the traffic, drove past the museum, made a U-turn and parked our car on Grand Boulevard, just west of Hitsville U.S.A. We then got out and took the brief walk toward the hollowed ground of Motown sound.

What was happening all around us was beautiful -- at least 200 people celebrating the life and work of M.J. Many were singing, dancing and sharing stories. Others reverently walked by the memorial or peered into the building's picture window, which featured historical Jackson photos.

One man pulled a plastic bag out from under his right arm and emptied its contents on the grass in front of us: a vintage replica of the jacket Jackson wore in the "Beat It" video and an old magazine that featured a story entitled "50 things you should know about Michael Jackson."

"This is going to be worth something someday," he said about the magazine, reasoning with us, "50 things and he died at 50."

What made the trip worth it to me, however, was what happened next. Let's just say there weren't a lot of white people at the museum at 1 a.m. (I think just us four), and a black couple took notice of us and requested that we join them for a snapshot.

"We're all family, black and white, tonight," the woman said. "I want to remember this."

I won't soon forget it, either -- or the fact that most of the people there didn't even take a second glance at the four white suburbanites who had decided to join them in celebration early Saturday. And, if they did, it was only to share a greeting, a story or a smile. It was pretty cool.

So, in the wee hours of the morning, hope had trumped my earlier despair and made me want to shout:

Hey, Monica, Al Brooks and anybody else who continues to hold on to our broken past, take a cue from M.J. -- just beat it cause we wanna be startin' somethin' good!

(Photos courtesy of Valerie Morgan. Also, don't forget to join us at Fletcher Field on Sunday at 2 p.m. for our first Sundays-in-the-park event of the season.)

Comments, Pingbacks:

You must register and log in to add a comment.
Login... | Register... |