Lansing Political & Social History
Lansing
Development
Origins of
Lansing
The city of Lansing was founded by two brothers from New York in 1836. Lansing was originally named “Biddle City”, and the brothers traveled back to Lansing, New York to sell plots of land in this non-existent town. Many men bought these plots and upon arrival, ended up settling in metropolitan Lansing. However, some stayed and renamed the area “Lansing Township” in tribute to their home in New York. This quiet settlement would stay dormant until 1847. In 1847, the capital was moved from Detroit to Lansing due to the state constitution. Ultimately, the move occurred due to concerns over Detroit’s proximity to Canada, and Detroit having a large influence on Michigan Politics.
After Lansing became the capital city of Michigan, the small and quiet town transformed into a significant hub for state government. In 1859, the town grew to 3,000 residents within the seven square miles, and was officially labeled as a city. In the next two decades, Lansing’s population as well as infrastructure grew steadily. While the completion of the State Capital in 1878 spurred new growth, most of modern day Lansing is a result of past industrial power. In the early 1900’s, Ransom E. Olds founded the Olds Motor Vehicle Company and the REO Motor Company. Lansing experienced rapid growth, and became a center of automobile manufacturing. With new jobs created by manufacturing and the Fisher Body plant, Lansing’s population grew from 16,000 in 1900 to 80,000 in 1930. By 1960, the population was around 100,000 residents.
I-496
Construction
In 1963, construction began on I-496. The expressway would pave the way for future development in Lansing, but it would come at a cost. The expressway dead-ended many streets and more than 800 homes and businesses were repossessed through eminent domain. Construction lasted eight years, and its construction created a major problem of relocating residents to the nearby neighborhoods. Many of these displaced families were African American, they lived near St. Joseph and Main Street. Around this area was a network of small businesses, social clubs and other institutions that members of the community cherished. Complicated by racial segregation, many families had difficulties finding a place to relocate to, due to racism in both the real estate and banking sectors. While Shelley Vs. Kraemer outlawed racially restrictive covenants in real estate, the practice of shutting minorities out of the housing market continued. African Americans who relocated into white neighborhoods were discriminated against, and prevented from residing in these homes. An important aspect of I-496’s construction was that it destroyed this close community, and ruined businesses, relationships and connections. In 1967, relocation assistance was implemented, but the damaging urban renewal process had already impacted many families. The process of urban renewal, and its resulting displacement is tragic. Overall, 890 homes were repossessed and the community was uprooted. In 1972, the Lansing school district adopted a plan to desegregate its schools. This was met with harsh resistance, but eventually in 1975 a federal judge ratified a plan to integrate schools, this plan continues today.
Lansing
Today
Many impacts of urban development policy still exist today and are especially visible in the neighborhoods that border 496. As opportunities for manufacturing jobs declined, Lansing's populace stagnated, and large employers have emerged in other sectors. Today Lansing has a population of 112,537 people, with a median household income of $50,747. The leading employers in Lansing today include government, education, auto manufacting, healthcare, and technology.
Notable Movements
and Groups in Lansing
Movements
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The Lansing Women's Club was first established in 1874. The club first started meeting in the Lansing Library before they were able to secure their first clubhouse in 1889. The club was originally for the white women of Lansing, yet was then designated for all minority women of the city. 1969 the house was expanded by Oldsmobile, now resides at 301 N. Butler. This building is now designated as a historical site. The club is still currently active and meets every Friday during October and through April.
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Lansing was the first city in the United States to create an organization dedicated to Michigan women's history. This is known as the Michigan Women's Historical Center and Hall of Fame. This was founded in 1983 by Gladys Beckwith and a group of women with a vision in mind to celebrate the monumental women in Michigan. The MWHCHF is now a part of the Michigan Women Forward group. Here they continue on this legacy honoring the important women of Michigan and empowering women throughout the state to strive for excellence.
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In 1972, nearby city East Lansing was the first municipality in the United States to ban any discriminatory hiring practices that would discriminate against applicants based on their sexual orientation. This was a major step for not only East Lansing but the country as a whole when it came to LGBTQ+ equal rights. Meanwhile, the City of Lansing hosts pride festivals, welcomes LGBTQ+ owned businesses and organizations, and empowers the community by being a welcoming space.
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A woman founded a music festival in Lansing that had the aim to be the Woodstock for only women. This ran from 1976 to 2015 and became not only a pinnacle for women but also for the lesbian community. This was a safe place for them to come from all around the country and as their website states find “community, celebration, connection” In 2015 the founder of the festival decided their 40th festival would be their last festival due to the times changing and it became to much of a challenge to continue to run.
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The NAACP was founded on February 12, 1909, and is recognized as the largest and oldest civil rights organization in the country. The Lansing branch of the NAACP was chartered on April 14th, 1919. They have been a pivotal part of advocating for Colored People from the start of the branch. They have been involved in important pieces of Lansing History such as the 1972 Court case against the Lansing Board of Education. Where they argued that the board was “denying equal educational opportunity on the basis of race.” If you want to read more about this court case and the final opinion please visit this site.
Notable Figures
in Lansing History
Ransom E. Olds
Founded the Olds Motor Vehicle Company in Lansing in 1897. Olds had a very large part of history when it came to establishing the automotive industry in Laning. He later founded the REO Motor Car Company in Lansing which produced vehicles from 1905 to 1975. You can currently visit the R.E. Olds Transportation Museum located in Lansing. Olds had a very important role in Lansing's development which we discuss further in the development section of this module.
Malcom X
He spent his early years in Lansing where he would grow up and his family would face discrimination. His family was evicted from their first home that they bought, yet before they moved out the house was burnt down while they were in it. He would be moved to the foster system and would leave Lansing during his teen years. Malcolm X would go on to be a key player in the civil rights movement.
Stuart Dunnings Jr
Dunnings was Lansing's first Black lawyer. He officially opened his practice in 1950 where worked on many discrimination cases in the community. A notable first case involved Black students from Detroit visiting Lansing to play in a Basketball tournament. They were denied rooms in a hotel. Dunnings won the case but the judgment was only 21 cents. It was determined that there was discrimination but he couldn't prove damages. He was the President of the local NAACP group when he first came to Lansing as well.
Olivia Letts
Letts was the first Black female teacher to be hired in Lansing in 1951. She was then later named the first Black principal in 1961 in a predominantly white and new elementary school, Post Oak Elementary School. She then went on to continue to contribute to the education world where she continued as an administrator.
James Riley
James and his Wife Deresa founded the Riley Funeral Home which is the oldest black-owned business that started in 1957. The original funeral home was a part of the properties that had to be relocated due to the construction of I-496. They were able to successfully relocate and run their business until they retired and passed the business on to their family.
Joel Furguson
The First African American to be elected to the City Council of Lansing. At the time he was also the youngest person to be elected. He also served on the Ingham County Board of Supervisors and was the co-founder of a development compact and a television station. He now also currently serves on the MSU Board of Trustees as the vice-chairman.
Hortense Canady
The first Black person elected to the Lansing School Board in 1968. She faced pushback when she advocated for school desegregation in 1972, she was recalled for this advocacy at the time. She later went on to serve as the executive director of Lansing Community College. She helped found the Les Meres et Dubatante as well as the Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Thera sorority. She was also inducted into the Hall of Fame and Women's Historical Center in 2002.
Earvin “Magic”
Johnson
Born and raised in Lansing. Went to Evertt High School where he helped win their high school basketball championship. He later went to school down the road at Michigan State University where he helped lead the team to an NCAA victory. He was then drafted into the NBA in 1979. He would go on to win 5 championships during his 13 seasons in the NBA. He was also named an MVP in his rookie season.
Dr. Robert L. Green
Robert L. Green was a large presence in Lansing he was involved in many aspects of the community. He was Michigan State University's first black dean and he would have not only an impact on the university but would also have an impact on things such as public housing and education. He worked closely with Martin Luther King Junior and had a large role to play in the 1962 order that prohibited discrimination when it came to housing. He continues to serve the community and make an impact in Lansing and East Lansing.
Inherent Inequity:
The Long Road to Integrating Lansing Schools
Magic’s “Big Red” Dream
and Viking Reality
Growing up, Earvin (Magic) Johnson had always imagined himself as a Sexton “Big Red.” Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Sexton High School was a predominantly Black school, being surrounded by the Black neighborhoods on the westside of Lansing that Magic had grown up in. But, Magic’s dream never came true. As Magic was preparing to enter high school, the Lansing School District was integrating schools, attempting to bring an end to the inherent inequality of “separate but equal” segregation policies that kept Black students in rundown, poorly funded schools. This meant that instead of becoming a Sexton “Big Red,” Magic was bussed across town to the predominantly white Everett and became an Everett Viking.
Magic was not alone; on September 7th, 1972, almost 1,000 kids in Lansing were bused to different schools as the Lansing Public School District started integrating elementary schools. This section outlines the steps the Lansing School Board took to integrate schools, the repercussions they faced, attempts to stop integration, and the court case that would ultimately settle the issue.
The Road to
Integrating
Lansing Schools
The road to school integration in Lansing was tumultuous, like so many other school districts across the country. In 1954, the US Supreme Court ruled in its landmark decision of Brown v. Board of Education that segregated schools was unconstitutional, and ordered that schools become integrated. However nationwide, efforts to do so were slow; it wasn’t until 1967 that the Lansing School Board took its first small step in integrating high schools. This step included redrawing high school boundaries so that enrollment at each high school would match the racial breakdown of all students in the district. However, despite taking this step, high schools remained segregated, with Sexton remaining a predominantly Black school and Everett predominantly white.
Up until integration plans were approved, 85% of minority students in Lansing went to schools where a majority of the students were minorities. In 1972, the Lansing School District adopted an official plan to integrate elementary schools. This plan would ultimately result in 5 board members losing their jobs, and a court case that would find the Board guilty of deliberately keeping schools segregated and keeping minority students in underfunded, run-down schools.
Integration Plan
Divides Lansing
It all started on June 9th, 1972. On that day, the Lansing School Board voted 5 to 3 in favor of integrating Lansing elementary schools and would only involve the 3rd – 6th grades. The 4-year plan would utilize a clustering system and busing so that each elementary school had between 10% and 45% minority students. Schools that had less than 10% or more than 45% minority students would be “clustered” or grouped together. Students at these schools would spend 2 years at their neighborhood school and would be bussed to a different school within the cluster for the other 2 years3. The plan would go into effect at the beginning of the upcoming school year on September 7th, 1972. Under this plan, almost 1,000 kids were bussed to schools further away from their homes so each elementary school had between 10% and 45% minority students.
5 Board
Members
Recalled
This plan was met with intense backlash. Opponents of integrating schools formed a group called the Citizens for Neighborhood Schools (CNS), and threatened to re-call, or remove, Richard Beers, Kathryn Boucher, Hortense Candy, Nollio Nussdorf, and Clarence Rosa, the 5 board members who voted to approve the integration plan. One of the 5 board members, Hortense Candy, was a trailblazer in her own right, being the first Black person elected to the Board.
Immediately following the approval of the integration plan, CNS filed a petition to collect signatures to place a proposal on the ballot in the upcoming November election so that citizens could cast their decision for whether to remove the 5 board members. On November 7th, 1972, almost 5 months after the initial vote, the citizens of Lansing voted to remove all 5 board members who voted in favor of integrating Lansing schools. 5 New board members were elected in January 1973.
Court Finds The Board
Violated the
14th Amendment
Almost immediately, the new Board voted to halt the integration plan before the next school year started in September 1973. However, the Lansing chapter of the NAACP (The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), stepped in and filed a lawsuit against the Lansing School Board, stating that the Board was deliberately delaying school integration efforts, keeping minority children in underfunded, rundown schools and violating the 14th Amendment and the Michigan Constitution.
Until the case could be formally heard and decided by the US District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Chief Judge Noel Fox issued an injunction against the Board, keeping the integration plan in effect. Ultimately on May 17th, 1976, Judge Fox would find that the Board had violated the 14th Amendment when it attempted to halt the integration plan. Judge Fox also ordered the Board to adopt a more robust integration plan, which would expand the existing plan that originally applied to 3rd – 6th grade to 1st and 2nd grade too.
Historically Black Neighborhoods
and Business History
St.Joseph and
Redlining
in Lansing
I-496 is a large highway that cuts across the City of Lansing, just south of the downtown. Have you ever wondered what existed there, before the highway was built?
Lansing’s largest Black neighborhood along St.Joseph Street was displaced by the construction of the 496 highway. This community was chosen not only due to the residents in the community but also due to hundreds of years of discrimination from the government. Redlining is a process that orignated in 1934 when the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) developed maps of neighborhoods based on “desirability” in cities- these maps guided which properties would have access to federally insured home loans. In other words, these maps made it much easier to borrow money for a home in “desirable” areas and much harder in redlined areas. Type A areas were shaded green, indicating a high desirability, typically on the outskirts of the city and consisting of affluent suburbs and majority white communities. Type B or blue areas were also well-to-do areas but were considered not as desirable as green areas and mostly consisted of older neighborhoods with a majority of white middle and lower-class communities. Type C or yellow areas were considered declining neighborhoods and were often sandwiched between blue and red neighborhoods. The last and most discriminated area was Type D, or red neighborhoods which were considered the least desirable areas and mostly consisted of Black and POC members of the community. These areas were unable to qualify for FHA mortgages and were forced to either pay in cash or suffer the extremely high-interest rates given to those who live in these areas.
At the time these Type D neighborhoods were purposefully discriminated against by the FHA and real estate industry, keeping many Black and POC individuals and households in these separate areas. Even if individuals qualified for a loan due to where they were actually living at the time they were denied. These communities made do with what they were given and created flourishing areas of housing and business. Although the Fair Housing Act was passed in 1968, the residual effects of this issue are maintained well into the present day. Though the areas that were redlined were considered “unlivable” and “disposable” it was actually a place with thriving culture and economic prosperity for the individuals within these communities.
I-496 Construction
When I-496 was completed in 1963, it would dead-end 35 streets, produce a plethora of one-way streets required for on and off-ramps, and dictate future development in the Lansing region. More than 800 residences and businesses were living and working in the proposed freeway area and had to be taken over by eminent domain, giving the state ownership of the land. The neighborhood was not only home to Lansing’s largest Black community, it was also home to the region's "Syrian" community as well. These were individuals that were from modern-day Syria and Lebanon. At the time many people living in the area did not know the value of their land or how much the state was actually willing to pay to acquire their land, so the individuals living there sold their land for less than it was worth. The money they made was not nearly enough for them to buy a home in another area or enough to help move their businesses to another location. Many individuals were pushed either into areas that were too expensive for them to live in, or they were forced into other redlined areas that were already overcrowded.
These businesses, churches, schools, and residences were only given 9 weeks notice to leave and relocate. The state felt that the area they were bulldozing was undervalued and those in it were not taken seriously. Even when these individuals from St.Joseph Street tried to relocate they were not able to buy homes and spaces for their businesses. Many areas were not welcoming to an influx of Black Americans to their community and as such many Black businesses died off after the construction of 496.
Black Business
in Lansing
Lansing’s business hub was booming in the 1960s and St.Joseph Street was no different. Grocery stores, dry cleaners, beauty salons, and clothing stores were just some of the many businesses that were present before the construction of I-496. One building, in particular, survived the construction of the highway, but it is not the lively record store that it once was. Johnny’s Records at the corner of Logan and Main Street (now Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Malcolm X Street) used to be a lively place where individuals could come and listen to good music and have good conversations. The store sold more than records, it was a place where individuals could buy clothes, shoes, and jewelry as well. When the shop closed due to the construction the building was kept as a sort of project headquarters for the highway construction and today it is the office of the Platinum Paint Coatings company.
This building is the only one from the hundreds of businesses that were demolished by the creation of I-496. The corner stores, churches, and local hang-out spots were all demolished due to the construction and most of them were unable to survive the relocation. People’s livelihoods, homes, and communities were uprooted due to this 12-mile stretch of interstate.
Lansing’s Connection
to Labor Movements
and Manufacturing
Lansing’s economic life is characterized by a balancing act between manufacturing, government administration, and education. Labor unions have historically played an important role in Lansing’s manufacturing base, advocating for better wages and working conditions for workers. Labor unions also serve as sites for political organizing and provided an avenue for promoting candidates to local government positions that supported workers' needs. Labor union’s also provide avenues for women and minoritized groups such as Latin Americans and African Americans to advocate for their workplace and social needs.
Lansing’s economic and manufacturing base at its founding was focused on the production of goods that supported farming. Major industrialization passed an important milestone in 1897 with the founding of the Olds Motor Vehicle Company. Ransom E Old’s remains a significant historical figure in Lansing because of his influence on the wider automobile manufacturing industry and for establishing Lansing as a hub in that expanding industry {Link to Original Photo Here}. R.E. Old’s founded several companies, and the R.E. Old’s Engine Company, founded around the same time as Olds Motor Vehicle Company experienced some early tensions with organized labor when machinists threatened a strike over pay disputes with the company’s management.
Labor movements in the Lansing area began to exert significant social influence during the Great Depression. A significant early indicator of labor’s growing influence on life in the region was revealed during a streetcar company worker strike in 1932. This was followed by an event entitled the “Lansing Labor Holiday” which occurred in 1937 {Link to UAW Article Photo Here}. This event started as a strike among construction workers that then spread to include U.A.W./C.I.O. auto workers. The event culminated in a clash in East Lansing between MSU students and striking workers. Most strikes in the Lansing area were peaceful and productive in reaching a resolution between laborers and management.
During World War 2 manufacturing thrived in Lansing, with a notable example being a Lansing manufacturing plant attaining the status of world’s largest airplane propeller producer. While Lansing manufacturing went through booms and busts with fair stability through the early and middle 20th century, manufacturing in the region followed wider U.S. trends of declining manufacturing jobs. The unionized workforce in the United States has dropped to around 10% since a high of 20% in 1983. In 1975 Reo Motor Company, one of several manufacturing companies started by Ransom E Olds shut down permanently following the company’s bankruptcy. Oldsmobile, a subsidiary of General Motors was the result of the purchase of Olds Motor Works in 1908 produced its last vehicle at a Lansing factory in April of 2004.
Women Involvement
in Unions
Women are participants and beneficiaries of the labor movement. Anna Elg was a member of the REO Girls Club and a card carrying A.F.L-C.I.O union member {Link to REO Girls Booklet Here} {Link to Anna Elg Union Card Here}. The REO Girls Club was founded in 1970 “to unite in an organization the women employed by Diamond REO Trucks…to promote friendship and better cooperation, to sponsor projects of worthy cause, and to encourage the cultural welfare of it’s members.” Similar organizations at other REO plants are recalled in oral interviews to have existed as far back as 1935. The activities of the REO Girls Club included supporting women within the company, community fundraising, and other initiatives meant to support local families. An interview with former club members expressed that the women involved in the club “exemplified a spirit of community” {Link to picture of REO Girls meeting in factory here}. You can find an extended interview of former REO Girls Club members at this youtube link.
{Link to Ora Calhoun Picture Here}. Ora Calhoun was born in 1944, migrated to Lansing with her family from Alabama to Lansing during her childhood years, and took a job at General Motor’s Fischer Body plant in 1978. She spent her career at the plant in various roles in the paint department. She was a member of United Auto Workers (UAW) 602. She eventually moved from being a line worker to a supervisor in 1983. As one of the few women supervisors in her department she distinguished herself with her candor, tenacious confidence, and supporting the success of the staff she supervised.
Labor Unions in Lansing
Justo Hernandez lived in the greater Lansing area, and was involved in farm worker labor activism during the 1970s to 1994. Working primarily through the United Farm Workers Union, Justo was an educator and organizer who advocated for predominantly Latino/a farm laborers that worked across the state of Michigan. This involved helping to organize a visit from the prominent farm labor organizer Cesar Chavez, and helping to coordinate marches or lobbying in Lansing.
The United Farm Workers of America was a labor union formed through the collaborative organizing of Cesar Chavez, Dolores Huerta, and Larry Itliong. Their organizing efforts included prominent farm worker strikes in California during the 1960s which ultimately led to concessions which improved working conditions for farm laborers across California. Their success put pressure on farms across the U.S. to provide better working conditions to their laborers. In 1972 the combined worker associations were accepted into the AFL-CIO and renamed the United Farm Workers Union. Michigan’s agricultural economic sector was a site of UFW organizing, in particular among latino/a migrant workers. When Cesar Chavez died, there was a parade held in his honor in Lansing, and other events honoring his legacy occurred throughout the state
