After investigating several certified complaints filed against a Traverse City salon, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) today filed a formal charge of discrimination against the Studio 8 Hair Lab LLC.

In the charge, MDCR asserts that after an investigation of at least three complaints filed with the agency, they have found that statements published by Studio 8 Hair Lab LLC on social media and elsewhere denying services to individuals based on sex is a violation of the state’s primary civil rights law, the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA).

“The law is clear,” said Executive Director Johnson. “If your business provides services, facilities, goods or accommodations to the public, advertising that those services will not be offered to certain individuals based on sex is a violation of civil rights law and could put you at risk of the kind of charge Studio 8 is facing today.”

Read the full text of the press release, including the charge of discrimination against Studio 8.

Watch the virtual press conference announcing the charge.

(Image is a screen capture from the virtual press conference. Clockwise speakers starting in the upper left corner: Communications Director Vicki Levengood, Enforcement Director Marcelina Trevino, Legal Affairs Director Bryant Osikowicz, Staff Attorney Alannah Buford-Kamerman, and Executive Director John E. Johnson, Jr.) 

In other action, the Commission unanimously passed two motions offered by Commissioner Luke Londo. One requests a legal opinion on whether denying transgender students access to restrooms that align with their gender identity violates the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act or other laws.

The second was also a request for a legal opinion on whether it is a violation of trans and non-binary students’ civil rights under ELCRA to refuse to address them by their chosen pronouns and names. The second motion included the request that the Commission, if necessary, prepare an interpretive statement on these issues for consideration at the next Commission meeting.

(Image is the Commission logo and the text MCRC Michigan Civil Rights Commission)

On Nov. 8, 2023, the Michigan Civil Rights Commission held the first of several public hearings to hear directly from Michigan residents on their experience of discrimination in buying, renting, or obtaining financing to purchase a home.

The Nov. 8 hearing marked the launch of an extensive effort lead by the Commission and its operational arm, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, to take a comprehensive look at housing discrimination in Michigan and to develop policy and regulatory recommendations to address it. 

The Detroit public hearing is one of four that will be held in Michigan communities from November 2023 to April of 2024, followed by a Civil Rights Summit on June 12 in Detroit.

Upcoming dates: 

• February 7: a virtual public hearing open to residents anywhere in Michigan
• March 16: Flint/Saginaw/Bay City public hearing, location TBA
• April 28^: Grand Rapids public hearing, location TBA
• June 12: Civil Rights Summit on Housing, to be held at The Icon, 200 Walker Street, Detroit, MI 48207

“The series of hearings on housing discrimination followed by a Civil Rights Summit in June mark a significant investment by the Commission in revealing the scope and impact of housing discrimination on the communities we serve,” said John E. Johnson, Executive Director of the Michigan Department of Civil Rights. “We urge any resident of the state who has faced the specter of housing discrimination to come to a hearing and tell your story.”

Watch the MCRC Detroit Fair Housing Hearing 

Michigan's 2023 legislative session has ended, with both the House and Senate adjourning for the year. For many, that leaves the question of when new laws take effect. 

Unless it is given immediate effect, any bill signed by Governor Whitmer becomes law 91 days after the Legislature adjourns 'sine die.' Since the 102^nd Michigan Legislature adjourned Tuesday, November 14, 2023, the effective date for all 'sine die' legislation is February 13, 2024. That includes:

• PA 0006: Which adds sexual orientation and gender identity or expression to the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.
• PA 0031: Which removes certain references to non-therapeutic abortions in the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.
• PA 0045: Which prohibits discrimination based on traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture.
• PA 0064: Which exempts from the Freedom Of Information Act any public records which identify parties proceeding anonymously in civil actions alleging sexual misconduct.

Read the full list of 2023 Public Acts. Note, the Public Acts list is updated periodically by the Legislative Services Bureau. 

(Image is a photo of Michigan's Capitol building.)

Health insurers will now be required to cover all pregnancy-related health care, including abortion.

Last year Michigan voted to amend the state constitution to add protections for reproductive rights. The amendment defines reproductive freedom as "the right to make and carry out pregnancy-related decisions such as those concerning prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion, miscarriage management, and infertility care."

Several abortion restrictions were repealed by the Legislature.

Among the repeals are:

• The prohibition on colleges and universities referring students to clinics for abortion services.
• A state mandate that abortion patients receive materials on alternatives to an abortion such as adoption.
• Hallway width and procedure room size for abortion facilities.

(Image is cartoon silhouette of two women with text: "Reproductive Rights")

Two measures to bar guns near or at polling places, ballot drop boxes, and vote counting locations were passed by the Michigan House of Representatives on November 13, 2023. Currently, Washington, D.C. and 18 states forbid open carry at polling sites and drop boxes.

(Photo of a gun)

A federal court in Kalamazoo heard closing arguments in a trial to determine if the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commissions’ (MICRC) maps have led to forbidden retrogression in minority voting strength. Election district maps cannot be drawn in a way that impairs the ability of geographically insular and politically cohesive groups of black voters to participate equally in the political process and to elect candidates of their choice. Thornburg v. Gingles (1986).

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 says that "No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure shall be imposed or applied by any State or political subdivision to deny or abridge the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color." Coalitions of Black, Asian, Hispanic, Native American, “Other,” and those who identify with “two or more” racial groups have had the ability to coalesce and elect candidates of their choice.

The VRA requires majority-minority districts be drawn to prevent vote dilution in cities such as Detroit. This community of interest may have been denied the opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice if the 2010 percentages of majority-minority districts was diluted.

The U.S. Supreme Court determined three threshold measures in Thornburg v. Gingles (1986) should be used to evaluate whether an electoral map violates the rights of minority groups set forth in the Voting Rights Act:

• A minority group must demonstrate it is large enough and compact enough to constitute a majority in an electoral district.
• A minority group must demonstrate it is politically united.
• A minority group must demonstrate the majority group historically votes sufficiently as a group to defeat the minority group's preferred candidate.

(Image is the Linden Senate District map of Michigan found at https://michigan.mydistricting.com/legdistricting/comments/plan/281/23)