August 17, 2018

Yesterday, on Aug. 16, 2018, American rhythm and blues singer Aretha Franklin died at age 76 at her home in Detroit, Michigan. Franklin ranks among the best-selling female artists in the history of recorded music. Popularly known as the “Queen of Soul,” her 1967 recording of “Respect” became an inspirational anthem for the civil rights movement and a symbol of black pride.

American rhythm and blues singer Aretha Franklin died on Aug. 16, 2018. Credit: © Jamie McCarthy, Getty Images/Thinkstock

Aretha Louise Franklin was born on March 25, 1942, in Memphis, Tennessee. She was raised in Detroit. She began her singing career at the age of 12 in the Detroit church of her father, C. L. Franklin, a noted preacher and gospel singer. She later transferred the passion and intensity of her gospel singing to popular songs. Most of Franklin’s recordings also feature her piano playing.

Aretha Franklin, center, performs on an American television program in 1968. Credit: © CBS/Landov

Franklin’s period of greatest popularity came in the late 1960′s and early 1970′s. In 1967 alone, she had five top-10 hit recordings. They were “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “Respect,” “Baby, I Love You,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” and “Chain of Fools.” In 1968, she recorded the hits “(Sweet Sweet Baby) Since You’ve Been Gone,” “Think,” “The House That Jack Built,” and “I Say a Little Prayer.” Franklin’s other hits include “Share Your Love with Me” (1969), “Call Me” (1970), “Spanish Harlem” and “Rock Steady” (both 1971), “Day Dreaming” (1972), “Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)” (1973), “Freeway of Love” (1985), and “Jimmy Lee” (1986). Franklin also recorded gospel music. Her gospel albums include Amazing Grace (1972) and One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism (1987).

Franklin won numerous Grammy Awards and, in 1987, she was the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She sang “I Dreamed a Dream” at President Bill Clinton’s first inauguration in 1993. In 2005, Franklin received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor awarded by the president of the United States. Memorable later performances included her rendition of “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” at President Barack Obama’s first inauguration in 2009; and “(You Make Me Feel Like) a Natural Woman” at the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors, where she herself was honored in 1994. Kennedy Center Honors are awarded annually to men and women in recognition of their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts.

December 3, 2013

Detroit is officially bankrupt. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes granted Detroit protection from its creditors, marking this the largest public bankruptcy in U.S. history. The creditors include retired city employees–retired firefighters and police officers–whose pensions make up half of the city’s liabilities. Under Judge Rhodes’s ruling, these pensions appear to be imperiled: “Pension benefits are a contractual obligation of a municipality and not entitled to any heightened protection in bankruptcy.” He noted, however, that the court would not “lightly or casually” make changes to existing pensions before exhausting other options. With a total debt estimated to exceed $18 billion, the city of Detroit is hard put to provide even the most basic services to residents.

Once an industrial powerhouse, Detroit has been in decline for decades. In 1950, the city had 1.8 million residents. Through the following decade, thousands of white middle-class families moved from Detroit to new developments outside of the city. Race riots in 1967 hastened the exodus. Today, the population is 700,000. With an estimated 70,000 properties abandoned–including vast empty factories and downtown skyscrapers–Detroit’s tax base has not covered the cost of city services for years. Past administrations borrowed to make up the difference, leaving the city hopelessly in debt.

Analysists fear that the loss of such vital city services as adequate police and fire protection could force such businesses as the General Motors Corporation (GM) out of Detroit. The Renaissance Center (right in photo) houses GM's world headquarters. (Corbis)

Although Mayor Dave Bing has vowed that public services will be kept running, fire, police, and ambulance services are already near collapse. Police response times to 911 calls average 58 minutes, compared with 11 minutes nationally. Two-thirds of Detroit’s entire ambulance fleet was not in service in the first quarter of 2013. Forty percent of the city’s streetlights do not work, and half of the city’s parks have been closed since 2008. Given the situation, analysts have voiced concerns that such businesses as General Motors may move their operations out of the city.

With the bankruptcy approved, Detroit’s state-appointed emergency manager, Kevyn Orr, can begin liquidating city assets to satisfy creditors. Earlier in the year, he raised the specter of selling the vast and highly valuable collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts when he ordered the appraisal of 60,000 pieces of art.

Additional World Book articles:

• Detroit 1967 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1980 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1982 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1990 (a Back in Time article)

November 6, 2013

In state and local elections around the United States yesterday, a Republican was re-elected governor of New Jersey and Democrats took the governor’s mansion in Virginia and city hall in New York City.

Moderate conservative Republican Chris Christie was re-elected governor of New Jersey in a landslide. He bested his Democratic challenger, State Senator Barbara Buono, collecting 60.5 percent of the vote, compared with her 38 percent. Christie’s handling of the Hurricane Sandy disaster in 2012 earned him widespread public support. Political analysts noted that the size of Christie’s victory places him at the forefront of possible Republican candidates for president in 2016.

New York City elected a Democrat, Bill de Blasio, as mayor for the first time in 20 years. He won with a resounding 73 percent of the vote, compared with 24 percent for his Republican rival, Joe Lhota. De Blasio, a liberal, promised to address what he referred to as “a tale of two cities,” the growing divide between rich and poor in New York.

In the Virginia governor’s race, Democrat Terry McAuliffe, a key ally of Bill and Hillary Clinton, narrowly beat his Republican challenger, socially conservative Ken Cuccinelli, in this pivotal presidential swing state. McAuliffe took a smaller-than-expected 48 percent of the vote, compared with Cuccinelli’s 45.5 percent. Cuccinelli had the support of the Tea Party wing of the Republican Party.

The beleaguered city of Detroit elected its first white mayor, Mike Duggan, since the 1970′s. In the 2010 United States Census, Detroit had a population of 713,777 residents, down from a peak of 1,849,568, in 1950. The state of Michigan took over the city in March 2013, and it subsequently filed for bankruptcy, the only large American city to ever declare itself insolvent.

In an Alabama congressional primary runoff, moderate Republican Bradley Byrne topped his socially conservative opponent, Dean Young, 52.5 percent to 47.5 percent. Analysts characterized the race as a hard-fought victory for the business wing of the highly splintered GOP over the Tea Party wing.

Colorado voters rejected a sweeping school-financing reform measure. The state’s governor, John W. Hickenlooper, had strongly endorsed the measure, promising that it would deliver smaller class sizes, full-day kindergarten, and smarter education spending.

Additional World Book article:

• Tempest in a Tea Party (a special report)

July 19, 2013

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder confirmed yesterday that the city of Detroit has filed for bankruptcy. “Let me be blunt: Detroit’s broke,” he told the press. Detroit’s state-appointed emergency manager, Kevyn Orr, asked a federal judge yesterday to place the city under bankruptcy protection. The largest U.S. city to ever file for bankruptcy, Detroit has debts of $18 billion to $20 billion. The city’s creditors include holders of municipal bonds as well as public-sector workers and their pension funds. Analysts note that the bankruptcy will likely leave city employees, both current and retired, with significant reductions in their incomes and benefits.

Once an industrial powerhouse, Detroit has been in decline for decades. In 1950, the city had 1.8 million residents. Through the following decade, thousands of white middle-class families moved from Detroit to new developments outside of the city. Race riots in 1967 hastened the exodus. Today, the population is 700,000. With an estimated 70,000 properties abandoned–including vast empty factories and downtown skyscrapers–Detroit’s tax base has not covered city services for years. Past administrations borrowed to make up the difference, leaving the city hopelessly in debt.

Analysists fear that the loss of such vital city services as adequate police and fire protection could force such businesses as the General Motors Corporation (GM) out of Detroit. The Renaissance Center (right) houses GM's world headquarters. (Corbis)

Although Mayor Dave Bing has vowed that public services will be kept running, fire, police, and ambulance services are already near collapse. Police response times to 911 calls average 58 minutes, compared with 11 minutes nationally. Two-thirds of Detroit’s entire ambulance fleet was not in service in the first-quarter of 2013. Forty percent of the city’s streetlights do not work, and half of the city’s parks have been closed since 2008. Given the situation, analysts voiced concerns that such businesses as General Motors may move their operations out of the city.

If the bankruptcy is approved, Orr would be allowed to liquidate city assets to satisfy creditors and pensions. He raised the specter of selling the vast and highly valuable collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts when some weeks ago he ordered the appraisal of 60,000 pieces of art.

Additional World Book articles:

• Detroit 1967 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1980 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1982 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1990 (a Back in Time article)

March 4, 2013

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder announced on March 1 that the state of Michigan is taking over the city of Detroit, the once mighty center of the U.S. auto industry. The takeover came in response to a report by a state review team that found that Detroit is heading towards financial collapse and recommends that an emergency manager be appointed to run the city. The state-appointed manager will have the power to cut spending, renegotiate contracts with labor unions, merge or eliminate city departments, and, if necessary, institute bankruptcy proceedings.

Detroit is the largest city in Michigan and was once one of the world's leading industrial centers. (Corbis)

The 2008-2009 recession and subsequent downturn of the auto industry pushed Detroit, which has for decades struggled with economic hardships, over the edge. It is billions of dollars in debt and currently has a budget deficit topping $300 million. Detroit, which in 1950 was the fourth largest city in the United States with a population of more than 1.8 million people, now has an estimated 700,000 residents. Large sections of the city are abandoned and in an advance state of decay.

Additional World Book articles:

• Automobile 2009 (a Back in Time article)
• Economics 2008 (a Back in Time article)
• Economics 2009 (a Back in Time article)
• Detroit 1990 (Back in Time article)
• The Big Three Roll Again (a special report)
• Economic Crisis: The Government Jumps In (a special report)
• Economic Crises – Then and Now (a special report)