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Community Corner

Craig Covey Talks Breaking Down Barriers in the Fight for Gay Rights

The Ferndale resident and former mayor shares his past struggles and future hopes. Sponsored by Post Grape-Nuts.

About this sponsorship: In honor of the 60th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary’s historic ascent of Mount Everest, Patch and Grape-Nuts are teaming up to highlight those who inspire people around them to climb their own mountains.

Ferndale resident Craig Covey is a pioneer behind the city we've come to know today. As the first openly gay mayor in the state of Michigan, Covey is a firm believer that everyone should be entitled to the same privileges, no matter their sexual orientation. Covey is the creator of the city's Pride Festival, an event that attracted 15,000 people last year with equality-focused events such as the Rainbow Run and Light the Night Against Hate. For 22 years, he served as the CEO of the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project.

Here, Covey shares what has been the most difficult as well as the most exhilarating parts of his history-making journey.

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Q: What’s the biggest challenge you’ve taken on? 

A: Back in the 1980’s, the metro Detroit region’s gay and lesbian community had no centralized neighborhood or home. Unlike most large cities, the gay community was dispersed, fragmented, and somewhat invisible. I had been brought to Michigan to help organize and strengthen the gay community, so as I began to look for my own first home to purchase, I searched with an eye toward a future visible home for the LGBT community as well.

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Q: What inspired you to take on this challenge? 

Unrelenting crime, lack of services, and municipal dysfunction had driven most out of Detroit, and tiny pockets of gay folks were going to Royal Oak, Birmingham, Pleasant Ridge, Redford and other suburbs. 

Ferndale was suffering at that point with stagnant property values, an emptying downtown, and a graying population as families moved further north. Massage parlors and strip clubs were prevalent downtown, and yet it seemed ripe for gentrification. There were some music stores, and a handful of gay activists who lived in Ferndale. We slowly began to get involved with the city and began to promote the town as a place that could be safe and welcoming for our community. It took a decade, but homes were affordable, and there was a vacuum in the region for the kind of artsy, eclectic and “workable” place that gay people like to evolve into a fun place with character.

There was big resistance at first. Conservative elements were nervous and fought the “newcomers” for a while. But as has happened in so many other cities, folks soon realized that with this gentrification came new businesses, jobs, and rising home values. The first gay literary bookstores and bars in Oakland County opened in the early 90’s. We eventually passed a human rights ordinance. We joined service clubs, the beautification commission, and the historical society. A gay man became a leader in the Memorial Day committee. We formed the state’s first gay resident’s association. By the late 90s I was elected as an openly gay councilman, and later in 2007, as the first elected openly gay mayor in the state. 

Q: Did you succeed?

A: What always follows LGBT gentrification is the arrival of new families, artists, teachers, and media types. Young liberals and entrepreneurs moved here too.  Today we have a booming downtown, public art, huge amounts of community volunteerism, and an amazing sense of pride and loyalty to the city. We weathered the financial storm better than most, and we have won county, state and national awards for our development, green policies, and “can-do” spirit. The success of the rejuvenation of Ferndale is undeniable and a model for the nation.

Giving back to the community is its own reward, but I also benefit from the walkable, livable, fun place that Ferndale is today. So while altruism and a sense of duty may have been the impetus for this effort, the benefits  accrue just the same  as I also get to enjoy a safe, prosperous, and inclusive community in which to live, work and play. 

The work never ends, and I hope to continue to contribute to Ferndale to help keep it affordable, and comfortable, and inclusive. A community is strongest when it is diverse in all ways. We need to keep our door open to new immigrants, young people, all racial and ethnic groups, LGBT folks, and anyone who wants to join in the colorful and vibrant community that is now Ferndale, Michigan.             

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