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Donate TodayGuest Commentary
At Bridge, we believe in listening to voices from all over our state. Got something to say? Contact us and join the conversation (details below)
How to submit a Guest Commentary
What to know:
Bridge welcomes a diversity of voices and perspectives from readers on issues important to Michigan. Guest commentaries reflect the views of the author(s), and are independent of the nonpartisan, fact-driven reporting of Bridge’s newsroom staff.
Commentaries must be the author’s original work and preferably will not have appeared first in other publications. Bridge reserves the right to decline submissions at our discretion.
We reserve the right to edit commentary for grammar, clarity, brevity or to address legal or factual concerns. We may offer editing suggestions, but in the service of making your work more accessible, not to alter your views.
We do not pay for guest commentary.
Here are some guidelines:
- Columns are usually 500-700 words
- They generally focus on a Michigan topic or policy and should avoid ad hominem attacks
- The more direct, distinct and/or intimate your perspective, the more effective your column will be
- The best columns do more than identify problems; they also offer solutions and facts to back them up
- Please include a one- or two-sentence bio, including the writer’s organization or relevant background
- Send a good quality, large headshot of the writer(s) as an attachment
- We also ask that, in return for publishing a guest commentary, the author(s) and their organizations generously promote the link to the published column through your Facebook, Twitter and other social or professional networks.
That’s about it. Keep the writing clear, conversational and free of jargon, and sell our smart and receptive readership on the argument you are trying to make.
Who to contact:
Email your submission or idea to Monica Williams at mwilliams@bridgemi.com. Please briefly describe who you are and what you would like to say.
Articles
Opinion | Michigan's universities should take the lead to address inequities
One way to end discrimination and racism is to overcome fear and ignorance through direct engagement and understanding.
Opinion | Vote at home. Can everyone in Michigan agree on that?
Disinformation about voter fraud is being used to create distrust in voting by mail. Instances of fraud are almost nonexistent, this author writes.
Opinion | Dear white people: It’s time to listen and act
It’s time for white social workers, caregivers, doctors, nurses and the entire health care system to work harder. Yes, it’s exhausting, but there is more work to do, and it’s time for you to do it, this soial worker writes.
Opinion | Michigan economy needs development, use of natural gas
Natural gas can provide families and business sectors with cheap, reliable energy during this uncertain time, while we continue to achieve vital environmental progress. Policies supporting the use of natural gas should be a priority in 2020, the author writes.
Opinion | Did it really take a global pandemic to rethink education?
Coronavirus has amplified the need for reform, but will it be what finally brings about the hard work to reform?
Opinion | Enforce the law to protect Michigan voting rights
The Michigan League of Women Voters recently filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of State to make sure what voters approved in 2018 is enforced.
Opinion | Many colleges have waived ACT, SAT tests amid pandemic. Why hasn't U-M?
Requiring tests score for the fall 2020 application cycle creates an inequitable admission barrier that most negatively impacts urban and rural students amid a pandemic, the author writes.
Opinion | Why COVID-19 hit Michigan so hard
Michigan has the nation's fifth-highest death toll, and more than three-quarters of coronavirus-related deaths have taken place in metro Detroit—the lifeblood of economic opportunity for many people of color.
Opinion | COVID-19, meat shortage are why you should move to plant-based meat
The food industry owes it to workers, animals and its own customers to put more plant-based foods front and center.
Opinion | Stand up for Michigan children by saying no to school budget cuts
The state's school superintendent urges Michiganders to lobby Congress directly for funding that preserves educational services.
Opinion | Michigan mail-in voting creates a mail-in democracy
Requiring people who can to make the journey to their polling place is critical. Allowing them to phone it in – or mail it in – threatens the very fabric of this country.
Opinion | George Floyd's killing, unrest a result of structural racism
It takes a tragic killing such as George Floyd's and the rebellions that have followed for there to be a wake-up call that structural racism remains below the surface and alive in America.
Opinion | Michigan EGLE can’t be trusted to probe its role on dam failures
A lawyer involved in the Flint water crisis argues Gov. Gretchen Whitmer should order an independent investigation into the state environmental agency’s role in the Midland-area dam disaster.
Opinion | It’s time for Michigan to fix our broken unemployment system
A Michigan senator urges changes to what he calls outdated rules and burdensome requirements that are barriers for applicants seeking unemployment benefits.
Opinion | U-M: Learn from COVID-19; reduce greenhouse gas emissions now
The University of Michigan lags other Big Ten schools in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, including its Spartan and Buckeye rivals, as well as other prominent peer institutions.
Opinion | Midland breach is wake-up call to remove Michigan's obsolete dams
Across the country, experts understand that removing dams we no longer need is the best way to keep people safe, improve water quality, restore critical wildlife habitat and eliminate ongoing costs of dam maintenance and repair.
Opinion | A letter of encouragement to the Class of 2020, from a 2019 grad
COVID-19 has presented the Class of 2020 with a unique skill — adaptation, something this older student envies.
Opinion | How Michigan universities are collaborating to continue K-12 learning
Educators and researchers at the Michigan State University College of Education, the University of Michigan School of Education and the Wayne State University College of Education are redoubling our efforts to assist school districts, parents and children deal with the challenges posed during a global coronavirus pandemic.
Opinion | We want to work with Gov. Whitmer. She chose partisanship instead.
House Speaker Lee Chatfield writes that Michigan is ‘worse off’ because Gov. Gretchen Whitmer chose a legal battle rather than uniting with lawmakers to fight the coronavirus. History shows there’s a better way, he writes.
Opinion | Michigan needs money: Whitmer should renegotiate business subsidy deals
As the state does its part, one better way to reduce government spending would be to turn to Ford, General Motors and Fiat-Chrysler, recipients of public taxpayer dollars.