Black folks have been sounding the alarm for years about Michigan. Don't get it twisted that just because it is home to Detroit, a majority-Black city, that racism and bigotry isn't rampant in this state. This has been present and bubbling under the surface for a very long time.

The details of the threats/plot against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer are shocking & disturbing. But for many Black Michiganders, the mere existence of these groups is not a surprise when you've been raised with a keen understanding of the racist history of this state.

This is coming from my own experience of living in Michigan but also that of many Black residents I've interviewed over the years, especially within the past several months. Black folks love this state and the natural beauty it offers but it hasn't always loved us back.

Oh, hey. Free story idea/advice since I'm off: Whatever time your news outlet plans to spend backgrounding these men/groups to piece together "how they got to this point," spend more time talking to Black & brown residents who that hatred may have actually been exacted upon.