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Events from the year 1988 in Michigan.
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Events from the year 1988 in Michigan.
The Associated Press (AP) selected the top stories in Michigan for 1988 as follows: [1]
1. Voters of Michigan in November 1988 approved Proposal A prohibiting Medicaid-paid abortions. It passed by a margin of 1.94 million to 1.48 million. With the vote, Michigan joined 36 other states in banning Medicaid abortions. In 1987, Michigan had spent $6 million to fund 18,000 abortions. The Michigan Legislature had voted 17 times to ban Medicaid funded abortions between 1977 and 1987 but it was vetoed each time by Governors James Blanchard or William Milliken. [2]
2. A drought that shriveled crops and led Gov. Blanchard to impose a statewide ban on outdoor burning, fireworks and cigarette smoking.
3. Presidential politics, including Pat Robertson's popularity, Jesse Jackson's victory in the Michigan caucus, and Michael Dukakis losing the state.
4. (tie) The creation of the Michigan Education Trust guaranteeing college tuition for youngsters who enrolled. Some 40,344 children were enrolled in 1988.
4. (tie) Debate over changes in school financing.
6. Medical waste, including hypodermic needles with traces of blood, washed up on Lake Michigan shoreline, forcing temporary beach closures.
7. The approval and subsequent litigation over the joint operating agreement (JOA) between The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press . The papers, rivals for 115 years, combined business operations. The JOA was approved by Attorney General Edwin Meese in August 1988.
8. The trial and conviction of Alberta Easter and her three sons (William, George and Roy Lemons) for the July 1987 murder of three Inkster police officers (Sgt. Ira Parker and officers Daniel Dubiel and Clay Hoover) in a hail of gunfire inside a room at the Bungalow Motel. The officers were trying to serve a warrant on Easter for writing a bad check. After a 13-week trial, the jury in August 1988 found all four guilty of first-degree murder
9. (tie) The war against crack cocaine in Detroit, including raids on hundreds of crackhouses and trials and convictions of Richard Wershe Jr. ("White Boy Rick") and the Chambers Brothers gang.
9. (tie) The 10-day hunt for Vincent Loonsfoot through Upper Peninsula woods. Loonsfoort was wanted for fatally shooting four members of his ex-wife's family at the Hannahville Indian Reservation near Escanaba. Loonsfoot eventually surrendered. He was convicted on four counts of first-degree murder in December 1988.
The AP also conducted a poll of Michigan sports editors who selected the state's top sports stories as follows: [3]
In a separate poll by the Detroit Free Press , readers selected the top sports figures of 1988. The top 10 were Steve Yzerman (162 points), Jim Abbott (117 points), kayaker and 2x gold medalist Greg Barton (82 points), Traverse City football coach Jim Ooley (81 points), Central Michigan basketball player Dan Majerle (70 points), Isiah Thomas (57 points), Farmington Hills quarterback Mill Coleman (52 points), Kirk Gibson (44 points), Bo Schembechler (35 points), and Steve Avery (Steve Avery (baseball) [4] or Steve Avery (American football) [5] ?) (33 points). [6]
In the 1980 United States census, Michigan was recorded as having a population of 9,259,000 persons, ranking as the eighth most populous state in the country. By 1990, the state's population had grown only marginally by 0.4% to 9,259,000 persons.
The following is a list of cities in Michigan with a population of at least 50,000 based on 1980 U.S. Census data. Historic census data from 1970 and 1990 is included to reflect trends in population increases or decreases. Cities that are part of the Detroit metropolitan area are shaded in tan.
| 1980 Rank | City | County | 1970 Pop. | 1980 Pop. | 1990 Pop. | Change 1980-90 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit | Wayne | 1,514,063 | 1,203,368 | 1,027,974 | −14.6%  |
| 2 | Grand Rapids | Kent | 197,649 | 181,843 | 189,126 | 4.0%  |
| 3 | Warren | Macomb | 179,260 | 161,134 | 144,864 | −10.1% |
| 4 | Flint | Genesee | 193,317 | 159,611 | 140,761 | −11.8% |
| 5 | Lansing | Ingham | 131,403 | 130,414 | 127,321 | −2.4% |
| 6 | Sterling Heights | Macomb | 61,365 | 108,999 | 117,810 | 8.1% |
| 7 | Ann Arbor | Washtenaw | 100,035 | 107,969 | 109,592 | 1.5% |
| 8 | Livonia | Wayne | 110,109 | 104,814 | 100,850 | −3.8% |
| 9 | Dearborn | Wayne | 104,199 | 90,660 | 89,286 | −1.5% |
| 10 | Westland | Wayne | 86,749 | 84,603 | 84,724 | 0.1% |
| 11 | Kalamazoo | Kalamazoo | 85,555 | 79,722 | 80,277 | 0.7% |
| 12 | Taylor | Wayne | 70,020 | 77,568 | 70,811 | −8.7% |
| 13 | Saginaw | Saginaw | 91,849 | 77,508 | 69,512 | −10.3% |
| 14 | Pontiac | Oakland | 85,279 | 76,715 | 71,166 | −7.2% |
| 15 | St. Clair Shores | Macomb | 88,093 | 76,210 | 68,107 | −10.6% |
| 16 | Southfield | Oakland | 69,298 | 75,608 | 75,745 | 0.2% |
| 17 | Royal Oak | Oakland | 86,238 | 70,893 | 65,410 | −7.7% |
| 18 | Dearborn Heights | Wayne | 80,069 | 67,706 | 60,838 | −10.1% |
| 19 | Troy | Oakland | 39,419 | 67,102 | 72,884 | 8.6% |
| 20 | Wyoming | Kent | 56,560 | 59,616 | 63,891 | 7.2% |
| 21 | Farmington Hills | Oakland | -- | 58,056 | 74,611 | 28.5% |
| 22 | Roseville | Macomb | 60,529 | 54,311 | 51,412 | −5.3% |
| 23 | East Lansing | Ingham | 47,540 | 51,392 | 50,677 | −1.4% |
The following is a list of counties in Michigan with populations of at least 100,000 based on 1980 U.S. Census data. Historic census data from 1970 and 1990 are included to reflect trends in population increases or decreases. Counties that are part of the Detroit metropolitan area are shaded in tan.
| 1980 Rank | County | Largest city | 1970 Pop. | 1980 Pop. | 1990 Pop. | Change 1980-90 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wayne | Detroit | 2,666,751 | 2,337,891 | 2,111,687 | −9.7% |
| 2 | Oakland | Pontiac | 907,871 | 1,011,793 | 1,083,592 | 7.1% |
| 3 | Macomb | Warren | 625,309 | 694,600 | 717,400 | 3.3% |
| 4 | Genesee | Flint | 444,341 | 450,449 | 430,459 | −4.4% |
| 5 | Kent | Grand Rapids | 411,044 | 444,506 | 500,631 | 12.6% |
| 6 | Ingham | Lansing | 261,039 | 275,520 | 281,912 | 2.3% |
| 7 | Washtenaw | Ann Arbor | 234,103 | 264,748 | 282,937 | 6.9% |
| 8 | Saginaw | Saginaw | 219,743 | 228,059 | 211,946 | −7.1% |
| 9 | Kalamazoo | Kalamazoo | 201,550 | 212,378 | 223,411 | 5.2% |
| 10 | Berrien | Benton Harbor | 163,875 | 171,276 | 161,378 | −5.8% |
| 11 | Muskegon | Muskegon | 157,426 | 157,589 | 158,983 | 0.9% |
| 12 | Ottawa | Holland | 128,181 | 157,174 | 187,768 | 19.5% |
| 13 | Jackson | Jackson | 143,274 | 151,495 | 149,756 | −1.1% |
| 14 | Calhoun | Battle Creek | 141,963 | 141,557 | 135,982 | −3.9% |
| 15 | St. Clair | Port Huron | 120,175 | 138,802 | 145,607 | 4.9% |
| 16 | Monroe | Monroe | 118,479 | 134,659 | 133,600 | −0.8% |
| 17 | Bay | Bay City | 117,339 | 119,881 | 111,723 | −6.8% |
| 18 | Livingston | Howell | 58,967 | 100,289 | 115,645 | 15.3% |
