If you were born and raised in Detroit, the Michigan coronavirus protests wouldn't surprise you

They flew Confederate flags hundreds of miles north of the Mason-Dixon. They towed boats carrying spray-painted slogans to protest not being able to boat while it was snowing. They carried rifles to, I don't know, shoot the virus? And yes I'm annoyed about it

If you’ve lived in Michigan for any period of time and have been paying attention at all, Wednesday’s protest against Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s ‘Stay Home, Stay Safe’ order should not have shocked you. Michigan’s politics are often confounding, but they’re also unsurprising in a state that is very disconnected within its own borders.

There’s Detroit — and depending on the point trying to be made, sometimes Flint, Saginaw and Lansing — and the rest. “Detroit” stretches beyond the city’s borders, including many of its surrounding suburbs. It has been effectively otherized in our political discourse, even if we all root for the same pathetic professional teams and wear “Detroit vs. Everybody” t-shirts.

I was born in a hospital in Detroit and lived in one of those suburbs until I was eight years old. My dad lived in that same suburb his whole life. When we moved to a small community in the middle of the state, even I could tell the difference. Ideologically, my home now is somewhere in the middle of my first two, although certainly closer to the latter. I love them all with all my heart.

But I have not been shocked to see that while Detroit and its surrounding area is rocked by the coronavirus, parts of Michigan not yet suffering are easily able to write it off. To them, it’s a Detroit problem, not a Michigan one. And even if they aren’t saying that out loud, they’re not having trouble writing off the catastrophe happening only hours from their doorstep.

If you give the absolute benefit of the doubt to the protesters, they rallied because they wanted to go back to work. Their economic livelihood is being threatened by this shutdown, and they find it unfair that certain businesses are regarded as essential, while others are not. They drove around the Capitol in their cars, vans and trucks, and voiced their displeasure. Whether you agree with their reasoning or not, safely protesting from a vehicle is fine. The economic devastation of this pandemic is real and ignoring the pain it’s causing would be heartless.

But saving lives is paramount, and you can rescue a business from the dead. Opening various parts of the state that have yet to succumb to this virus isn’t feasible. People from Oakland, Macomb, Genesee and Wayne counties — where the virus has widely spread — would certainly travel to the “open” areas of the state and bring Covid-19 along with them. The strain that would put on hospitals in those smaller, mostly rural areas would be devastating. We’ve also been told by expert after expert that lifting the measures we have been taking would only lead to more deaths and a return to the restrictions.

As to the essentials: you can buy seeds through various outlets. You can have garden equipment delivered to your house. You can cut your own grass. If you can’t, not having your grass cut before April 30 is not going to kill you, or anyone else. Liquor stores are open because they are the only source of groceries within miles for many Michigan residents. But was that what this protest was really about?

For some, sure. For others, however, it was a large political rally — astro-turfed by the DeVos family — held in the middle of a worldwide pandemic. They flew giant Trump flags and yelled about government overreach just days after the president had said on national television that he has “total authority.” They flew Confederate flags hundreds of miles north of the Mason-Dixon. They towed boats carrying spray-painted slogans to protest not being able to boat while it was snowing. It should be noted that you can still fish in Michigan’s various waterways, just not from a motorboat.

They clogged Lansing’s major streets in front of a giant hospital. They carried assault rifles because, well, I’m not sure exactly why. To shoot the virus? They got out of their vehicles and walked in large groups up and down the streets, gathering in front of the Capitol, clearly breaking the social distancing rules they had claimed they were going to follow. Forget the ignorance of a large gathering during a pandemic killing hundreds weekly statewide, and think simply of the likelihood someone — or more likely someones — contracted the disease Wednesday in Lansing, and is now taking it back to their own community. The sick irony is, with each new infectee, the chances of a prolonged Stay Home order spikes.

It’s absolute selfishness and disregard for others, which is why my annoyance with the protest turned to anger. Imagine being a healthcare worker at Sparrow Hospital, watching this through the window, or at Detroit Sinai Grace. You’ve seen people die alone, unable to say goodbye to their families. You’re afraid to be near those closest to you because you don’t know if you’re infected or not. Or maybe your kids are living with a relative, because even being in the same house as you could endanger them.

Imagine having lost someone to this wretched disease, having to FaceTime them in their final moments to say goodbye, and having to mourn alone because you can’t hold a funeral. Did that cross the minds of the protesters? If it did, do they care? Do they understand the privilege they so often deny was on stunning display as they protested restrictions meant to keep people alive?

I don’t want to be stuck in my house, either. I want to play golf. I want to watch sports — probably as much as you want to be on your boat. But the price I am paying — and that most of you are paying — is nonexistent compared to that of others. I’m happy to pay it, too, because it’s the only way we know how to slow this monster down, even if your perverted idea of freedom is being infringed upon.