He’d go to the river, or to the Detroit Yacht Club. The Detroit River was only two city blocks from his home. His mother Annie, he said, made sacrifices so that he could live comfortably.įranklin spent his childhood exploring the city, pushing the boundaries to learn about the world around him. His stepfather, Andrew, was an assemblyman at Chrysler, and Franklin said he and his siblings didn’t do without anything they needed. Franklin grew up on the east side of Detroit in a working-class neighborhood. He didn’t doubt God’s presence, but Art Franklin knew his parents, too, had a hand in shaping his future. Seven is God’s number of perfection, she’d tell Art, and “God has a hand in your life.” Motown memoriesĪnnie Franklin knew her seventh child would be special. A Detroit native with a decades-long track record of thoughtful, dogged journalism, Franklin said there’s much more he hopes to accomplish as he moves forward.
He said he will remain in the Magic City, though, continuing to tell the stories of community members and empowering them to change the world around them for the better. It’s only the beginning.įranklin, the first Black man to anchor a primetime news broadcast in Birmingham, signed off from CBS 42 for the last time on Friday. ( WIAT) – It’s not the end for Art Franklin.
