Taking place February 6 and 7 at Lake Michigan College will be the 2026 Michigan Black Summit, featuring guest speakers and dignitaries from all over the state and country.

Michigan Black Summit Chair Trenton Bowens tells us the theme this year is “A Fierce Urgency of Now” as community leaders discuss how they can build a better Michigan.

“We’ll be having workshops, keynote speakers, and we’re hoping people come to be empowered and leave with tools in their toolbox to be agents of change,” Bowen said. 

The host of the summit will be Benton Harbor Mayor Marcus Muhammad, who tells us the city is the perfect place for this gathering of Black leaders.

“I think Benton Harbor has always been ground zero,” Muhammad said. “From this stage and from this platform, I think that it gives people who want to improve the entire state an opportunity to come to a place where if Benton Harbor can be lifted up, then as the adage goes, a rising tide lifts all boats.”

Muhammad describes his role as ceremonial and says he’s glad to welcome all visitors to the event.

The keynote speaker, that Friday, will be Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, the first Black attorney general of that state. Bowens tells us they have another surprise speaker slated for Saturday. He can’t say yet who it is, but it’s a national figure.

Tickets to the summit are available now. Check the event’s Facebook page.

Photo: Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist at last year’s Michigan Black Summit.