Trending
Twice in the last four years, AJ MacArthur voted no on the Michigan Athletics Association agreement with Alpena Public Schools. Meanwhile, his own business, AJ's Garden & Produce Inc., has benefited from taxpayer-funded assistance, including forgiven PPP loans and substantial agricultural subsidies totaling more than $60,000 combined.
Let that sink in.
When the government provided financial assistance to help businesses survive the pandemic and supported agricultural producers through subsidy programs, those dollars were apparently acceptable. But when it comes to supporting athletic opportunities for local school children, MacArthur has voted against the agreement--not once, but twice.
There is something deeply troubling about this contrast. Public funding is not a dirty word when it helps your own bottom line. Yet when the beneficiaries are our kids, suddenly the public investment is apparently not worth supporting.
To be clear, I don’t begrudge a business owner receiving assistance for which their business qualifies. These programs exist for legitimate reasons, and agriculture is vital to our region. But that same understanding should extend to our schools and students.
School athletics are not frivolous extras. They offer young people structure, mentorship, teamwork, discipline, connection, and a sense of belonging. These opportunities matter, especially when so much of what once brought communities together is disappearing.
If public dollars helped sustain your business, why vote against an agreement that helps sustain opportunities for our children? If you believe taxpayer money should be available when your livelihood is at stake, why shouldn’t our students deserve public investment, too?
And to the voters who support MacArthur, I have a question: How do you reconcile this contradiction? How can we trust someone to make decisions in the public interest when the apparent principle of opposing public investment has exceptions that benefit his own business?
Our community deserves consistency, accountability, and leaders who recognize that public investment should serve more than private interests. Our children deserve better than to become the exception.
Molly Stepanski
Posen