GHETTO COFFEESHOPPE
The General Baker Institute operates the Ghetto Coffee Shoppe on Livernois at Puritan just north of the Lodge Expressway. This coffee shop hosts events and community conversations while serving some of the best tasting coffee and tea and snacks in town!
Open Now!
Marsha Music, photo cred: Carolyn Baker
It all started when…
The Inner City Voice (ICV) newspaper was located on Grand River and Dunbarton, across the street from the Trade Union Leadership Council (TULC). The offices of United Tenants, Black Conscience Magazine and the ICV, were all on the second floor. On the first floor in that same building was a spot known as The Ghetto Coffee Shop. The coffee shop was a hangout for the left in Detroit, including internationalists, and cultural nationalists. Inside the shop; were a few tables and, a stage, and folks would hang out there after work. At times you could find someone playing the bongo drums. All kinds of people would stop by; it was a meeting place and someone was always there printing, reading, or writing.
One day, upstairs in the United Tenants office, Fred Lyles and Gen Baker were talking, when a single shot was fired through the window, hitting Fred and paralyzing him. It was believed the shot was intended for Baker, who had been standing by the window just moments before. So, why do we bring up this story? Well, we have reclaimed the name “The Ghetto Coffee Shop” and you can find it inside the General Baker Institute’s print shop on Livernois. We are located in the building formerly occupied by the historic Mays Printing Company, one of the first Black printing companies in the City of Detroit.