(**Cough**) – Gentrify

Help?  Enhance?  Change?  Clean?  Revitalize?

You mean G-E-N-T-R-I-F-Y GENTRIFY.

Y’all not slick!

In a city where 83% of the population is black; if it’s not about race, then, what?

There is more to Detroit than Midtown and Corktown.

Detroit, Where the children need streetlights, to help guide their way to and from school.

Safe neighborhoods, where the next-door neighbor isn’t a mile away, because the rest of the block abandoned or a trap house.

Food that isn’t provided by the local corner store, gas station, Coney or McDonalds.

A city where the schools aren’t and won’t ever be on the same playing field as the suburban schools districts.

The lack of funding which, then, in turn, totally eliminates all form of expressions and culture; no recreation centers or performing and visual art.

Just another tactic to bridge the gap, huh?

But, what’s gonna happen when all the hipsters have hipster babies, and those hipster babies need resources: schools, food, recreation, etc.  I wonder will they send their children to the local schools since we are all about “buying local” these days.  Maybe this will result in better teachers or teaching institutions where the people in charge won’t ever become complacent, because of that weekly check or yearly salary.  I mean fifty kids in a classroom shit!  Thirty eight-year olds sounds like a party, let alone being in the 8th grade thinking you’re grown, turned all-the-way-up.  I know, I just went on a rant, but know this: I’m tired of people complaining about my city.  If you don’t like it, do something about it.  Really, iff you are about that life.

I’m tired of Detroit being described as if it’s free lunch, or reduced down to a simple Hot and Ready.  People live here!   But we’ve seen this behavior before.

The face of Detroit is not White.  Detroit is a city where 83% of its inhabitants are black with a large Latin community as a strong runner-up.  All eyes on Cass corridor and Mexicantown, you call them “midtown” and “Corktown” for marketing purposes, or, for comfort, because we all know what this is about…  comfort.   Comfort?  Not  for the 83-percenters.   Maybe we should put up some banners and flowers?  No, how about some damn streetlights then you can get festive later.

Just because you change Cass Corridor and call it Midtown doesn’t mean you can treat it like Royal Oak.  Real life is and has taken place and Detroiters have been working for years trying to make it and survive.   We traded culture for a grocery store.  Thanks, Meijer!   No more state fair unless you go to the burbs.  Shit, the Detroit Zoo is in Royal Oak.  The city’s art has almost made its way to the auction block.  To think: we can actually weigh pensions and the city’s culture on the same scale.  That’s like having a fine artist apply at Google for an artificial intelligence position.  That shit just doesn’t make any sense.

Get over the ruin porn already!  Seriously, we’re off that!  Never been on it, really.  Thanks Time Magazine!  I’m sure every city has some architectural gems, which are abandoned and are still erect for all the thrill seekers.  Detroit has been looking like this for years well at least the last thirty I can account for.  But, according to the Reuther brothers, who documented Detroit’s history, its glory day, it’s been longer than that.

Let me let you in on a secret: what makes Detroit?  Detroit is its secrets, its residents and our pride.  There are plenty of people in Detroit with talent and we have the most resources and potential for growth, so what’s the problem?  Let’s just say it’s gonna take team work to make the dream work and that is going against all color lines.

Detroit is what?