Gentrification and photos of Detroit and race (foreclosed, rent)
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I'm glad I'm not the only one utterly uninspired by all of this crap. The whole notion of a revitalization of Detroit is nothing but code for the re-colonization of the city by rich suburbanites who could care less about the wasting poverty of the residents in the greater community. Notice how these people care little for the outcomes and developments of the broader city, choosing instead to focus all their time and resources on Downtown, and point specifically to it whenever they extol the city's virtues. The fact is they don't care about the actual city but rather the small enclaves in which they are forced to work and commute. It doesn't matter if west Detroit is as eroded as it has ever been so long as Kelly from Birmingham can waltz around campus martius with her starbucks and faux pose for photo-ops with her yuppie girlfriends before she jets up to her corporate tower in the renn cen. It's a gigantic joke, and the "real detroiters" should be absolutely outraged that such a vamp process is being allowed to march forward without contest.
I'm glad I'm not the only one utterly uninspired by all of this crap. The whole notion of a revitalization of Detroit is nothing but code for the re-colonization of the city by rich suburbanites who could care less about the wasting poverty of the residents in the greater community. Notice how these people care little for the outcomes and developments of the broader city, choosing instead to focus all their time and resources on Downtown, and point specifically to it whenever they extol the city's virtues. The fact is they don't care about the actual city but rather the small enclaves in which they are forced to work and commute. It doesn't matter if west Detroit is as eroded as it has ever been so long as Kelly from Birmingham can waltz around campus martius with her starbucks and faux pose for photo-ops with her yuppie girlfriends before she jets up to her corporate tower in the renn cen. It's a gigantic joke, and the "real detroiters" should be absolutely outraged that such a vamp process is being allowed to march forward without contest.
I don't think you'd be inspired by much anyway. If it's not an image of abandoned buildings and crime, it's simply not Detroit.
I'm glad I'm not the only one utterly uninspired by all of this crap. The whole notion of a revitalization of Detroit is nothing but code for the re-colonization of the city by rich suburbanites who could care less about the wasting poverty of the residents in the greater community. Notice how these people care little for the outcomes and developments of the broader city, choosing instead to focus all their time and resources on Downtown, and point specifically to it whenever they extol the city's virtues. The fact is they don't care about the actual city but rather the small enclaves in which they are forced to work and commute. It doesn't matter if west Detroit is as eroded as it has ever been so long as Kelly from Birmingham can waltz around campus martius with her starbucks and faux pose for photo-ops with her yuppie girlfriends before she jets up to her corporate tower in the renn cen. It's a gigantic joke, and the "real detroiters" should be absolutely outraged that such a vamp process is being allowed to march forward without contest.
I'm glad I'm not the only one utterly uninspired by all of this crap. The whole notion of a revitalization of Detroit is nothing but code for the re-colonization of the city by rich suburbanites who could care less about the wasting poverty of the residents in the greater community. Notice how these people care little for the outcomes and developments of the broader city, choosing instead to focus all their time and resources on Downtown, and point specifically to it whenever they extol the city's virtues. The fact is they don't care about the actual city but rather the small enclaves in which they are forced to work and commute. It doesn't matter if west Detroit is as eroded as it has ever been so long as Kelly from Birmingham can waltz around campus martius with her starbucks and faux pose for photo-ops with her yuppie girlfriends before she jets up to her corporate tower in the renn cen. It's a gigantic joke, and the "real detroiters" should be absolutely outraged that such a vamp process is being allowed to march forward without contest.
I hear what you are saying and agree to a point. However, Detroit doesn't belong just to the poor non-suburbanite, non-yuppies. It belongs to whoever wants to live there. Just as we can't be discriminatory when Detroiters move to the suburbs, we can't be discriminatory of the reverse.
I will agree that much of the focus has been downtown to the detriment of the other areas. However, if the reverse was the case (i.e. people leaving downtown and moving to other areas) would that not be drawing the same attention? The movement of people is always an interesting occurrence and topic of discussion. It doesn't mean that stationary people don't matter; it's just that stationary people are not newsworthy. When poor immigrants and poor southerners moved to Detroit and displaced the middle-class to the suburbs, would you have criticized that as well?
I'm glad I'm not the only one utterly uninspired by all of this crap. The whole notion of a revitalization of Detroit is nothing but code for the re-colonization of the city by rich suburbanites who could care less about the wasting poverty of the residents in the greater community. Notice how these people care little for the outcomes and developments of the broader city, choosing instead to focus all their time and resources on Downtown, and point specifically to it whenever they extol the city's virtues. The fact is they don't care about the actual city but rather the small enclaves in which they are forced to work and commute. It doesn't matter if west Detroit is as eroded as it has ever been so long as Kelly from Birmingham can waltz around campus martius with her starbucks and faux pose for photo-ops with her yuppie girlfriends before she jets up to her corporate tower in the renn cen. It's a gigantic joke, and the "real detroiters" should be absolutely outraged that such a vamp process is being allowed to march forward without contest.
Detroit is a large city. If the focus was over the entire city all at one time then u would not see much progress being made. By picking one area and focusing on it and putting your time and resources into it you are able to have a much greater impact much sooner then by spreading your time and resources all over.
Eventually the help and resources and change will spread over the entire city. And to say that "they" only care about downtown and no where else I. Detroit is silly. Look at so many of the neighborhoods and what is being done in the neighborhoods like the villages, southwest, Hubbard farms, eastern market, island view. Heck look at brightmore! There is a lot going on In these neighborhoods. A lot of people putting their time and money into these areas.
To say that it's only downtown is not true. The change, the effort, the money had to start somewhere and the downtown area is the most logical place for it to have started
^ I agree - as long as we are talking about private money. I think that in the past, too much taxpayer dollars were spent downtown to the neglect of the residential areas. But if individuals such as Illitch and Gilbert want to spend their money downtown, more power to them. It doesn't mean they don't care about other areas, just that their resources are limited and they get to chose where they think their investment will make the biggest impact.
It also appears that Duggan is the first mayor in awhile who seems to care about the residential areas. The councilpersons-by-district may also help hold city council people accountable for their neighborhoods.
I'm glad I'm not the only one utterly uninspired by all of this crap. The whole notion of a revitalization of Detroit is nothing but code for the re-colonization of the city by rich suburbanites who could care less about the wasting poverty of the residents in the greater community. Notice how these people care little for the outcomes and developments of the broader city, choosing instead to focus all their time and resources on Downtown, and point specifically to it whenever they extol the city's virtues. The fact is they don't care about the actual city but rather the small enclaves in which they are forced to work and commute. It doesn't matter if west Detroit is as eroded as it has ever been so long as Kelly from Birmingham can waltz around campus martius with her starbucks and faux pose for photo-ops with her yuppie girlfriends before she jets up to her corporate tower in the renn cen. It's a gigantic joke, and the "real detroiters" should be absolutely outraged that such a vamp process is being allowed to march forward without contest.
God damn, relax man, it has to start somewhere. Were not talking about a city the size of Benton Harbor or Flint here. Were talking about a very large city. Someone can't just go and try to improve every single neighborhood in the city at the same time, do you have any idea how much money something like that would cost?
^ I agree - as long as we are talking about private money. I think that in the past, too much taxpayer dollars were spent downtown to the neglect of the residential areas. But if individuals such as Illitch and Gilbert want to spend their money downtown, more power to them. It doesn't mean they don't care about other areas, just that their resources are limited and they get to chose where they think their investment will make the biggest impact.
It also appears that Duggan is the first mayor in awhile who seems to care about the residential areas. The councilpersons-by-district may also help hold city council people accountable for their neighborhoods.
When middle and upper class people moved to the suburbs: they're horrible people taking all the jobs and tax base out of the city
Now that middle and upper class are moving to the city: they're horrible people driving up cost of living and pushing poor people around
We really can't win with some.
No offense, but IMO you're sounding a bit pouty here.
When, starting in the 1950s, people began moving beyond city limits but continued to be employed within the city, this lifestyle was promoted by the auto companies to spur sales of cars with no thought given to long term ramifications. Everybody embraced the new lifestyle - a prime example of short-sightedness. This all means that it was not only a property tax base which was lost. In hindsight we can now see what happened. Nobody ever thought that manufacturing would go away. Since industry's only concern is its bottom line, it was short term profit which ruled the day. The city of Detroit and its government has always been the tail of the (auto) industry dog.
While the wider region expanded, the city boundaries remained fixed and the slightest hints of regionalization, including mass transit, were fought tooth and nail by the suburbs.
Even though manufacturing will always be needed, what such business would start up in Detroit when there is cheap indentured servitude, slave and child labor with lax safety standards and meager regulation in third-world countries whose governments also practice economic protectionism? At least some manufacturing can return here if situations in those countries change (which they are starting to do) and if we stop encouraging our own corporations to outsource via current tax breaks.
Nobody cares about people moving in to make improvements - and who is complaining about it? New businesses can certainly build on vacant land or refurb older buildings without ousting residents from their homes. Except for a couple of instances (which were discussed on this forum) I haven't heard of much disruptive gentrification going on - at least so far, but it could happen at some point. Motivated residents might have to petition city government to keep it from happening in their area.
Really, it's a wider problem than the suburbs, who have always held most of the cards, being "picked on".
Last edited by detwahDJ; 06-21-2014 at 09:12 PM..
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