Detroit's Demise: A Look at the Crumbling Giant

As somebody who has lived his entire life in the metro Detroit area, I feel compelled to express my feelings concerning the demise of Detroit. Detroit, once a shining example of American industry, is now little more than a rotting carcass, being slowly devoured of anything worthwhile by the very people whose jobs are to edify it.

After the race riots and "white flight" from the city in the late 60's and early 70's, the city's decline became precipitous. The downtown Hudson's department store, at one time an icon to the upscale city life Detroit represented, was closed down.The Hudson Building was torn down, and Hudson's was eventually overtaken by Marshall Field's and now Macy's.

Tons of money and resources were poured into the downtown area, while the neighborhoods of Detroit continued to fester under the contagions of drugs, murder, poverty, homelessness, and hopelessness. Crooked mayors like Coleman A. Young and Kwame Kilpatrick continued to put their own personal profit ahead of the good of the city.

Mid-to-upscale retailers have, in large part, abandoned the city. Even though I live only 15 minutes from city, I seldom visit any more. There was a time when I enjoyed a visit to the Science Center, the Detroit Institute of Arts, or even the Renaissance Center. Now, it saddens me to see these institutions struggle to survive against a city that continually votes in criminals as its leaders.

I had to laugh when the national press lauded Detroit for its handling of a recent Major League Baseball All-Star Game and a Super Bowl. Guests who had never been to Detroit praised the city for its kind people, vibrancy, and nightlife. Unknown to the visitors and national media, the same places that they frequented during these times were only temporarily cleaned up for the respective events.

Were those visitors to come back during a normal day, they would see the homeless sleeping in garbage dumpsters, on park benches, and on sidewalks. The city moves these forgotten people out of the public eye whenever the city happens to land a major event. When the event is completed, however, they are right back where they were.

And now Monica Conyers has plead guilty to accepting a bribe in return for her vote for the Synagro sludge contract. Will the corruption of this city ever end? Will the suffering masses living in broken down neighborhoods ever see a brighter day?

With tremendous sadness, I think the answer may be no. With the decline of the American auto industry, Detroit has lost its last reason to be considered relevant nationally. Detroit has closed many of its public schools and is still in massive debt.

Detroit simply cannot take any more. All the money that could have been spent to help the declining neighborhoods but was instead spent on projects downtown will come back to haunt Detroit. The massive amount of city services required by Detroit's extensive neighborhoods can never be provided, as the poverty in these areas prevents the city from collecting enough revenue to fund them. Money from revenue collected at downtown venues is also woefully inadequate to fund necessary police, schools, and basic city services. In short, Detroit is going to collapse under its own weight.

This once proud city deserves better than what it has gotten, and the cries of those neglected by those in power should be an embarrassment to its leaders, past and present.