In his speech The Other America, Martin Luther King Jr. laments that “every city in our country has this kind of dualism, this schizophrenia, split at so many parts, and so every city ends up being two cities rather than one.” In some ways, the trajectory of contemporary development in Detroit is indeed creating this tale of two cities to which King alluded. Detroit’s transformative downtown revitalization has brought an influx of economic activity which has generated much excitement about the city’s future. Yet, Detroit’s “comeback” has largely been confined to 7.2 miles square miles surrounding the downtown Woodward corridor.

This raises the question of whether “The Other Detroit,” the remaining 131 square miles comprising the city’s largely black neighborhoods, will begin to share in the benefits of Detroit’s growth. In the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, this panel will discuss the implications of disparate development patterns in Detroit, exploring structural and community-based strategies for redirecting investment in favor of the city’s most disadvantaged, longstanding residents.

Panelists:
Sonya Mays, President and CEO of Develop Detroit
Kim Sherobbi, Community Practitioner, James & Grace Lee Boggs Center
Sarida Scott Montgomery: Executive Director of Community Development Advocates of Detroit (CDAD)
Monique Becker, Development Associate, The Platform