As Challenge Detroit fellows we are supposed to be ambassadors for the city. In general, I don’t find this to be a particularly difficult job. There are so many great things about Detroit (especially little-known things), that sharing them with others is more of a pleasure than a chore. At times though, by no fault of Detroit’s, this can feel like an uphill battle. What I am referring to here are the seemingly endless stories that choose to focus only on the negative. What’s the problem with these stories? Quite simply, the problem is that people actually believe them. They believe that Detroit is only as these articles describe: a barren, post-apocalyptic landscape where criminals roam the streets and police are nowhere to be found. As someone whose goal it is to change people’s perceptions of one of the country’s most culturally and historically relevant cities, it is beyond disappointing to see the mindsets these stories promote embraced by the general public.
This is an article I shared with my Challenge Detroit colleagues at our most recent Leadership Friday and I think it speaks precisely to the issues I’ve just mentioned. The article is a survey of the 16 biggest cities in America based on population density. Respondents to the survey were asked a variety of questions about their perceptions of each city and “answered” each question by rating the cities on a scale of 1 to 4. Cities with the highest percentage of 3s and 4s, compared to overall responses to a category, won that superlative. Superlatives included most fashionable, most intelligent, and cleanest.
Needless to say, Detroit didn’t fare to well when it came to people’s perceptions of it. When all of the responses were tabulated, Detroit ended up with the following distinctions:
- Least Fashionable
- Least LGBT Friendly
- Least Hipster
- Worst Food
- Dirtiest City
- Worst Personal Hygiene
- Least Intelligent
- Least Friendly City
- Least Attractive Men
- Least Attractive Women
My initial thoughts? “These idiots have never stepped foot in Detroit before.”
While I can’t claim to be a lifelong resident, in the last 6 months of living in Detroit I have had so many experiences that directly contradict the findings of this survey. Here are just a couple of things I’ve noticed:
- More and more motivated, young talent floods the city every day
- There is never a shortage of delicious dinner options. Roast, Bucharest Grill, Slow’s BBQ, Lafayette Coney Island, Pegasus, Union Street, Taqueria El Rey Green Dot Stables. I could go on…
- Great Lakes Coffee is a hipster mecca
- People in Detroit do, in fact, take showers and brush their teeth!
- Innovation happens regularly thanks to high intellectual capacity and a multitude of creative thinkers
- People you pass on the street are often quick with a smile or a hello (and a lot of them are even good looking!!!)
(Please excuse the little bits of sarcasm. I just can’t help myself…)
The moral of the story? Come to Detroit and see what I see, experience what I experience, and love what I love. I can promise you that the Detroit you see on TV (or read about in ridiculous respondent surveys!) is not the Detroit I live in. Come see for yourself.
Until next time,
Max