changing places: Detroit

Question 1

location of Detroit

Answer 1

located in south east Michigan in the USA. North east of America on the Canadian border.

Question 2

main reason for city decline

Answer 2

industrial decline and over reliance on factory jobs

Question 3

growth of Detroit

Answer 3

grew in the first half of the 20th century, then declined in the second half
rapid industrialisation
population fell from 1.85 million in 1950 to 701,000 in 2013
Detroit’s decline mainly began because of changes in the auto industry leading to the steady loss of manufacturing jobs over several decades.

Question 4

early development of Detroit: endogenous factors

Answer 4

situated on the Detroit river which links to Lake Huron and Lake Erie (two of North Americas greatest lakes) that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River, so easy to ship items to and from.
mansions built to show economic rewards available.

Question 5

early development of Detroit: exogenous factors

Answer 5

Britain was one of few colonial masters of the city in the late eighteenth century. French had an impact on the city. and so did the original 13 states of America.

Question 6

what is the steel belt boom

Answer 6

heavy industry that involves one or more characteristics such as large and heavy products; large and heavy machinery; or complex of numerous processes

Question 7

immigration to Detroit to meet demand

Answer 7

the total population peaked in 1950. this is because the city was booming and there were high levels of immigration to the city due to economic opportunity in the steel and car manufacturing industry

Question 8

the growth of the city and the suburbs

Answer 8

the population of Detroit grew significantly from 1900. with growth came a big change in the ethnic makeup of the city

Question 9

causes of 90% of Detroit’s population being in the suburbs

Answer 9

construction of new interstate highways
high taxes and house prices, racial tensions- suburbs more attractive
cars ore accessible to move and so people could travel further to work
businesses move out due to crime, vandalism and high taxes

Question 10

factors influencing economic change in Detroit: Exogenous

Answer 10

migrants from the south (escape KKK)
investment into the car industry
goods (and migrants) moving to the city

Question 11

factors influencing economic change in Detroit: Endogenous

Answer 11

infrastructure- roads
location- transport hub
ford assembly line- technology

Question 12

forces o change n Detroit’s economic decline

Answer 12

globalisation- competition from other countries
TNCs- factories in other countries
international oil price rise
local tax price increase
national energy policy and conservation act

Question 13

cycle of urban decline

Answer 13

industrial decline meant people lost their job, and so factories are left empty, leading to dereliction in the city, so there’s increased crime rates, so people move away from the city, school therefore close and education worsens, leading to less investment in the city. so this leads to even more deindustrialisation, nd so even more unemployment and dereliction etc. unemployed people have less money to spend, which could cause increased crime and local shops receiving less income, so shutting.

Question 14

attempts to revitalise Detroit

Answer 14

GM made a new assembly plant to try increase employment and help the economy, despite the decrease in demand for motors- but most these workers were Polish and not from Detroit.

Question 15

top[ 3 employment sectors in Detroit in 2013

Answer 15

1- trade, transportation and utilities
2- professional and business services
3- manufacturing

Question 16

why tourists would visit Detroit

Answer 16

they want to see how the city is rebuilding itself after its downfall. Detroit is home to the Henry Ford museum and Greenfield village, fun for those who like cars as well as history. music fans may go for the jazz. borders Canada, so good location for those who want to see America and Canada

Question 17

why tourists may not visit Detroit

Answer 17

people may be put of by the high levels of dereliction, and the high crime rates.

Question 18

segregation

Answer 18

the action or the state of setting someone or something apart from others

Question 19

enclave

Answer 19

a portion of territory surrounded by a larger territory who inhabitants are culturally or ethnically distinct

Question 20

racial integration

Answer 20

includes goals such as barriers to association creating equal opportunity regardless of race, and the development of culture that draws on diverse traditions, rather than merely bringing a racial minority into the majority culture

Question 21

racial disintegration

Answer 21

the tendency of society to decline or disintegrate over time. a growing segregation to races for example.

Question 22

present day Detroit: jobs

Answer 22

city wide employment is declining
old factory workers wont be qualified to get new jobs
aging population led to projected growth of 360 000 jobs by 2019
the Detroit region is an emerging information technology hotbed with nearly 73000 jobs in more than 3000 IT companies

Question 23

present day Detroit: people

Answer 23

overall educational attainment in Detroit is below that of peer regions
60% of children are living in poverty
Detroit have faith even in the uncertain future

Question 24

present day Detroit: investment

Answer 24

attractive to investors and fixers
no.1 importer to Mexico
Founded Quicken loans, nations largest online mortgage lender
managed over $2.4 billion in investment and development in 2013
multi millionaire Dan Gilbert invested $5 to 6 million

Question 25

1967 Race Riot

Answer 25

the second biggest city wide civil disturbance in Detroit.
took place for 5 days.
while some white people participated in the rioting, it was primarily a riot enacted by black people
the primary roots of the unrest in Detroit were mainly based on political, economic, and social factors which included police abuse, economic inequality, the rapidly changing demographics of the city and a lack of affordable housing.
the riot began when polices officers raided an unlicensed drinking bar in a mainly black neighbourhood. the officers arrested all 82 people there and a group of bystanders slowly gathered around the establishment in protest.
shortly after the last police car left, a black mob began looting and vandalising the neighbourhood. soon firs and more rioting began, and the police force was unable to contain all the violence. the riot spread from its origin to the Northwest side of Detroit, then to the East side.
this set of another white flight and further emphasised the discrimination against black people there.

Question 26

1943 Race Riot

Answer 26

Packard Motor Car Company promoted 3 black people to work besides white in the assembly lines. in response 25 000 white workers went on strike.
fights between black and white youths- thus starting the race riot of 1943.
angry mobs of white people began going into black neighbourhoods and beating blacks. stores, building and cars were burnt down.
the fighting continued for 3 days, and ended when they mayor and governor of Detroit asked President Roosevelt to intervene.
federal troops finally ended the fighting on the streets.
In total, 34 people were killed, 600 were injured and 1800 arrested.
this period of time started the white flight.

Question 27

Motown music

Answer 27

Motown= motor town= Detroit based on the motor industry that was located there.
Motown company founded by Berry Gordy.
Berry Gordy wanted to make negatives into positives.
Motown played an important role in promoting racial integration of music, as it was the only big record company that had so many black artists and bands associated with it.
has more than 180 no.1 hit songs.
the music was enjoyed by both white and black people in Detroit, and was listened to by everyone, bringing all the races together.

Question 28

8 mile road

Answer 28

8 mile road is a series of roads named for its distance from the center of the city- it acts as a divide between poor city and the rich suburbs, there are 8 lanes and it spans over 20 miles of Detroit.

Question 29

lose yourself- Eminem

Answer 29

not a good quality of life, and he keeps saying how he wants to leave, and references the mobile homes he had to live in that weren’t very nice.
the song may be seen as a force of change for racial integration, as he hangs out with a lot of black people and integrated into more black culture, and became successful, he’s saying that it can be done- races can live together.

Question 30

white flight

Answer 30

where the white people, who help most of the city have an income, moved out of the city towards the suburbs, meaning the economy of the city started to fall.

Question 31

social patterns

Answer 31

there are more African Americans located in the city center, and more people located on the outskirts (suburbs).
social inequality between races, because the income in the center of the city (that is mostly black) is between less than $6000 and $20 000, but in the much whiter suburbs the income rises up to an above $35 000.

Question 32

Alter Road

Answer 32

there are physical barriers on this road(eg a fence across the road, or a shop) that divides the black, and more dodgy side of the road, and the whiter richer side. it blocks people moving between the two neighbourhoods.
east side- derelict, rugged, unkept,low maintenance, flats.
Grosse point- green, parklands, trees, well planned out, safe, large houses.
suggests racial differences in wages.