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6900 McGraw Phone: 313-361-6377 Email Us:
Detroit, MI 48210 Fax: 313-361-6378 bcigeneral@bridgingcommunities.org
The population of southwest Detroit grew considerably after the second industrial revolution in the 19th century and when the automobile industry took off in 1990. Southwest Detroit has been considered to be one of Detroit’s most culturally diverse and densely populated regions. When the automotive industry arrived in Detroit, people flocked to this region of the city not
just from other states,
but also from other
countries. In fact,
nearly 119 different
languages and
dialects are spoken
in this region of
Detroit alone.
Unfortunately, like the rest of Detroit, southwest Detroit has been hit hard by the recent decline in the automotive industry and by the general realities of the current economic recession (e.g. the loss of pensions, crumbling of labor unions). Recent layoffs have left unskilled automotive workers unable to find alternative jobs. For the region’s aging population (aged 65 and over) in particular, the situation in Detroit is devastating not just because it stands in stark contrast to the southwest Detroit they once knew and loved, but because the decline has had a profoundly negative impact on their overall well-being.
“Glittering factories and brawny workers attesting the strength of the American spirit”
--Thomas Sugrue
Mobilizing Elders is a community profile of individuals aged 65+ in Southwest Detroit, researched and created by Rebecca Fried, Anita Kasper, Stephanie Wagner, and Lotus Yu, MSW candidates at the University of Michigan’s School of Social Work.
