Everyone is wondering what the upcoming elections will mean for Detroit. For the majority-Black working class, the results won’t change much. That is because those running for Mayor and City Council are not running on a platform that fights for workers’ interests.
Over the past decade, Detroit has been heralded as a “comeback city” experiencing a “Renaissance,” after decades of deindustrialization and disinvestment that brought it to the brink of collapse. Detroit was hit hard by the 2008 financial crisis, with tens of thousands of people losing their homes. The foreclosures, caused in part by predatory lending, made the banks and people like Dan Gilbert super rich, while wiping out generational wealth for tens of thousands of Black, working-class, and middle-class families.
Detroit was supposedly “saved” by a federal bankruptcy which slashed workers pensions and gutted public services via privatization. This also had the effect of decimating public sector unions. In this context, Mike Duggan was elected Mayor with the promise to “rebuild” Detroit. By most accounts, the city is financially stable and has a balanced budget, yet the question remains whether this new “Renaissance” has been one enjoyed by everyone.
Growing Inequality, Displacement, and Resegregation
The last ten years have seen a comeback by the city’s corporations, who have received millions of dollars in abatements and other tax incentives. In return, Detroiters have gotten a few jobs at new businesses and factories, though nowhere near the number of jobs that once existed, or at the pay level either. There are also more amenities to enjoy, but only if you are in the 11 strategic areas of the city that are deemed worthy of investment. These strategic areas have seen drastic demographic shifts. In the most developed places like downtown and midtown, there has been a huge decline of the Black population and a huge increase of the white population. This is in contrast with the rest of the city, which has received no new investment. This has led to a rise in inequality, a housing affordability crisis, and increased surveillance throughout the city, as well as continued issues with water accessibility and utility fee hikes.
Even members of the Democratic Party have had to reckon with the growing inequality. Keith Williams, chair of the Michigan Democratic Party Black Caucus, told Bridge Detroit Magazine that “Black folks didn’t get much out of this new renaissance.” At the same time, Williams and the Democratic Party — who dominate the city and state government — have not only done nothing to stop the growth in inequality, but have actively supported the capitalist agenda for Detroit.
A Corporate-Driven Agenda
The two main contenders for Mayor might have different takes on Duggan’s legacy, but neither of them are willing to challenge corporate plans for Detroit. Current city council president Mary Sheffield — who officially launched her campaign in December — is a left-leaning centrist who is sometimes quite critical of Duggan. The daughter and granddaughter of longtime labor and civil rights activists, Sheffield has been able to present herself as a progressive who fights for Detroit’s majority-Black working class. However, she has a mixed record on opposing tax breaks for the rich. At the rally announcing her candidacy, Sheffield said that she understands “the importance of collaboration, and I am looking forward to working with all levels of government and in both parties to find common ground that will benefit the growth of our city.” Many Black, Brown, and working-class Detroiters know that there is no common ground with corporations, and that Detroit’s “Renaissance” has been paid for with exploitation and oppression.
The other front-runner is Sauntell Jenkins, a former city council president who is currently the CEO of the nonprofit The Heat and and Warmth Fund (THAW). Jenkins, who officially announced her candidacy on Jan 14, was an ardent supporter of the federal bankruptcy plan. She did not finish her full term and resigned to take the job at THAW because she believed Detroit was “on the road to recovery.” When she first formed an exploratory committee to run for Mayor, Jenkins commented that Duggan “has done a great job of getting us past bankruptcy.” and warned “it could go either way if the wrong person gets into office.” This illustrates her desire to maintain the status quo.
The Need for A Political Alternative
While there are candidates for Mayor that are to the left of Sheffield, none of them have a fighting program for working people in Detroit. The truth of the matter is this: the changes that Detroiters need are only achievable if Detroiters mobilize and fight themselves. We need to recuperate the city’s militant tradition, a tradition strong on civil rights, labor, anti-capitalism, and anti-imperialism. The links to those traditions are weak, but live on via neighborhood and tenant associations fighting slumlords and millionaire development projects, community groups fighting for affordable water and utilities, or cultural projects fighting for the right to hold their events. This historical continuity is also expressed in the fight against police brutality.
In this election cycle, Left Voice will not only bring news and analysis of the campaign, but discuss Detroit’s militant tradition and draw lessons from its success and failures. We will be discussing the real issues facing working people, and the program needed to address them. We will highlight the voices of Detroit’s working-class communities, labor organizers, social justice activists, and leftists who are struggling for a different city.