Metropolitics

Demystifying Urban Agriculture in Detroit

Flaminia Paddeu — 2017-12-14T05:30:00Z

Urban agriculture projects in North American shrinking cities have been the subject of much media attention in recent years. Taking the example of Detroit as her starting point, Flaminia Paddeu asks what the real benefits of this practice are for the residents of cities in decline.
---- Series: Shrinking Cities The French documentary Demain, showcasing a world tour of ecological alternatives and viewed by more than a million people to date, depicts the city of Detroit as a Mecca of

- From the Field / deindustrialization, Rust Belt, Baltimore, urban agriculture, agriculture, farming, Detroit, Philadelphia, vacant lots, urban decay, shrinking cities, urban decline, Cleveland, smart shrinkage, urban shrinkage, degrowth, shrinkage, wasteland, revegetation, ecological transition, socio-ecological transition

American Shrinking Cities May Not Need to Grow

Deborah E. Popper & Frank J. Popper — 2017-04-25T05:00:00Z

Successful cities are expected to continually grow, and when this doesn't happen, city managers typically try to stimulate growth at all costs. But what if growth isn't the answer for shrinking cities? Deborah and Frank Popper argue instead for smart decline, where cities in difficulty accept their shortcomings and plan accordingly.
---- Series: Shrinking Cities For most of US history, cities were expected to grow, and they largely did. The nation celebrated economic growth, and cities were

- Essays / United States, Detroit, shrinking cities, urban decline, Buffalo, smart decline, growth, Youngstown, smart shrinkage

The Actually Existing Markets of Shrinking Cities

Joshua Akers — 2017-04-18T05:00:00Z

In a bid to halt urban decline, Michigan's state government sought to create incentives for the creation of urban homesteads by accelerating the tax-foreclosure process. But what happens when city and county administrations don't play ball—and what are their motivations for doing so? Joshua Akers examines the adverse effects of a market-centric public policy.
---- Series: Shrinking Cities In the late 1990s, the state of Michigan bet on markets and urban pioneers to reinvigorate its struggling

- From the Field / housing, Chicago, housing policy, Los Angeles, real estate, public policy, foreclosure, Detroit, evictions, Michigan, shrinking cities, urban decline, urban homesteading, housing markets, Flint, homestead

Urban Decline Is Not Natural

Jason Hackworth — 2017-04-11T05:00:00Z

Is urban decline inevitable for cities affected by deindustrialization? While many scholars espouse the idea that it is a normal part of a place's economic life cycle, Jason Hackworth argues that urban decline is not natural, but rather produced, typically by factors that have little to do with economics and everything to do with social and political—and often racial—conflict.
---- Series: Shrinking Cities The fate of formerly industrial cities in the Global North—places like Detroit,

- Essays / racism, Rust Belt, Montreal, race, Detroit, urban decay, shrinking cities, urban decline, social conflict, Global North, Liverpool, Leipzig, Belfast, Duluth, Cleveland, Buffalo

DIY Urbanism in Shrinking Cities: Or, What Neighbors Are Left With When Markets Withdraw and Governments Contract

Kimberley Kinder — 2017-03-27T05:15:00Z

DIY culture is one of the zeitgeists of our time. Hipster home-brewing, swing-dance flash mobs, and pop-up maker spaces are trending. These activities reflect the quirky, sexy, witty side of the DIY craze. But do-it-yourself culture has a darker side, too—a more ominous phenomenon involving more people, greater urgency, less choice, and higher stakes. For these do-it-yourselfers, DIY is not leisure, satire, or a means of enrichment. It is instead a precarious method for managing cities.
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- From the Field / United States, Detroit, neighbors, DIY, shrinking cities

Contesting Economies of Displacement and Dispossession

Joshua Akers — 2017-01-13T06:05:00Z

Joshua Akers describes Detroit's housing crisis, characterized by speculation, displacement, and increasingly violent evictions; and resistance through direct action, mapping, and the production of new data sets.
There is a housing crisis in the city of Detroit. This has quickened over the past decade. What emerged in the aftermath of the financial crisis is an economy of displacement and dispossession clawing away the homes and livelihoods of poor and lower-middle-class residents. It is

- From the Field / housing, crisis, displacement, Detroit, housing crisis, evictions, speculation, foreclosure

When Cities Fail, Babies Die

Monica J. Casper — 2016-02-02T06:00:00Z

Detroit, Michigan is often identified as the worst city in the United States, with excessive poverty, racism, and social disorder. The city also faces high infant and maternal mortality rates. Monica Casper explores interconnections among these issues.
Motor City
Detroit, Michigan, has been in the news in recent years as a city in horrific decline, a post-apocalyptic hub of industrial collapse, white flight, acute poverty, and municipal malfeasance. Once the nation's economic engine with

- Essays / racism, Rust Belt, United States, poverty, race, Detroit, neoliberalism, biopolitics, necropolitics, infant mortality, Make Your Day, maternal mortality, urban decay, ruin porn

Detroit: Origins of the Urban Crisis Revisited

Andrew Newman — 2014-11-24T05:50:00Z

The recent reprint of Sugrue's classic history of Detroit's urban crisis highlights the roots of the city's present situation. Andrew Newman discusses how racialized policies and animosities dating back to the industrialization period are relevant to today's urban conflicts, introducing new themes of environmental justice and the dilemma of African-American political institutionalization.
The last decade has seen a flood of writing, film, photography, and research on Detroit, and with the

- Reviews / environment, Rust Belt, crisis, finance, race, Detroit