Posted by
Young Republican on Tuesday, February 24, 2009 11:25:18 AM
I love living in Detroit. I'm proud to call myself a Detroiter. For the longest time as a suburban white kid with strong ties to the jewish community, I was embrassed whenever people asked "Where do you live?". "Livonia" I'd reply. "Where's that?" "By Detroit". And invariably their inquistor's face would cringe. Never mind the fact that my city, Livonia, is the most segreated white community in the country.
But over the last few years, I have fallen in love with the city I use to hate. What can I say, I have a thing for Spencer Tracey-Katherine Hepburn romances. Today the city of Detroit votes for a new mayor and while many hated the last one Kwame Kilpatrick, he also did a lot of good for the city. I personally am supporting Ken Cockrel the current mayor who is in a tough primary race aganist Dave Bing (a former Piston) and Freman Hendrix (former Deputy mayor). I like all three and all are compotent and for a nice change quite boring.
But even decent leadership in my city, won't calm the fears everyone here is experincing. With Ford, GM and Chrysler all in major danger of closing any of the three closing would kill the entire state of Michigan each to varying degrees. Even our sports teams are going through a depression, the Lions becoming the first 0-16 team in history, the Tigers falling from their former glory, and the championship Pistons now at .500 are probably lower. Only the Red Wings are doing well even if their ticket sales aren't.
Yet through it all, in good times and bad, I remain convinced that we are a city, a state of great people who will rise to whatever challenges we are given. At the end of the day I can only hope for the strength that I have seen the people of Michigan demonstate time and time again.