Deforce: The Past, Present, and Future of DetroitOnce viewed as a model for urban America, Detroit has experienced what many believe to be the worst downturn in living standards and population of any large American city. Exactly how and why such a dramatic change occurred is still being debated, but the answers will undoubtedly shed light on challenges facing the U.S. as a whole. This documentary searches for the causes behind Motor City’s disturbing decline. Questioning a widely held explanation that focuses on the collapse of the automobile industry, the film argues that Detroit’s woes are largely political in nature. Viewers learn about vast socioeconomic differences between the city and neighboring communities and how issues connected to these disparities were mismanaged by federal, state, and local officials for decades. In today’s Detroit, a young man is more likely to face jail time than he is to graduate from college. Understanding that shocking reality requires far more than a report on the travails of the auto makers. Some content may be objectionable.
2010, Detroit Documentary Production. 1 hour, 25 minutes.
Murder City: Detroit, 100 Years of Crime and Violence [dvd] by
Murder City traces the history of crime in Detroit from the Prohibition-era Purple Gang to more recent drug- and gang-fueled activity.
