One of the most impactful experiences I have had so far was when a few of us went to Hamtramck for dinner one night. We were biking through the city and I was honestly surprised by how lively it was. Detroit has small pockets and streets were there has been a large resurgence in population and business but it seemed that Hamtramck was totally different. It was my first time ever being in the city and growing up I had always associated it with the rest of Detroit. Over the summer though I have learned how unique it is. There were people out at the park we were next to playing after dark, there was a wide variety of businesses and there was very little blight from what I saw. Everything that people tend to immediately think of when they think of Detroit was missing from my bike ride through Hamtramck. It has really stuck with me because it was just another instance where I caught myself assuming a lot about a place without ever going there. It is hard to separate the statistics and media that gets regurgitated but over the course of the summer I have really tried to think about who I know and the places I have been compared to what the media presents me. Media tends to present the darker side of humanity and it is hard to separate that from daily life but positive human interaction and experiences are the best way to move past biases and assumptions.
