I knew close to nothing about the “race riots” in Detroit before the start of this program. I’d hear “race riots” mentioned here and there and knew some people sited these “riots” as the beginning of Detroit’s downturn. Now, after living in Detroit, getting to know Detroiters, and hearing Thomas Sugrue talk and read his book I have learned so much about the events that happened in the summer of 1967, and more importantly the events that lead up to the rebellion.
First and foremost I’ve learned “race riots” is not a good way to describe the summer of ‘67. A riot is a violent disruption of peace, while a rebellion is an uprising against something/someone. A rebellion describes the events in Detroit much more accurately. Sugrue explains that the Detroit rebellion wasn’t as random as people like to think. For years black Detroiters dealt with police brutality and having their land/resources taken away to make life better/more convenient for white Detroiters. Black neighborhoods were demolished to build freeways so white could move to the suburbs and commute to Detroit. The most important takeaway from Surgure’s book is that the rebellion was not random, nor was it uncalled for. Events leading up to 1967 were racially charged, unfair, and unjust, it was only a matter of time before people rebelled against the system.
Hey Erin,
I was in the same boat where I learned very little information about what happened in 1967. However, I do agree with calling the events a riot, as well as a rebellion. What happened violently disrupted the “peace” which was the blatant racism in the city. Riots aren’t inherently bad in my opinion; heck, MLK said that “a riot is the voice of the unheard”. I don’t think it’s bad to call it a riot, as long as we recognize why people were rioting in the first place.