Culture is something that shapes so much of the fabric of our lives, and many times it without us realizing it. Though one might immediately think of traditions and events when culture is mentioned, there are other cultures we don’t think about as often- and yet encounter in our day to days.
For example, the workplace culture is something that has changed for during this internship. This is my first 9-5 job, sitting at a cubicle, taking a lunch break type of job. Understanding the culture and dynamics of that type of job is something that I’ve been doing, and it’s something that I’m sure will contribute towards my professionalism in the future.
Another type of culture is geographical culture. Detroit is so different than any city I’ve been to. I think the most striking thing about the city is just how quickly you can move within the city to perfectly normal looking neighborhoods, to neighborhoods that are majority abandoned with so many empty overgrown lots and broken houses. In the neighborhood that my organization works in, this is exactly the case. We were doing canvassing with some surveys about a week ago, and we would drive from street to street. One street would seem to only have one occupied house- the rest covered in weeds, windows broken or boarded up. We’d drive one or two minutes, and it was like we crossed an invisible border into a completely different neighborhood, where streets are filled with cars, manicured lawns, and the houses are clearly cared for.
All this is to say that this makes up a part of Detroit’s culture. It has a culture and history of resilience. Detroit has a long story, that is still being told, that plays out in front of us everyday, and I’m really excited to be here for it.
