This article was written by Devin

Detroit gets a miserable rap in the press—ranging from mean comments and snide remarks to sheer pity and sympathy from people living in other, financially prosperous sections of the state and country.  I think generally people outside the area are just undereducated about the city.  It’s got a lot more than meets the eye, and if you haven’t give it much thought—think again.  Here are 3 things you should know about Detroit.

1) This City is Rich in History—Detroit is a goldmine for pop culture junkies, or anything with a nose for nostalgia.  It really does have a vast and deep past that spans for three hundred and eleven years.  From Motown to Ford, Detroit is full of rich and interesting landmarks and artifacts.  Seriously, if you’re coming through, stop in and take a tour of Hitsville, or go catch a jazz show at one of our many cool jazz dives.  We’ve got punk rock (a la Iggy and the Stooges) and we’ve got techno and electronic up the wazoo.  The architecture is gorgeous, the museums are brimming with art, and the culture has a memory like an elephant.  No one can say that Detroit doesn’t remember its roots.

2) We’re On the Upswing—We get it, we’ve been ravaged by a teetering automotive industry, racial tensions, crack epidemics, urban decay, political corruption and a million other plagues sent from hell and beyond.  But we’re resilient.  And the cultural tides have shifted—people are moving back into the urban portions of the city and there is a boom in art, music, academics, and sheer people.  It’s like reverse gentrification—everyone else essentially moved out of the city, driving property values down, making it very cheap for artists to live and work in the city.  I like to think of it as the lower east side of Manhattan from the Taxi-era of New York.  Who knows, maybe we’ve got the next Jean-Michel Basquiat on our hands, somewhere in the city?  Honestly, it’s becoming cool to live in Detroit again.

3) Don’t Count Us Out—The city and its population are resilient and thick-skinned.  It’s a hardworking city.  No one will be able to make any progress if the world continues to consider Detroit a desolated wasteland.  This isn’t Escape from Detroit.  This isn’t Robocop.  This is a city where people live and work.  Detroit has something to prove to the world, and in due time it will make everyone eat their words.  Seriously.

Detroit, as a city, has the same tone as those Super Bowl Chrysler commercials.  It’s been here all along, surviving and rebuilding after many years of decay.  It’s a beautiful city that deserves some credit and respect.  Come see for yourself.  There are a lot more than three things you should know about Detroit—come find them.