Exit, Voice, and Loyalty
Another one of my boys decided to move out of Detroit for the suburbs. Long (well, not exactly “longâ€â€¦we aren’t that old) one of the city’s best boosters decided to pack up shop and jet. He still works in the city. And in as much as he runs one of the most innovative educational non-profits in Detroit, he still works for the city. He isn’t alone though, and his decision to exit the city that he loves is a decision that many of us are taking. The impact of this exodus has yet to be critically examined, at least partially because it is ongoing.
Historically, as black people began to take over cities like Detroit, Gary, Washington D.C., they didn’t have much choice in where they lived. The suburbs that sprouted up like weeds were often racially exclusionary. Didn’t matter how much loot you had, if you had black skin, you were out of luck. But black people also clung to city life because of the hope attached to new black mayors like Coleman Young, Marion Barry, and Richard Hatcher. The increase in the black population meant that brothers and sisters could finally elect someone that looked like them. So even when they could leave they didn’t because they wanted to work for black power.
At the same time blacks finally took over the political apparatus of many of our largest cities, the combined exodus of white citizens and corporate America meant that the tax base that was used to fund public schools and urban infrastructure was cut severely. This meant that political officials had to make tough and painful choices. Do we fund parks and recreation, or do we fund garbage pickup? Do we fund the police department, or do we fund health clinics?
In trying to deal with this exodus, politicians often turned towards downtown development. Toward casinos, office buildings, and sports stadiums. Towards getting (white) folk to spend money downtown that would then trickle down to black neighborhoods and black schools, and which would then lead to more (white) people moving in rather than out.
Now let’s go back to my boy for a minute. What caused him to leave? He does not want to continue to pay an exorbitant mortgage and private school tuition. There are high quality public schools in Detroit from elementary all the way to high school. But these schools are few and far in between. He also does not want to have to deal with the significant decline in city services. Being fair, there are other issues that loomed large—but these were central. He and his wife both love black people, and would gladly die for them—they just don’t want to have to sacrifice their kids to do it.
People like my boy have three choices. They can leave. They can exert their voice and work hard to try to change and improve the cities they love. Or they can remain steadfast and stick it out, waiting out the storm like Teacake and Janie tried to do in Their Eyes Were Watching God.
Exit. Voice. Loyalty.
My boy chose the exit option. And rather than the exception he is swiftly becoming the rule.
In response what do we hear from urban officials? More casinos, more downtown development, more sports stadiums.
I can’t front—I like the idea of being able to go see Superbowl XL in downtown Detroit. But while bringing the Superbowl to Detroit might get Detroit politicians re-elected, it doesn’t deal with the problem or with solutions.
Similarly, I watched most of the State of the Black Union event put on by Tavis Smiley and I didn’t hear a single “black leader†deal with it. I barely believe in the idea of a single “black community†or a single “black agenda†as it is…but what we are now seeing is the very concept crumbling before our eyes. How can we even act like we’ve got a single agenda when black professionals don’t have any significant contact with black working class and poor citizens?
Perhaps we can begin to stem the tide if we have an honest conversation about what 21st Century cities are supposed to look like. However, given the gist of the conversations black elected officials and “black leaders†have been having, I don’t expect that particular conversation to start anytime soon. But I do expect the exodus to continue.
