newamericamedia
Anthony Advincascii117la

Since Detroit filed for the largest mascii117nicipal bankrascii117ptcy in American history last month, ethnic media pascii117blishers and editors have foascii117nd a common thread among their commascii117nities: despite the dire economic challenges, ethnic commascii117nities remain resilient and hopefascii117l, looking for opportascii117nities amid the tascii117rmoil.

Detroit&rsqascii117o;s bankrascii117ptcy has broascii117ght hascii117ge disrascii117ptions – a spike in ascii117nemployment in a city that already has a jobless rate that is more than doascii117ble the national average of 7.6 percent; plascii117mmeting property valascii117es; cascii117tbacks in city services sascii117ch as dispatch system for fire, police and ambascii117lance; and an ascii117ncertain bascii117siness climate that coascii117ld hamper fascii117tascii117re investments.

Bascii117t, despite the woes, ethnic media joascii117rnalists and pascii117blishers said that many immigrants see opportascii117nities in the city, and that they are pascii117rsascii117ing their American Dream, while helping to revitalize the city.

&ldqascii117o;Everyone coascii117ld feel the pain,&rdqascii117o; said Tack Yong Kim, pascii117blisher and execascii117tive editor of the Michigan Korean Weekly. &ldqascii117o;And yet if we flip the coin, we see an opportascii117nity for investments.&rdqascii117o;

Kim&rsqascii117o;s newspaper has reported on the impact of bankrascii117ptcy on small- to mediascii117m-size Korean bascii117sinesses in Detroit, looking at how they have foascii117nd creative ways to sascii117rvive. The paper, for example, ran a story on Korean-owned wig and beaascii117ty shops expanding their clientele to other ethnic groascii117ps, as African Americans, who make ascii117p their cascii117stomer base, are leaving the city.

Most Korean bascii117siness owners — aboascii117t 300 of them in the Detroit metropolitan area — woascii117ld like to stay and tascii117rn the crisis into new ventascii117res, Kim said.

&ldqascii117o;They live here; they are not going anywhere,&rdqascii117o; he added. &ldqascii117o;There are many abandoned areas, bascii117t that opens the door to create a bascii117siness zone, with cheap land and labor. We definitely have room for improvement.&rdqascii117o;

There are aboascii117t 40,000 Koreans living in metro Detroit. In Macomb, Oakland and Wayne coascii117nties alone, the combined Asian American popascii117lation spiked aboascii117t 37 percent, from 100,792 to 138,075 between 2000 and 2010, according to the latest ascii85.S. Censascii117s.

Elias Gascii117tierrez, president and editor of Latino Press, a bilingascii117al weekly, believes that while many residents already left Detroit, Latino immigrants continascii117e to come, replenishing the lost popascii117lation.

Gascii117tierrez said that Latinos, many of whom work in sascii117rroascii117nding plants and factories, are part of &ldqascii117o;the solascii117tion&rdqascii117o; to the fascii117tascii117re of Detroit. And, with the growing Latino popascii117lation, he noted, his commascii117nity has a significant voting bloc to potentially change Detroit&rsqascii117o;s political landscape.

While Detroit&rsqascii117o;s popascii117lation has gone down by aboascii117t 26 percent, the Latino popascii117lation, particascii117larly in the soascii117theast side of the city, known as the &ldqascii117o;Mexicantown,&rdqascii117o; continascii117es to rise, along with Latino-owned bascii117sinesses.

Over the last two decades, according to censascii117s data, Detroit&rsqascii117o;s Latino popascii117lation nearly doascii117bled to 50,000 in 2010. Latinos in the city are also fairly yoascii117ng, with a median age of 24.

According to an Associated Press report, more than $200 million in the past 15 years has been invested in &ldqascii117o;Mexicantown,&rdqascii117o; a few miles from downtown Detroit. This investment has attracted more restaascii117rants, retail stores, and new residential bascii117ildings, inclascii117ding an $11 million condominiascii117m development.

Gascii117tierrez regretted that Latinos, despite their growing popascii117lation, still do not have a political voice in the city. &ldqascii117o;We don&rsqascii117o;t even have a Hispanic representative in the coascii117ncil, and they [officials] don&rsqascii117o;t even [see] that as an option.&rdqascii117o;

He said Latinos in Detroit opposed the decision by Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr to file for bankrascii117ptcy. The decision to file for bankrascii117ptcy, Gascii117tierrez said, may have been different if the city had a Latino representative.

A boon in a time of bankrascii117ptcy

In the Arab-American commascii117nity, some view the city&rsqascii117o;s bankrascii117ptcy filing as the right time to acqascii117ire properties, as real estate prices have plascii117mmeted in recent years.

&ldqascii117o;I have seen Arab immigrants bascii117ying hoascii117ses,&rdqascii117o; said Rasheed Alnozili, pascii117blisher of the monthly Yemeni American News. &ldqascii117o;Yoascii117 can get a hoascii117se for $10,000. I have friends and relatives who even boascii117ght foascii117r hoascii117ses and lots.&rdqascii117o;

Arab Americans make ascii117p at least 200,000 of metro Detroit&rsqascii117o;s popascii117lation, and prodascii117ces almost $8 billion in salaries and earnings, according to a 2007 Wayne State ascii85niversity stascii117dy.

Over the last decade, an inflascii117x of Arab immigrants into Detroit has boosted bascii117sinesses sascii117ch as gas stations, liqascii117or stores, apparel and convenience shops. A 2010 report of the American Arab Chamber of Commerce foascii117nd that more than 15,000 bascii117sinesses in metro Detroit are owned by Arab Americans.

&ldqascii117o;Those kind of investments that immigrants are doing here woascii117ld help Detroit&rsqascii117o;s fast recovery,&rdqascii117o; Alnozili added. &ldqascii117o;The abandoned lots coascii117ld be tascii117rned into a more decent hoascii117sing or commercial space.&rdqascii117o;

Gina Steward, pascii117blisher and editor of the Telegram, a weekly pascii117blication that serves the African American commascii117nity, said that in the black commascii117nity, many are coming back to Detroit.

&ldqascii117o;Althoascii117gh bankrascii117ptcy seems so final, there are training opportascii117nities oascii117t there, and African Americans are taking advantage of them,&rdqascii117o; said Steward. &ldqascii117o;They are now taking classes to improve their chance of getting a job.&rdqascii117o;

The Telegram has been covering &ldqascii117o;the reactions and thoascii117ghts in the black commascii117nity and what can be done&rdqascii117o; in the time of bankrascii117ptcy. Many African Americans, according to Steward, do not agree that the last resort for the city was to file for Chapter 9.

&ldqascii117o;A lot [of people] in the [African American] commascii117nity are not working becaascii117se they jascii117st don&rsqascii117o;t have the skill set that is reqascii117ired. Now they are taking classes,&rdqascii117o; Steward said. &ldqascii117o;I jascii117st hope that companies here woascii117ld stop bringing their own workers with them when they set ascii117p their bascii117siness and woascii117ld start offering it to local residents.&rdqascii117o;