Started From Black Bottom Now We Are Here: An Observation of Detroit Tenacity

There was once a tribe called the Ojibway that inhabited a land called “bahwating”, which meant a gathering place. On July 24, 1701, Antoine Cadillac, a voyager contracted by King Louis the XIV, climbed to the top of a 50 foot cliff looked out at “bahwating” and proclaimed, Detroit.

Many streams fed the Detroit River. There was one in particular that the natives and newcomers both enjoyed called the Savoyard. The river was named after a French artisan who pulled water from it to make pottery by its banks. The rich marsh and soils are the source of the areas nickname “Black Bottom”.

Due to prejudice, political propaganda and racial ignorance many people believe that the area’s nickname “Black Bottom” derived from racial epithet. In the history of this country, we're all aware that individuals of darker hues were socially and politically limited from the true American dream of life, love, liberty, and ownership. Black Bottom for a while was one of the exceptions.

Migration and the Ford "five dollar a day" salary transformed the strip into one of the city's major African-American communities of black-owned business, social institutions and night clubs. That spirit of self-sufficiency and community allowed the area to share in becoming one of the world’s Mecca for music and innovation. The influence of Black Bottom can still be felt around the world. The most incredible artist, business owners and sounds originated from this area.

During its African American heyday Black Bottom became internationally famous for its music scene. Major blues singers, big bands, and jazz artists—such as Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Count Basie—regularly performed in the bars and clubs of Paradise Valley. Hasting Street the literal hub was responsible for the likes of Berry Gordy, Aretha Franklin, and Diana Ross to name a few.

Labeling misunderstandings aside, this land has a diverse ethnic history. Its original inhabits were of course, the First Nations or Indians. Then it was settled by the French. In the late 1800’s there was a period of Greek ascension of which there is still a Greek town in Detroit to this day.

Before World War I, Black Bottom had been a center of Eastern European Jewish settlement, which would later go on to inhabit cities like the Grosse Pointes, Bloomfield Hills and Oak Park. After World War II, the economic activity and government redlining declared the area be put on the “slum clearance removal program”, that program officially became Urban Renewal.

The Urban Renewal program was established to combat what it called "Urban Blight." Because of this new classification, the entire Black Bottom district was razed and replaced with the freeway I-375 and Lafayette Park. The program unfortunately destroyed a way of life for most that inhabited the area. Many were relocated to large public housing projects such as the Brewster-Douglass and Jeffries.

In 1959, the residential area of “old black bottom” became what is known as

Lafayette Park. This 78 acre complex is another testament to renaissance of Black Bottom. It is a mixed-income development designed by Mies van der Rohe, as a model neighborhood combining residential townhouses, apartments and high-rises with commercial areas.

Speaking of diversity, Mies van der Rohe was a German born architect. He was the last director of the Bauhaus Institute in Berlin before the school was close by Hitler’s Nazis. For those who are not aware, Bauhaus is the precursor to mid-century modernism (which I am obsessed with). If you are not aware of what that is, look around. The design style also known as clean lines can fetch an additional 50,000 to 100,000 dollars on a town home in Detroit.

Now you are probably thinking, why the history lesson on Black Bottom? The answers are; first, the freeway that dismantled the neighborhood and uprooted families and financial legacies is now being removed to improve an already thriving area. Secondly, I am tired of people comparing Detroit with just murder and Motown. As a direct descendant of Black Bottom residents, I know for a fact we are globally celebrated for so much more. In reality we are culture creating survivors.

What other city can claim humanity changing inventors like Henry Ford, world renowned producers like, J Dilla, a national glasses culture (Cartier), and one of the largest annual techno festivals (Movement). Depending on which period of its history you choose to focus, the city will captivate or horrify you. But no matter what, the legacy of Detroit’s Black Bottom found a way to survive. For many of us, our ancestors can be traced to Black Bottom and we are still here. Happy 313 Day!