Executive Committee Meeting 10-15-24

President's Report

Page 82 of 95

HISTORY

Exodus and Ruin Fueled by racial tensions, urban riots erupted in June 1943 and again in July 1967, resulting in 43 deaths. These events ended up persuading the wealthiest residents, who had remained within the city, to move to the outskirts. The exodus began in the 1920s, when the automotive factories, leaving the center, took the White workers with them. The departure from the city accelerated in the 1950s, as automotive lobbies financed part of the highways infrastructure and facilities, targeting two cars per

states, both Black migrants—by dint of the Great Migration–but also White incomers. During the Roaring Twenties, the city took full advantage of the Prohibition era, thanks to its location close to the border, and experienced an era of prosperity that was reflected in the many skyscrapers that went up. While the factories slowed down for a while during the Great Depression, they gained renewed momentum during World War Two, when they produced a significant proportion of U.S. war material. Motor City—Motown for short—became the Arsenal of Democracy .

Two Men of Action When it comes to the renewal of Detroit, two names crop up time and time again: Ilitch and Gilbert. Who were they exactly? The son of Macedonian immigrants, Mike Ilitch Sr (1929–2017), a native of Detroit, was the founder of the pizzeria chain Little Caesars (1959). This self-made man with a passion for sports acquired the Red Wings (ice hockey) and Tigers (baseball) teams. He renovated the Fox Theatre Downtown, built the Little Caesars Arena, and helped develop an entirely new neighborhood near to these places: The District. A philanthropist, he and his wife have given generous endowments to Wayne State University, in particular creating a School of Business that bears his name. He has launched programs for veterans returning to civilian life, but also for the poor and needy, to whom he has distributed more than three million meals since 1985. The list is long and not exhaustive, judging by the amount of projects managed by Ilitch Holdings Inc. Born in 1962, also in Detroit, Dan Gilbert is the founder of the Quicken Loans credit company (now Rocket Mortgage), whose offices were set up in the city center in 2010, marking a real turning point in the urban dynamics. The name Bedrock —a branch of his empire specializing in real estate ( T p. 25) — is associated with the restoration of emblematic historical buildings, including the spectacular J. L. Hudson store ( T p. 24) . Gilbert has invested in a host of projects—restaurants, retail, and so forth, big and small—, all driven by a desire to revitalize the center of Detroit. With his wife, he has pledged to donate, in his lifetime, half of his vast fortune to philanthropic works, which he does through all manner of initiatives, including a hospital research center and education.

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Women working in the welding workshop of the Lincoln Motor Company during the First World War in Detroit. Science History Images/Alamy/hemis.fr