Detroit Block Parties Hosts

**Richard** · June-30-15, 07:25 PM

Originally Posted by Dan Wesson

What a bunch of fuddy duddies. Gwen talks about stuff that my friends and I have done growing up in the D. We got caught at times and we got away with way more than our fair share when we were young. We had Belle Isle, Foot of Alter, Foot of Connor, Balduck Park and that was just the East side. We used to drag race on Huber Ave between St. Cyril and Mt.Elliot for money. Cruise the main drags and drink and smoke doobies and chase girls. Get in fights, run from the cops and who ever. It was part of growing up.

Spent a few nights in the pokey too because of our antics. But the cops were more like on our side after a few hours and they sure weren't so militant.

Then we grew out of doing that stuff and raised families.

What's different today? This whole idea of zero tolerance and the excessively authoritarian, oppressive justice system. That's just the half of it. Then have to put up with the crazy ass gang bangers with 9's.

It's serious business now to have rebellious fun.

All in good fun... we love being bad cause it sure feels good.

I agree,the criminal justice system has become a business and it seems as though the tolerance level has dropped,here they arrested a 10 year old kid because he did not stop at a stop sign on his bike,10 years old and already in the system when all he needed was a good scolding.

In Fl for every person arrested that spends more then 8 hours in jail the state receives over $200 per person,you can bet if there is a reason no matter what or even a perceived reason you will go to jail even if it gets thrown out in court afterwards.

When we were growing up cops,teachers and elders in general you respected if not you got your butt whipped not only in school but when you got home,its just something you did not do, is disrespect.

If we got pulled over and weed was found they made you dump it out and grind it into the dirt and you were on your way,now they will confiscate your car if they find a seed in it.

You have to kinda wonder if this whole broken window theory and suppression through force for those of all colors is a bit off course and the whole "I do not care what happens as long as I feel safe" and its long term effects.

We as a country are so involved in the rights and how governments in other countries treat their population,we forget about what is really going on in ours.

**Honky Tonk** · July-01-15, 04:08 AM

Originally Posted by Dan Wesson

What a bunch of fuddy duddies. Gwen talks about stuff that my friends and I have done growing up in the D. We got caught at times and we got away with way more than our fair share when we were young. We had Belle Isle, Foot of Alter, Foot of Connor, Balduck Park and that was just the East side. We used to drag race on Huber Ave between St. Cyril and Mt.Elliot for money. Cruise the main drags and drink and smoke doobies and chase girls. Get in fights, run from the cops and who ever. It was part of growing up.

Spent a few nights in the pokey too because of our antics. But the cops were more like on our side after a few hours and they sure weren't so militant.

Then we grew out of doing that stuff and raised families.

What's different today? This whole idea of zero tolerance and the excessively authoritarian, oppressive justice system. That's just the half of it. Then have to put up with the crazy ass gang bangers with 9's.

It's serious business now to have rebellious fun.

All in good fun... we love being bad cause it sure feels good.

Great post, Dan. When you and your buddies went out to have fun, was everyone packing? How many people did you guys waste @ the neighborhood block party? It's nice that you condone the youngsters having a bit of fun these days. Why did you high-tail it out of here to a "safer" area some place else?

**Dan Wesson** · July-01-15, 06:49 AM

Honky,

I was fortunate enough to be able to make a living with the skills I attained anywhere. Why did I high-tail it out of the D? Number one reason? I didn't want my son to grow up the way I did. Number 2? Because I could pull it off.

I was able to raise my two kids as a parent that was there with them day in day out. I worked out of my home.
Not completely a stay at home Dad but close enough.

Absolutely no regrets.

**Gpwrangler** · July-01-15, 08:37 AM

Originally Posted by Dan Wesson

What a bunch of fuddy duddies. Gwen talks about stuff that my friends and I have done growing up in the D. We got caught at times and we got away with way more than our fair share when we were young. We had Belle Isle, Foot of Alter, Foot of Connor, Balduck Park and that was just the East side. We used to drag race on Huber Ave between St. Cyril and Mt.Elliot for money. Cruise the main drags and drink and smoke doobies and chase girls. Get in fights, run from the cops and who ever. It was part of growing up.

Spent a few nights in the pokey too because of our antics. But the cops were more like on our side after a few hours and they sure weren't so militant.

Then we grew out of doing that stuff and raised families.

What's different today? This whole idea of zero tolerance and the excessively authoritarian, oppressive justice system. That's just the half of it. Then have to put up with the crazy ass gang bangers with 9's.

It's serious business now to have rebellious fun.

All in good fun... we love being bad cause it sure feels good.

When I was younger there were a few kids who had the "fun" you describe. The ones who are still alive now have criminal records which limited their employment. Several died in horrific car wrecks and a few more overdosed. Some took others with them while drag racing. Not everyone "grew out of it".

No one blamed society or the cops back then either. Nowadays everything is someone else's fault.

**Dan Wesson** · July-01-15, 09:12 AM

Originally Posted by Gpwrangler

When I was younger there were a few kids who had the "fun" you describe. The ones who are still alive now have criminal records which limited their employment. Several died in horrific car wrecks and a few more overdosed. Some took others with them while drag racing. Not everyone "grew out of it".

No one blamed society or the cops back then either. Nowadays everything is someone else's fault.

Tis is true Gp very true....

**pgn421** · June-30-15, 06:04 PM

Everybody hangs at Rouge Park now

DetroitBoy · June-30-15, 06:51 PM

Originally Posted by pgn421

Everybody hangs at Rouge Park now

Good to know. Hopefully, DPD will start to tighten the belt over there as well before the same type of fool incidents start.

Urban terrorism requires a military type response. Hope they put the hammer down once and for all and stop all this crap decent people have endured for years.

**Vic01** · June-30-15, 11:30 PM

Originally Posted by DetroitBoy

Good to know. Hopefully, DPD will start to tighten the belt over there as well before the same type of fool incidents start.

The tightening has begun... Last night on NPR I listened to an interview with the guy in charge of DPD's parks unit. He said they've been increasing their presence in Rouge Park for a couple months now. As usual, there was some whining at first... "Cops?! Laws?! Safety?!"... They interviewed several Detroit residents using the park now with their kids that wouldn't have a short time ago, they seemed grateful for the increased DPD activity... but I guess they aren't posting here on Dyes

**corktownyuppie** · July-01-15, 08:01 AM

The city is finally becoming a less welcome place for Pookie n nem. But let's not get the wrong message...we're not saying that we're trying to get them out of here...it means that in order to stay, they need to change the way the live, act, behave.

Some people welcome these changes, others don't. But since the people who welcome these changes are also the ones paying for everything, this is the way things are going to be.

I agree,the criminal justice system has become a business and it seems as though the tolerance level has dropped,here they arrested a 10 year old kid because he did not stop at a stop sign on his bike,10 years old and already in the system when all he needed was a good scolding.

I agree with the above. I am opposed to criminal justice being a business preying on the poor. And I also agree that the kid didn't need to enter the system, he needed some good parenting.

The problem is that good parenting is few and far between in some of the neighborhoods these days. And while I prefer that the job of parenting not be put on law enforcement agencies, if I had to choose between them vs. no one doing it, I don't have a lot of options.

There are two glimmering hopes:

[[1) The compromise between the DPD-requested curfew [[which I supported) and the volunteer-based chaperone system was a good one. The goal was not to arrest kids, but just to make sure that they were being supervised. There were enough volunteers, and the evening happened for the most part without incident.

How can we scale this so that it isn't just one night and in one place? How many neighborhood recreation centers do we need? We can make a great case to the business community that supporting this kind of adult supervision is a much smaller investment than increasing police presence.

I know a friend who started teaching squash to kids from the city...it's becoming more and more popular and they are now traveling around the country competing. It's the only inner-city squash league in the country. Same with the chess team that is nationally competitive. And same with the boxing gym...getting people adult supervision.

When you make adult-guided recreational activity a lesser-expensive, more effective substitute to policing, the case is very compelling, and companies are very open to supporting them.

[[2) The Greektown shootings. Combining good police work with private cameras and cooperative witnesses meant that these guys weren't at large for more than a few weeks. Obviously it would be better had they not happened at all. But in Detroit, for years it was commonplace for these types of crimes to simply go unsolved forever.

Now why do these people behave this way? There are a lot of complex reasons. But one basic one is because people have been able to get away with it for so long. If we can scale that kind of policing/camera work with a cooperative community, it will take a few years [[3-5?), but people will eventually get the message that you can't behave this way anymore.

If you're successful at doing it for 20-30 years, you've totally reinvented the culture.

There is a roadmap to this, but people will soon learn that they can't just be doing the things that "used to be ok".

**Oddz313** · July-01-15, 10:10 AM

Ya I have an engineering degree so....lets label everybody by their profession and how they like to enjoy their time. Yuppies...always believe they are on the cutting edge of something new and end up chasing out people with personality and with different backgrounds along with choices in style and dress. Why do you think nobody wants to hang out in downtown royal oak anymore? It got over ran by yuppies wearing polo shirts and having their hair slicked up like David Schwimmer.

**corktownyuppie** · July-01-15, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by Oddz313

Ya I have an engineering degree so....lets label everybody by their profession and how they like to enjoy their time. Yuppies...always believe they are on the cutting edge of something new and end up chasing out people with personality and with different backgrounds along with choices in style and dress. Why do you think nobody wants to hang out in downtown royal oak anymore? It got over ran by yuppies wearing polo shirts and having their hair slicked up like David Schwimmer.

Hey I dont like hanging out in Royal Oak either, for those same reasons...hence moving into the city. But it is hard to ignore that if I were living in my exact same house just as far away from downtown Royal Oak as I am from downtown Detroit, it would be worth at least $300,000.

I am not saying that everybody needs to be a yuppie. But I am saying that our city needs to create a quality of life that appeals to people with money, otherwise the city won't have any. Part of that quality of life is likely not going to be appealing for the block party and drag racing crowd, and that's a shame.

But we would be better off not fighting the trend, and just accepting that this is the future.

**Oddz313** · July-01-15, 10:21 AM

Originally Posted by corktownyuppie

Hey I dont like hanging out in Royal Oak either, for those same reasons...hence moving into the city. But it is hard to ignore that if I were living in my exact same house just as far away from downtown Royal Oak as I am from downtown Detroit, it would be worth at least $300,000.

I am not saying that everybody needs to be a yuppie. But I am saying that our city needs to create a quality of life that appeals to people with money, otherwise the city won't have any. Part of that quality of life is likely not going to be appealing for the block party and drag racing crowd, and that's a shame.

But we would be better off not fighting the trend, and just accepting that this is the future.

Well I can agree with that but the city also needs middle class and family communities if it is to become viable again. Detroit has always had a big gap when it came to this issue. A problem that is facing the whole country but Detroit is always the first to show the cracks in society.

**Lowell** · July-01-15, 12:09 PM

The header pic series is called 'Slices of Detroit'. Kwame, for better or worse [okay worse], is still a big slice. Reams have been written about him on this and the old forum. In the one in question he is announcing the renovation of the Cadillac Hotel, a significant moment in Detroit history. Another slice from that day show Granholm, Ficano and the late Maryanne Mahaffey.

We don't hide our warts. "Some city's get by on their looks; Detroit has to work for a living." as Elmore says.

**kathy2trips** · July-07-15, 02:55 PM

I was curious, so I looked up the complete Elmore Leonard quote:

“There are cities that get by on their good looks, offer climate and scenery, views of mountains or oceans, rockbound or with palm trees; and there are cities like Detroit that have to work for a living, whose reason for being might be geographical but whose growth is based on industry, jobs. Detroit has its natural attractions: lakes all over the place, an abundance of trees and four distinct seasons for those who like variety in their weather, everything but hurricanes and earth-quakes. But it’s never been the kind of city people visit and fall in love with because of its charm or think, gee, wouldn’t this be a nice place to live.”

I think Detroit was beautiful and it can be again. Hope springs eternal.

**G-DDT** · July-03-15, 03:18 PM

Guinevere, I'm taking your side. I found little retarded about your post, but I saw a lot of it coming from those who have a repeated tendency to project their own inner nature by responding negatively in the way they chose to [[and they will call me "retarded", likewise, for not seeing what was wrong-yeah, I stole your thunder, y'all!). Despite my gripes about prostitution, casinos, cocaine, and where else society went wrong, [[and even if I'm not a big fan of the racing part-) I'm not on some convoluted "purity crusade". If one wants to be genuinely American about it, it's about the right to peacefully convene and pursuit of happiness. My generation proved we could do just that many times over within the borders of Detroit without violent incident.

It's just a shame it's attracting the wrong elements [[didn't Mafioso's in New York used to sponsor block parties in the '70s-like in "Summer of Sam"?). North Rosedale Park had a fatal shooting right in the doorway of the Community House during a wedding many years back. It didn't stop events from still being carried out there safely and successfully for many years afterwards. Once we start becoming too scared and over vigilant we let the terrorists win. The issue is how to sift the legitimate functions from the bullet magnets?

**G-DDT** · July-03-15, 03:32 PM

As I will elaborate, my generation flexed our freedoms in a variety of ways in many venues all across Detroit without incident. What "laws broken" were usually victimless ones, and yes, the cops responding at such times were many times beyond brutal and harassing. I've seen them threaten to take a distressed teenager asking questions out back and work him over [[ironically these were the same cops seen doing nitrous oxide balloons at the parties run by competitors). I've seen cops pick up discarded baggies at a party being busted go up to a random kid and hold out their hand with a "Hey! How are you?"; when the kid shakes, cop palms him the bag, roughly turns his hand over and says "Well, lookee what we have here?!" Yeah, Junior Murvin and the Clash were right.

We need Detroit safe not sanitized to fit some over-surveillanced in-by-10p curfew Suburban ideal. I actually feel a bit more free when I know some decent late night activity thrives in this city. Places like Boston, Madison, and any other city I've been to don't have this going on.

Again, I am going to stress: when we go beyond being on our toes to letting fear constrain us, we become just that-a culture of fear.

**Wheels** · July-03-15, 03:48 PM

Originally Posted by G-DDT

As I will elaborate, my generation flexed our freedoms in a variety of ways in many venues all across Detroit without incident. What "laws broken" were usually victimless ones, and yes, the cops responding at such times were many times beyond brutal and harassing. I've seen them threaten to take a distressed teenager asking questions out back and work him over [[ironically these were the same cops seen doing nitrous oxide balloons at the parties run by competitors). I've seen cops pick up discarded baggies at a party being busted go up to a random kid and hold out their hand with a "Hey! How are you?"; when the kid shakes, cop palms him the bag, roughly turns his hand over and says "Well, lookee what we have here?!" Yeah, Junior Murvin and the Clash were right.

We need Detroit safe not sanitized to fit some over-surveillanced in-by-10p curfew Suburban ideal. I actually feel a bit more free when I know some decent late night activity thrives in this city. Places like Boston, Madison, and any other city I've been to don't have this going on.

Again, I am going to stress: when we go beyond being on our toes to letting fear constrain us, we become just that-a culture of fear.

Dose this site have an award for rambling nonsense?