The Invisibility of Structural Racism in Narratives of Detroit's Rise
A lecture by Rebecca J. Kinney (Bowling Green State University)
The 2012 documentary film, Detropia presents longtime middle-class Detroiters, artists, and an emerging “creative class.” The film’s narrative arc weaves together of a story of hope in the hard work and perseverance of individuals without regard to decades-old systemic disinvestment. In this talk I argue that the film renders invisible the structural operations of racism in Detroit’s past so its future can be imagined though a neoliberal model of individualism and hard work.
Rebecca J. Kinney is an Assistant Professor jointly appointed in the School of Cultural and Critical Studies and Department of Popular Culture at Bowling Green State University. She earned her doctorate from the University of California, San Diego in the Department of Ethnic Studies and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan with a dual concentration in American Culture and Sociology. She is currently at work on a book entitled, Detroit as Beautiful Wasteland: Race, Place, and America’s Post-Industrial Frontier.
Presented by American Cultures/Ethnic Studies, International/Domestic Adoption Association with sponsorship from the Department of American Culture
