Building Inclusive Cities: Immigration and Neighborhood Change in Detroit

This report by Global Detroit, “Building Inclusive Cities: Immigration and Neighborhood Change in Detroit,” discusses the results of a two-year study conducted by Global Detroit in partnership with Alan Mallach and Data Driven Detroit. The report details the impacts that a rapid increase in immigration has had on two Detroit neighborhoods: Banglatown/East Davison Village and Chadsey Condon. The authors seek to explain why immigrants are drawn to the Detroit region and these particular neighborhoods and to identify the assets, strategies, and resources immigrants have used to flourish in their new communities. The study is one of the first to investigate the effect of rapid immigration growth on neighborhoods and long-term residents. Thus, the findings could apply to other post-industrial cities in the United States. The report concludes that an immigrant welcoming policy is a highly effective strategy for stabilizing and bringing new life to disinvested neighborhoods, providing benefits to both new and long-term residents. The report makes several recommendations, including facilitating the development of immigrant small businesses and increasing the hiring of immigrants in municipal government and other public sector areas. (Erika Hernandez for The Immigrant Learning Center’s Public Education Institute)