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Ryan Cullen
This I Believe
I
am not the cause of the demise. I am not
the reason race divides. I am not the
reason for the riots. I am not the
reason fires burn with no one to quell them, crimes occur with no one to stop
them. I am not the reason for
bankruptcy, for mayoral scandals, for incompetent leadership. I am not the
reason for the fall of Detroit.
However, I do believe I am the
reason for the comeback. I am the reason
the city’s population grows faster than ever before. I am the reason business after business
decides to call this place home. I am
the reason a school can thrive for over a century when nothing else can. I am the reason people believe. I am the reason I believe.
This new generation that has grown
around the city of Detroit is above all else exciting. In many cases, it is those who grow up
outside the tough environment of the inner city itself who are most motivated
for change. A group who is proud to be
part of the D. A group that does not
want to drive away and never look back, but instead live in this community for the
rest of their lives. This group is where I associate myself, and although there
may not be any great reason or calling, I feel a powerful bond towards it.
The
bubble that is Grosse Pointe would probably not be the expected venue, nor the
city of Detroit the expected topic of a 16-year-old giving his perspective on
what in life he truly believes. I am not
writing about the city because I find it to be an easy topic, I’m not writing
about it because I think it’s the model of the perfect city. I am writing about Detroit because I believe
in us. I believe in this generation that
is tired of hearing how crappy their city is. I hate the gaze I get when I describe where I
go to school. But here’s the interesting
thing, I also relish it. I think to
myself about how cool it is, how great of an opportunity I have, how I’m proud
of not only my school but my city. I do
not want to simply agree and talk about the bad neighborhood, the poverty, the
crime, but instead I find myself saying, “this idiot doesn’t know what they’re
talking about.” Sure there’s plenty of
things wrong, but there damn sure are a lot of things right with this city, and
I want to make a lot more of them.
I know that I cannot change all that
has happened to this city, much of it bad.
It is apparent to me that dwelling on the past is what made Detroit
truly fall behind. Whether this be human
rights that divided people 50 years ago, or the unfair characterizations of a
community on the comeback today. For
Detroit to prosper, I believe in the power of myself and I believe in the power
of my classmates, my fellow preppy Grosse Pointers and the citizens of Detroit
themselves. I believe in the power of
each individual to be part of the change.
I don’t care about their background, their social status, their religion,
whether they’re gay, straight, black, purple, orange, or white, I care about
change. I believe in change. I believe in my generation. I believe in
I. I believe in Detroit.
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