Dream Hampton, a film-maker, writer and cultural figure who has been in and out of Detroit most of her life, says: “I do not think there is a starker border anywhere in the country, quite frankly. And I have lived everywhere.”
In her view, beyond clear racial stereotypes, much of Grosse Pointe’s attitude to Detroit is based on a false premise of superiority along historical and economic lines. “Grosse Pointe is likely to say this is the money that built Detroit. Because of course it’s where the descendants of the great auto industry baron money – particularly the Fords – still live,” she says. “When in fact, it was the labor of the working-class Detroit that built Detroit. It’s the lion’s way of telling history.” And just in case anyone had forgotten, lions do not retreat before any.