Luther Keith: Detroit to Nation -- We're Still Surviving

The author, a former reporter and editor at The Detroit News, is executive director of ARISE Detroit!, a nonprofit coalition of community groups focused on improving Detroit's neighborhoods. 

By Luther Keith

Luther Keith: "The deaths are numbing."

The reporter from the national network wanted to know how Detroiters were coping with the Coronavirus crisis.

Were they worried?

Would the crisis sap the city’s comeback spirit?

How were they handling the sudden deaths of prominent community leaders?

Perhaps I should not have been surprised by the questioning.

After all, the city is now tagged as being a hotspot for the virus based on the number of infected residents (more than 8,000) and deaths (more than 1,000).

Detroit’s current crisis comes after surviving the recession of 2008, corruption scandals at City Hall and bankruptcy, as well as still coping with a stubbornly high poverty rate, public schools trying to stage a turnaround and an overall comeback to be more inclusive of the neighborhoods and longtime residents.

There is no disputing any of that.

But, as we have always done, we are rising to the challenge in this surreal drama. We all must deal with this new reality.

The deaths are numbing, so many people we know, love and cherish. In stunning succession, we have lost:

• Marlowe Stoudamire, only 43, a community servant known for his work with the Skillman Foundation and the Detroit Historical Museum

• The affable and dedicated Detroit State Rep. Issac Robinson, just 44

• Funeral home icon and business mogul, O’Neil Swanson, 86.

And the deaths just keep coming. Otis Knapp Lee, a popular former restaurant owner and caterer, Brenda Perryman, beloved former educator and television talk show host, and Bishop P.A. Brooks, one of Detroit’s most influential pastors.

All of this is made more chilling by the learning of the infections of so many people we are personally connected with – friends and family – and the incessant social media reports of celebrity and luminary deaths and infections from all over the world.

No medical or financial immunity

Our economy is, in effect, shut down and teetering toward recession. Friends and neighbors have lost their jobs. No one is immune.

Restaurants, nightclubs, bars and numerous “nonessential” businesses are shut down. Our houses of worship are closed. Media companies used to covering the story are now part of the story; reporters and editors are being laid off and furloughed.

Schools are closed. Musicians cannot entertain us and soothe our souls at live music venues.

“Social distancing” has entered our lexicon. We are working from home, those of us who can, and trying not to go stir crazy. We are told not to go outside, cover our faces to stay safe and stay at home.

Of course, this is anathema to all the things that make ARISE Detroit! and so many other churches, community groups and block clubs the powerful forces for positive change and community nurturing.

We are used to coming together in groups large and small to engage in community service projects, to mentor, tutor, teach, learn, plan, celebrate and mourn.

So we have created a new reality, a new normal, to cope and survive.

'Detroiters are stepping up'

Our technology has become our lifeline. Instead of meeting in conference rooms, we are meeting in conference calls. We are using Zoom, Facebook Live and other platforms for meetings and government business. We are making calls to check in with neighbors, friends and family.

We are making food deliveries to seniors and nursing homes; physicians are offering free medical help for the uninsured, some landlords are waiving or deferring payments for renters. We are donating to a fund to help laid off service workers.

We salute our overwhelmed health care workers – nurses, doctors and physician assistants – as our heroes.

In thousands of ways, large and small, Detroiters are stepping up. This is who we are. This is what we do.

The virus does not care about your social status, the size of your bank account, your celebrity status, your politics or your beauty.

We are all in this together. Detroiters understand this.

And we will ARISE again.