In Flint, Unsafe Streets, Failing Schools

Children Are Victims of Soaring Unemployment in Michigan City; But They're Leading Fight to Take Their Neighborhoods Back

(CBS)  The index of leading indicators is up for the third straight month meaning we could see a recovery later this year. But right now, unemployment nationwide is 9.5 percent.

In Michigan, it's much worse - more than 15 percent. Devastating not just for adults, but their kids, as CBS News national correspondent Jim Axelrod reports.

Flint, Mich. is a tough place for anyone to live these days - but it's the kids on a crime-riddled block of New York Avenue who may just have it the toughest.

"I don't feel safe walking down the street any time of the day," said 11-year-old Alexis Graham. She worries about "people that might try to like pick you up or kidnap you."

Graham doesn't feel safe enough to ride her bike down the street - a lifetime away from when her mother and grandmother were growing up on this block

That's when Flint had 80,000 General Motors jobs. Today it's 7,500. When the jobs left, so did the people, leaving the once-proud neighborhoods to rot.

"You got hoodlums. You got crackheads. You got a little bit of everything," said Jennifer Graham, Alexis' mother.

Alexis helped her mother make signs - like one reading "No Prostitution" - to run the riff raff off the block but the signs alone can't stop the flames that scare her at night when drug gangs set the abandoned homes on fire.

"The brown house down the street was in flames higher than the house next door to us," Alexis said. "Someone torched it."

Genesee County treasurer Dan Kildee has a radical idea to make life better for the children of Flint: bulldozing 6,000 empty homes here and turning those lots into places where they can play.

"You know it's hard but I don't see an alternative," he said. "The people we ought to think about are the folks who live on this street who are really trying."

No matter what's done with the buildings, the future in Flint will be shaped most significantly by what kind of jobs the next generation is qualified for. That raises a bigger challenge: changing the culture. A recent study showed just 27 percent of parents in Michigan thought their kids needed more than a high school education.

"This isn't 1969 anymore," said Michael Flanagan, Michigan's sate superintendent of schools. This isn't when the man landed on the moon and GM ruled and you didn't have to worry about competition."

Flanagan is raising Michigan's educational standards. One of eight states with no graduation requirements five years ago, Michigan is now recognized for having one of the most rigorous set of requirements including algebra II, biology, either chemistry or physics, and foreign language.

"All we had to do before - to graduate from high school - was take a civics course," Flanagan said. "What we were thinking? It was brain dead."

Tyler McDougall, a high school sophomore from Flint, is in the second class of students who'll have to meet the tougher requirements to graduate.

"It's pretty hard," he said of the math requirement.

Tyler is from a fifth generation GM family. He once wanted to be follow in their footsteps, but now he wants to be an ophthalmologist.

"I just didn't want to put my family when I get older through the same things," he said.

In Michigan, the bulldozers are busy, beginning to take down those old, abandoned houses - demolishing bad neighborhoods, and old ways of thinking, to build better futures for their children.

[wheatfield2]

*****by bearjoint November 21, 2009 6:59 AM EST****
I agree that there is much blame to spread around. atwrkr seems to think that the union employee is the puppet of the union and of management. However, I hail from Flint, MI and I knew of many union employees, mostly 2nd shift, that snuck out during their shift whild their buddies covered for them. I remember people laughing because the put something in the car that would create a rattle that would drive the new car owner crazy. I remember every time a new contract came up that the union had to have something bigger and better and sometimes just absurd. Most of us don't get birthday's as a holiday. so.... GM found a way to do it cheaper somewhere else.
The Flint I grew up in was a nice place to live. We had good jobs and a great cultural center. We had any kind of class, inexpensive, funded by Mott Foundation.
What we didn't have is the forsight to diversify and we counted on GM to be the be all and end all for us forever. We worked for GM and bought foreign cars because they were cheaper. Wonder why they were cheaper -- their workers didn't have all the wonderful perks that UAW workers had. Like anything, a good thing needs to be cared for.
When I got laid off in Flint I went southwest and never looked back. I have a great life here and appreciate it every day. If you want Flint back work for it. If you have no skills to do that, take advantage of the programs that offer you an education and get the skills to either fight for Flint or escape it.*******

bearjoint...I applaud you for posting this. I hail from Flint Michigan, and can avow that you are telling it like it is!

[babooph]

US tax dollars are building many new schools as we post-teachers & healthcare specialists are included massive security is also provided-Iraq & Afghanistan are quite a commute for the Flint students though.....

[toldyouso21]

"Flanagan is raising Michigan's educational standards. One of eight states with no graduation requirements five years ago, Michigan is now recognized for having one of the most rigorous set of requirements including algebra II, biology, either chemistry or physics, and foreign language. "

SAME OLD STUPID SOLUTIONS What good is raising the standards if the real problem is the mindset and culture? The kids just won't meet the standards, will drop out of school and will be on the streets.

Here is a radical idea: Offer jobs that pay 40 to 50K a year in the town, managing blocks of crime ridden areas--to qualify, the persons must live in those neighborhoods AND have at least a 2 year associate degree, THEN raise the HS stds. To get the jobs, people will then hae to meet the criteria. Cut off all aid of any sort except to Children under the age of 6. Offer subsidized college tuition.

If you want people to rise to another level--you have to provide clear goals to shoot for--saying people need a college education, when they don't think they can get those jobs means they will not even try to reach those standards.

On another level, let parents know, that if their kids are caught in a gang or is involved in doing malicious acts 3 times in a row, that the parents will be jailed as well as their kids for "failing to raise or supervise their child and thereby contributing to the deliquency of a minor) behind every hoodrat and hoodlum is a parent who is not handling the serious business of child rearing--people will continue to slack until you make the cost one they understand--like: "If your child continually screwwwwws up and you have not sought intervention and do not work to help stop the problem, then we will hold you accountable for failing to raise your child and your child accountable for their actions.

All children under 18 without accountable guardians should become wards of that state, and sent to state. Harsh? yes? but better than what we are doing now which is letting each generation remain and steep in horrible environments

[babooph]

Relax,big $$$ is going into safe new schools-you do have to go to Afghanistan though.....

[ahrats]

The problem is gangs. Gangs should be treated like terriorst, because that is what they are, home grown ones. They should be hunted down like we are doing in Afganistan to the Taliban. The police are powerless against them, and the gangs are training themselves like terriorst, intimidation tactics, shooting inocent people, selling drugs/sex to finance themselves. We are fighting a forigen war but doing nothing to stop the home grown threat, and this is a definet threat to our socieity, future Al Queda & Taliban recurits.

[diamruby]

You are completely right, because we do nothing to stop them they continue to grow & ruin our neighborhoods & schools. These gangs could be eliminated if it the parents, government & law officials could & would do their part. The gangs are run from our corrupt prison systems. We need military forces in all of these areas to assist the police forces that seem to be shrinking. We need to take back our lives from these gangs.

[kindrox]

All they have to do to make the streets safe again is ban guns. End of story.

[toldyouso21]

stupid comment. Banning guns will only prevent law abiding people from buying guns--but it will do nothing for criminals --who are more apt to buy their guns hot on a street corner or from a car trunk anyway and do not care what the law bans. Do you imagine that if guns are banned that gang bangers will turn theirs in? Or are you soooo ignorant, that you imagine that if no store sells guns, drug dealers and gang bangers will not be able to get guns or weapons any other way?

have you any idea what goes in in the ghetto? Most do not EVER buy guns from a registered gun dealer. They don't have to--you can go into any barber shop, beauty parlor or bar, say you need a gun and within an hour or so, someone will have a few to sell to you--usually from between 50.00 and 200.00 depending on what you ask for. And all of this will take place, ban or no ban--law or no law. Never forget that most of the guns EVER made are still in circulation and still work--if guns were outlawed tommorrow and all new shipments stopped--homeowners would hide their guns and criminals, gang bangers and others would keep doing what they have been doing. A black market in guns has existed in America as a thriving industry since the early 1900s.

the government does not ban guns because they don't want to or for any Constitutional reason, they do not ban guns because now, it would be impossible to enforce and mostly, the ordinary citizen would be at risk for going to jail NOT the gangsters.

[culturechang]

This article is somewhat old. I am surprised to see it still here when the newer Katie Couric article that dealt directly with underage prostitution was dropped off so quickly. From reading the comments, it appears there were too many comments who had a different perspective than Katie.

[jwz1234]

I lived in Flint for many years, made the right decision to leave. My advice is to get out now!!!!!! Last one out turn the lights off.

[mary-miami]

The fastest way out of this Depression is to provide people with a living wage. Increase the minimum wage to ten dollars an hour. That will at least help people to float. If you take into consideration the price of rents and food, gas, bills, utilities; it's virtually impossible to survive on a minimum of seven dollars an hour without asking for food stamps. If healthcare and university aren't free, then no one will ever be able to rise up out of poverty into middle class, because there's no money left over for school or doctor once the bills are paid.

[fleabag75]

"The purpose of government is for the protection and well being of its citizens" (circa 1792)
"The purpose of government is for the protection and well being of industry" (circa 2001)

[proud_churchgoer]

This is what happens to communities when people lose faith in God.

[fedupredneck]

LOL- What god?

[LinInTn]

I grew up in Detroit in the 50's & 60's and have lots of family in the auto industry. I am proud of the parents who want to keep their neighborhoods safe. Any help the city can give should be applauded. I am also glad they are bringing back tougher standards for high school graduation. Children need to be challenged by their courses, taught good study skills, and earn the self-esteem from meeting goals. They are our future and need to be prepared to properly lead that future.

[sahbuhnim6]

The the end of Americas Industrial era. It was a grand ride all the way from when Henry Ford introduced the assembly line method of manufacturing.
That method is antiquated that's been proven because why would they be looking for cheaper labor. And yes it's money driven that's all it's ever been. If you can't adapt to the changing environment then you go away just like Neanderthals.

[fleabag75]

Hey "greedy union" people. Stop complaining! The jobs are gone! No more greedy union people jobs! Ok? You folks won that round! Now those people are trying to find the minimum wage jobs you seem to favor. Again, you won that round. As far as poor quality workmanship,,,, they were told HOW to make what they made. Are you suggesting the assembly line workers substituted cheap parts instead of higher quality parts on their own? Are you nuts?

[searingtruth]

"There is a battle for good. But we are not fighting it."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave

[tmittelstaed]

To really understand the problem with Flint, start by looking at a map. (it might also help to watch the 20 year old documentary "Roger and Me" by Michael Moore) The city has the same factors as many thousands of other small cities in the US - and if it's development had been uninterfered with by GM, it would be no more and no less than any of those other thousands of small cities in the country.

The problem is that GM caused the city to grow far, far in excess that it should be. Other than GM the only thing the city ever had was being a stopover point on the roads leading to Detroit. Now, with GM basically gone, Flint is shrinking back down to the normal size for a small stopover city like this.

[searingtruth]

"They proclaimed that only our children counted, when in truth they were the first to pay."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave

[culturechang]

This article is pretty transparent. It appears that the problem is drugs and unemployment, but there is nothing like a little sex to get media attention. Otherwise, its just a dying town and nobody would care. I venture to say that street prostitution probably has little or nothing to do with it. This article does not connect the dots either.

Prostitution exists on the street because there is no where else for it to exist. A few years ago they busted a bunch massage joints for prostitution. Made a big media splash. They always say "drugs and prostitution go hand-in-hand", but I never heard one mere mention of drug use or possession in those cases. Proving that theory wrong.

Then they blame the topless bars, but I dont see any mention of these in this neighborhood either, but again, lies will abound when prostitution is mentioned.

One thing that does go hand-in-hand with prostitution.....govt and sensationalistic lies.

[tmittelstaed]

I guess my question is since it is a dying town, why should these people take their unemployment benefits and spend them on s e x? Why not just walk away and start a new life elsewhere with those unemployment benefits?

The American West is dotted with abandonded ghost towns that sprung up around mines, and such. Some were abandonded as late as the 1950's. This is no different. When a community has a single major employer and does not diversify it's economy, if that employer disappears, the community withers. Ever see the movie Cars? Same thing.

[John_Merritt]

Hey Tmittle:

I was watching the segment on Katie's evening news and it appears this is a rather blighted area. It also appears their financial resources are very limited.

I guess it comes down to comfort. They may be comfortable in their surroundings because maybe that is all they have ever known. It remains to be see what lies ahead for Flint and surrounding areas.

There are so many vacant plants and so many possibilities for green jobs and industrial 'complex cities'. It is kind of cool; because I was mulling over the possibilities for the Detroit region and similar ones; and what I was able to come up with sounds futuristic, but great.

Now if we can only get Washington and corporate America to think outside, it will be a win for everybody. Eveyone will have jobs, we can consolidate and streamline system efficiencies, environmental requisites will exceed expectations and we will become the blueprint for the entire world.

If only they would listen. And the people cheered.

[dwilson59]

John Merritt

What is a green job?

Can anyone tell me what a green job is?

[John_Merritt]

It sounds like a group of people who have lost community. I do not know Flint and how the vacant homes are spread out over the locale.

What would be neat to see, if we could consolidate all those people in close proximity to each other; by relocating them to a neighborhood. Than the city could raze entire blocks for future development of some sort.

It is a win for the neighbors, the police and for the community. It will make it easier for the law enforcement agencies to police, and displace all the criminals outside the area where they can be monitored closely by the police and the neighborhoods.

Than as development of commercial or residential improves in the future, there will be vast areas of land instead of areas sprinkled with new and old homes. Does that make sense? The best part, all the people will have 'community' again. How cool.

[IrishWench01]

Not a bad concept. Kinda neat actually. There was a time when that would happen naturally as people and officials would pull together for the benefit of all and become allies against those that would seek to take their safety and community away.

They would still need some sort of lucrative employment and a plan. And a community oragnizer. Haahahaa! Sorry, I couldn't help myself.

[Meg003]

I agree with Irish. It does sound like a great concept. I have often thought that it would be a good idea to relocate the entire city of New Orleans away from the flood zone.

[slove43794]

There is a lot of blame to go around,that would include the greedy Unions and the poor workmenship of it's members. Lets call it like it was, they should have taken more pride in their work.

[atwrkr]

I get so sick of hearing people comment on things they've never ignorant of. If you've never done it then clam up. What's so hard for people to understand. If you have any entry level job the only thing you can do is what your told to do. The only thing you can assemble in any manufacturing plant is what your given to assemble. If it's junk it's not because you made it junk it's because the pieces they buy from suppliers are junk or the engineering is bad. The membership does not control the UAW. The nepotism within the UAW is off the charts. The leaders you see in the media are busy protecting their own. You have know idea what it's like to be on the floor working. Management lying to you. Union lying to you. People on the outside despise you out of ignorance from what they hear about you. It gets pretty sickening. This article is not about the union workers, it's about Flint. What GM did was more about the low cost of labor. The same thing is playing out in all other fields right now. People are losing their jobs because none of us can compete with what someone else will work for overseas. When was the last time you talked to an American when you were calling your mortgage or credit card company? They don't have a union so who do you blame for those lost American job?

[bearjoint]

I agree that there is much blame to spread around. atwrkr seems to think that the union employee is the puppet of the union and of management. However, I hail from Flint, MI and I knew of many union employees, mostly 2nd shift, that snuck out during their shift whild their buddies covered for them. I remember people laughing because the put something in the car that would create a rattle that would drive the new car owner crazy. I remember every time a new contract came up that the union had to have something bigger and better and sometimes just absurd. Most of us don't get birthday's as a holiday. so.... GM found a way to do it cheaper somewhere else.
The Flint I grew up in was a nice place to live. We had good jobs and a great cultural center. We had any kind of class, inexpensive, funded by Mott Foundation.
What we didn't have is the forsight to diversify and we counted on GM to be the be all and end all for us forever. We worked for GM and bought foreign cars because they were cheaper. Wonder why they were cheaper -- their workers didn't have all the wonderful perks that UAW workers had. Like anything, a good thing needs to be cared for.
When I got laid off in Flint I went southwest and never looked back. I have a great life here and appreciate it every day. If you want Flint back work for it. If you have no skills to do that, take advantage of the programs that offer you an education and get the skills to either fight for Flint or escape it.