We Are Not Ghosts

Mark Dworkin and Melissa Young's provocative and invigorating documentary focuses on private microeconomic efforts made by residents to revitalize their blighted neighborhoods in Detroit, a once-vibrant, diverse, hard-working city that never truly recovered its footing after the debilitating social upheaval of the 1960s or the equally traumatic loss of jobs after the collapse of the automobile industry. Unlike other urban areas that successfully reinvented themselves through gentrification and innovative economic initiatives, Detroit never found the formula to move forward, although some efforts are beginning to pay off. Abandoned lots have been transformed into organic gardens, small businesses have provided financial empowerment to enterprising individuals, and educational programs are instilling tomorrow's generation with lessons of self-worth and community pride. Larger problems, however, continue to haunt Detroit, including a glut of foreclosed housing, long-simmering distrust between African-American communities and the police, and the absence of industrial opportunities to fill the void left by the withdrawal of manufacturers. While there's plenty of blame to go around, the interviewees here—teachers, entrepreneurs, community leaders, and agricultural experts—are more focused on harnessing positive energy and working toward a better future. Indeed, that can-do attitude makes We Are Not Ghosts a powerful film that celebrates resiliency and exudes hope. Highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)