history db 7

This discussion forum provides an opportunity for you to engage course material and your classmates to critically reflect on issues raised by the material.

To participate in this forum, choose ONE of the question sets below and answer ALL of the questions for the topic option in a 250-300 word post. Your post title should have the topic clearly listed (for example, "Colonial Legacies - British dominance on the Great Lakes" 

In order to get full credit on your original post, you need to clearly connect your responses to historical evidence from the book, powerpoint slides, or further research. Indicate the page number where you found the information to help me and your classmates follow up to gain insight.

Answers to the question in each option can be found in all 3 chapters assigned this week. For option 2, I encourage you to listen to the NPR podcast on "The Long Hot Summer" which discusses the work of the presidentially appointed Kerner Commission, which studied the causes of riots that frequently gripped American cities in the mid 1960s, culminating in the riots in Detroit which many see as a turning point in our region's history.

Topic Option 1: Boom and Bust Economy. Using examples from all three chapters this week, how did Michigan's status as the automative capital of the world  1. Make Michigan one of the strongest economies in the United States? 2. Make Michigan one of the most vulnerable economies in the United States?  3. Based on your reading, why does Michigan's economy remain tied to the automotive industry? Is this good or bad?

Topic Option 2: Urban decline. 1. What were the causes of demographic shifts in Michigan during the 1950s that brought Michiganders out of urban and rural areas and into the suburbs? 2. Based on this week's readings and readings and discussions from Weeks 5 and 6, what were some of the unique social and economic

challenges facing the City of Detroit in the 1950s and 1960s. 3. Based on your reading (and the optional podcast), were the July 1967 riots in Detroit primarily about racial tensions or some mixture of other factors?