Detroit Now and Then – Mixed Exercises

ex.1: Read the text about Detroit’s past and present and tick  the correct
answers below.
 The city of Detroit, in the USA, was
once compared to Paris. It had a broad
river, smart streets and historically
important architecture. Then, in the 20th
century, it became ‘Motor City’. For a
time, most of the world’s cars were made
here. There was regular work and a good
salary in the motor industry. A worker at one of the car factories could own a home, plus a boat, maybe even a
holiday cottage. Some say America’s middle class was born in Detroit – new highways certainly made it easy for
workers to move from the city center to the suburbs in the 1950s. But in the early years of the 21st century,
Detroit became America’s poorest big city.
 In less than five decades the once lively Motor City lost more than half its population. It became known as a
city that was failing, full of ruined buildings, extensive poverty and crime. Newspapers and magazines told stories
of derelict homes and empty streets. Photographers went to Detroit to record the strange beauty of buildings
and city blocks where nature was taking over again. What went wrong in Detroit?
 The city is now 69th among US cities for the number of people per square mile. The population fell for several
reasons. Partly, it was because people moved to the suburbs in the 1950s. Then there were the shocking riots in
1967, which scared more people away from the city. Then there was the dramatic fall in car manufacture as
companies like General Motors and Chrysler faced huge difficulties. And finally, in 2008, came the global financial
crisis. Many of Detroit’s people are poor – half of the city’s families live on less than 25,000 dollars a year.
 In 2013, the city did something unusual: it declared itself bankrupt. It was the largest city bankruptcy in US
history, at approximately 18-20 billion dollars. Now that the city is free of debt, it has money to do some of what
needs to be done. It has replaced about 40,000 streetlights so that places feel safer. The police arrive in answer
to calls in less than 20 minutes now, instead of the hour it used to take. And about a hundred empty houses are
demolished each week to make space for new buildings. With the nation’s biggest city bankruptcy behind it,
Detroit is also attracting investors and young adventurers. The New Economy Initiative gave grants of 10,000
dollars to each of 30 new small businesses. It seems that every week a new business opens in Detroit – grocery
stores, juice bars, coffee shops, even bicycle makers. Finally, the city is working again.
Glossary
derelict (adj) in ruins because of lack of care
riot (n) violent actions by a group of angry people
bankrupt (adj) unable to continue to function because you cannot pay the money that you owe

1. The city of Detroit, ...
 has experienced many changes.
 is like a European city in many
ways.
 is one of the richest places in the
USA.
2. Detroit ... 3. What was Detroit known as at the
 has had problems but things are start of the 21st century?
getting better.  the Paris of America
 is having more problems than ever  Motor City
before.  the poorest city in America
 will have to suffer more before
things improve.

4. According to the first paragraph,
 Detroit factories made cars and
boats.
 Everyone in Detroit owned their own
home.
 The car industry was an important
employer.
5. According to the first paragraph,
 Industry was based in the suburbs.
 The suburbs grew in the middle of
the 20th century.
 The suburbs were a poor
neighborhood.
6. According to the second paragraph,
what interested journalists in Detroit?
 the empty places
 the number of poor people
 the problems of old people
7. The main problem in Detroit was ... 8. Bankruptcy meant ...
 crime  20 billion dollars was given back to
 health Detroit.
 money  Detroit could start again.
 everything was free in Detroit.
9. Which statement is true?
 30 businesses received money to
help them develop.
 About 30 businesses open every
week now in Detroit.
 There have been 30 new business
ideas in Detroit.

ex.2: Now look at the definition

of these words and how they are
used in the article. Complete the
sentences below and use each
adjective twice!

ex.3: Now find these words in the text and match them with their correct
definition. One has already been matched correctly.

0 really large in number or size

A suburbs 1 people who put money into a business to make a profit
B poverty 2 concerning the whole world
C global 3 the condition of being extremely poor
D huge 4 being the only example, having no like or equal
E crisis 5 an area where people live on the edge of the city
F investors 6 an extremely difficult or dangerous situation

A B C D E F

0
ex.4: Read about the Detroit Riot in 1967 and compete the text with the given
verbs. Use the simple past in ACTIVE OR PASSIVE form. Sometimes you need to
fill in a word in the correct WORD FAMILY.

The Detroit Riot of 1967 was a series of

____________________________ (violence) confrontations
between the African Americans of Detroit,
Michigan, and the city’s police. It
_________________________ (last) for five days,
beginning in the early morning hours of July 23
when the police _____________________________ (crash)
a welcome home party for two Vietnam War
soldiers. This exploded into one of the deadliest
and most destructive riots in United States history.
Like other uprisings before it, there
________________________ (not, be) one special cause of the Detroit Riot of 1967. There were a number of deep-
seated problems that set it off. At the time the industries that had built up Detroit
__________________________________ (either, close) or were leaving the city. Many of the steady factory jobs
_________________________ (lose) and ___________________________________ (replace) with low-paying service jobs at
that time. A large portion of the city’s African American population experienced frustration and
______________________ (angry) over the effects of racism, like __________________________________ (employed) and
poverty. Blacks ____________________________________ (also, force) to live in certain neighborhoods where the
housing was poor.
In addition to these problems, African American regularly ________________________________ (experience) police
brutality. It was normal for Blacks to be victims of unfair searches, beatings, and harassment. In the years
right before the riot there were a __________________________ (numerous) of beatings and shootings of Black
people by police officers all over the news.
On July 23 the police raided an illegal bar at 12th Street and _____________________________ (arrest) 82 African
Americans. Others who lived nearby protested. Several people _________________________ (throw) stones, broke
into shops and ______________________________ (start) fires. The police answered by blockading the
neighborhood, but furious residents _________________________ (drive) through the blockade. The protests and
violence spread, and police ___________________________ (lose) control of the situation.
During the next several days the Michigan governor ________________________ (send) in more than 9,000
members of the National Guard, along with 800 Michigan state police officers. President Lyndon B. Johnson
sent in U.S. Army troops to help put down the
violence.
When the riot ____________________________________
(finally, stop), the final counts included 43 dead
(33 Black and 10 white) and many more who
_________________________________ (injure). More than
7,000 people ________________________________
(arrest), and more than 1,000 buildings were
burned. Many of the buildings were never rebuilt.
The __________________________ (effective) could be felt and seen in Detroit for decades after the riot.