Latinos in Southwest Detroit Welcome Different Cultures, Even if It's Not Their Own
How Southwest Detroit embraces different cultures through its growing community.
By Natalia Garcia
Southwest Detroit is known best for its taco trucks, Mexican supermarkets and the unique culture that the Mexican-American residents have built. However, many Latinos have moved to Southwest Detroit for opportunities and have continued to diversify the community.
Non-Mexican hispanics, including Argentinians, Dominicans and others, have created a culture in Southwest Detroit and built bonds that might not have been made otherwise. These people, spaces and even events have helped the community grow and create a culture where all Latinos can have a safe space to be themselves.
Maria Elena's book "Detroit's Mexicantown"
However, Southwest Detroit has been diverse from the start.
“Southwest Detroit has been a diverse neighborhood for over 100 years,” says Maria Elena Rodriguez, author of “Detroit's Mexicantown.” “That was by design when Henry Ford needed workers for specific jobs at the Ford Rouge plant. … Men came from around the globe and from down south to fill the need and the opportunity to create a middle class lifestyle for their families.”
Rodriguez continues: “The comfort factor of having a neighborhood that already has the basic needs of stores, bilingual programs at school and an assortment of needs, are met as a natural fit for Latinos other than Mexicans to move into Southwest Detroit.“
Gaston Muñoz, a Detroit-based Realtor who is Argentinian, says he felt more comfortable working and living in Southwest because of similar reasons. But when he got his real estate license, he says his broker suggested working in other areas.
Gaston Muñoz, owner of Muñoz Realty. Courtesy Gaston Muñoz
“(My broker) said, ‘I don’t want you to go to Detroit because Detroit is going down, it’s so bad. I want you to be in Farmington.’ I was kinda talking to myself and was like look, I’m broke, I have a minivan that’s horrible, I didn’t have any clothes, shoes or a suit or anything like that…,” he says. “That’s why I said I feel like if I go to Detroit I would feel more comfortable working with Spanish (speaking) people.”
Muñoz says people, till this day, move to Southwest because of the sense of familiarity they feel.
“There’s lots of people who have been coming (to Southwest) because of what’s happening in Florida with the governor. We’ve gotten lots of Columbians and Venezuelans — at least like 80 families who have come and more are on their way.”
Muñoz adds that undocumented immigrants feel safer in Michigan.
“...Here (in Michigan) there’s no restrictions other than the drivers license, but in Florida, it's risky.” He says in Spanish, “I think here in Michigan, Detroit, Wayne County, we’re going to start seeing a lot more Latinos.”
Southwest Detroit has not only embraced its unique Mexican-American culture, but also seen other cultures educating the mainly Mexican community.
Raul Echevarria, co-founder of La Casita. Photo by Natalia Garcia
Organizations such as La Casita Cimarrón y Yuketi de Detroit have hosted free Intro to (Puerto Rican) Bomba drumming and dance classes at its location on Avis Street. They normally provide drums and skirts so that no participant is left out or feels the pressure to already know about Bomba. They’ll also host free performances for the community.
“Ultimately, what we want is a space where Puerto Ricans can practice being Puerto Rican with other Puerto Ricans,” says Raul Echevarria, co-founder of La Casita Cimarrón y Yuketi de Detroit. “And ultimately, that’s the big picture of La Casita — it’s realizing that a lot of us are trying to hold on to our identity and to our traditions by ourselves in our homes with our kids, but that's not enough.”
Though aimed at Puerto Ricans, La Casita is open to anyone.
“The first and foremost thing we’re trying to do is create (a) community for ourselves because we’re not in Puerto Rico, and this is how we can keep our identity alive,” Echevarria says. “The second thing is it's not closed to anyone else. Part of what makes culture rich is the encounter with the other and the exchange. You can’t just be exclusive and shut other people out because it’s about, first, building our own, but then building across our own and building solidarity across other groups of people.”
Julion playing the barril at La Casita. Photo by Natalia Garcia
There’s also events like Southwest Detroit Restaurant Week, organized by Juan Carlos Dueweke-Pérez and others. Restaurant Week brings people of all cultures to one place where everyone can enjoy and try some hidden gems of the Southwest food industry.
“Southwest Detroit has a lot of things going for it … (but) it (wasn’t) quite the place where there's investments being made,” Dueweke-Pérez says.
He adds that he’s seen a lot of social media influencers try to help small businesses by posting their food, but he finds it “problematic.”
“(Influencers) tend to follow the popularity train, so they go to the places that are popular, but generally places become popular because they have some form of privilege or they have some form of access that leads them to be popular,” he says.
Dueweke-Pérez, along with the help of the late Monica Casarez, looked for a way to shed light on small restaurants without following the same influencer pattern.
“We looked at different models that were working in the country, and we learned a little bit more about Restaurant Week,” he says.
They took that approach and decided to change a few things such as moving the dates to Hispanic Heritage Month and inviting restaurants to create cultural staple dishes. This helped Southwest Detroit’s Restaurant Week gain popularity.
Another local event that embraces different cultures is Southwest’s Cinco De Mayo Parade. This parade, though mainly celebratory of the Mexican community, often allows other Latinos to showcase their talents, services and overall community. The parade still celebrates Mexican culture but also allows other cultures to freely express themselves and show pride.
The parade is open to anyone who wants to attend and often feels like one celebration of Latino-ness through music, food, dances and vibes of the audience and organizers.
Detroit City Council member Gabriella Santiago-Romero grew up near Tarnow and McGraw, an area she says has a large Caribbean population with diverse food options. She mentioned Rincon Tropical, which features Puerto Rican and Dominican food.
She adds that growing up, there were a lot of people cooking and selling food from their homes.
“I think it's been very lovely to have all of us share a little bit about our culture… and it's been very nice to be able to go from just smelling their food when I'm walking around the block to maybe being able to purchase it and eat it and enjoy it with them,” she says.
Southwest Detroit has always been known for its Mexican community, but as more Latinos move in and bring “home” with them, they get a community and a place where they belong.
