Mayor Bing: I Don't Want To Make This Racial, We Have Got To Get Beyond That

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: And we know that's going to be a difficult process going forward. And it comes against the backdrop - we saw the president's comments on race on Friday. Over the last 50 years, Detroit has gone from more than 80 percent white to more than 80 percent black city. And Keith Richberg, an African-American reporter from the Washington Post points out Detroit is one of the most racially polarized cities in America. And he adds this, he says, "older Detroiters are correct that the city was surrounded by a ring of often hostile white suburbs in a largely conservative state that had little time for a poor, destitute, Democratic and black city. The governor's appointment of an emergency financial manager is again seen as a hostile racist takeover by the state over the city's elected black leadership."

How do you respond to that?

DAVE BING (D), DETROIT MAYOR: Well, I don't want to make this a black and white issue. It's a financial issue. And it's green. We've got to get some funding that's necessary to help us fix our problem right now.

I don't want to stir the pot and bring up all kinds of historically racial issues. We have got to get beyond that. You know, the polarization between our city and our suburbs is something that's been going on for the last 60 years. We have got to change it.

Once again, if Detroit fails, doesn't make it, then all of these surrounding suburbs are going to feel the brunt of it also. So it behooves us to see how we can work together to make this entire southeastern region livable for all of us.

Source: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2013/07/21/mayor_bing_i_dont_want_to_make_this_racial_we_have_got_to_get_beyond_that.html

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