Fireweed Universe City: #Anarchy in Detroit, Part III

Part I, The Mower Gang

Part II, Detroit Threat Management

Part III, Fireweed Universe City

Part IV, Belle Isle Commonwealth

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We all know Detroit's in trouble: A bankrupt city full of crumbling houses, abandoned factory buildings, and a fast-dwindling population.

But while politicians, unions, and investors slug it out in bankruptcy court and grasp for their share of what little cash is left, ordinary citizens are left to fend for themselves in a city with no functioning government. This is Reason TV's coverage of what happens when people are left to their own devices and forced to come up with creative ways to pick up the pieces and find solutions in a city they once loved.

This is #Anarchy in Detroit, We all know Detroit's in trouble: A bankrupt city full of crumbling houses, abandoned factory buildings, and a fast-dwindling population.

But while politicians, unions, and investors slug it out in bankruptcy court and grasp for their share of what little cash is left, ordinary citizens are left to fend for themselves in a city with no functioning government. This is Reason TV's coverage of what happens when people are left to their own devices and forced to come up with creative ways to pick up the pieces and find solutions in a city they once loved.

This is #Anarchy in Detroit, a four-part series showcasing what actual Detroit residents are doing to make the Motor City a better place to live.

In Part II, Reason TV collaborated with Free Detroit's Local Focus to highlight the story of Detroit Threat Management, a private security firm that provides cheap car-to-front door escorts to small business owners, security details to large companies, free protection to local neighborhoods plagued by violent crime, and self-defense training to Detroit citizens. Dale Brown, one of the founders, sees their service as essential in a city with a crime rate five times the national average.

"I attribute the bankruptcy and all the economic issues to a lack of safety," says Brown. "If you don't feel safe, why would you invest there?"

In Part III, Reason TV visited Fireweed Universe City, a community of anarchists squatting in a neighborhood of mostly abandoned houses. While there, we met members of a group known as Free Detroit, an association of libertarians who want to buy up blocks of the city's cheap real estate and create libertarian enclaves.

"The word 'anarchy' is often associated with chaos and danger and hooded figures throwing bombs into windows," says Katie Testa, a member of Free Detroit. "But really it means 'no rulers.' The most chaos in Detroit has been created by government."

Watch the video above, and check out the rest of the series by clicking on the links at the end of the video.

Approximately 3 minutes. Produced by Zach Weissmueller. Shot by Tracy Oppenheimer and Weissmueller. Music by Cassiopee Asphodel and Treaty.

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