Counting the cost
The Detroit riot, which began on Sunday 23 July 1967 and ended around 27-28 July, is usually summarized with three figures: 43 dead, about 1,200 injured and more than 7,000 arrested. These are the figures most commonly cited by historians and in official summaries, but they are not exact. Counts of the injured and the arrested differ somewhat among sources, and in a disorder of this kind, categories such as “riot-related death” involve judgment.
The dead
Of the 43 people who died, the usual breakdown is 33 Black and 10 white, though sources differ slightly on details. Most of the victims were killed by gunfire. A significant share died from shots fired by police, National Guard soldiers or federal troops, including people who were looting, people who were suspected of sniping, and people who were bystanders. The Algiers Motel killings of three young Black men, early on 26 July, are the best known of these cases.
Several deaths became symbols of the week. Among the victims was a four-year-old girl, Tanya Blanding, who was reportedly killed when Guard troops fired on a building where they believed a sniper was operating. Other residents were shot inside their homes or while walking in the street, sometimes in circumstances that were disputed for years.
Some of those killed were looters. A number died in fires or in fire-related accidents in burning buildings, and at least one man was reportedly killed by a store owner. Others who died were white, among them a police officer and a firefighter killed on duty, as well as several civilians. The proportion of deaths caused by official force remains one of the most debated aspects of the riot, and the responsibility for individual cases was rarely established in court.
Fire and firefighters
The most visible damage was from fire. Hundreds of fires were reported during the week, and by the time the disorder ended roughly 2,000 buildings were commonly said to have been destroyed or heavily damaged. Many were small businesses along 12th Street, and along other commercial strips, such as parts of Grand River Avenue and East Warren, as well as apartment buildings and homes. Some blocks lost almost every structure.
Firefighters were in an exposed position. Crews were reportedly shot at, or believed to be, and they often could not work without police or military escorts. Hoses were cut in some incidents. At times the department was overwhelmed by the sheer number of fires, and help came from neighboring communities. Firefighter Carl Smith was among those killed on duty. Fire officials stated later that many of the fires were set deliberately, though people argued over how many, and over the role of looting in spreading flames.
Looting and property
Looting was widespread and in some cases organized. Stores of every kind were hit, including grocery stores, liquor stores, furniture shops and clothing stores. The people involved were of many ages and backgrounds, and some neighbors helped to protect buildings while others took part in the looting. Black-owned businesses were also destroyed, and in the years afterward many owners did not reopen. Owners often lacked the funds to rebuild and, for those who had insurance, found that coverage was unavailable or unaffordable.
Insurance and economic losses
Estimates of the property loss differ widely. Insured losses are often put in the tens of millions of dollars, and some estimates of total damage were higher. Numbers from the time came from different agencies with different definitions, so no single figure is reliable. What is better established is the consequence: the riot led to a sharp tightening of insurance in inner-city areas, and the federal government later set up programs to provide riot reinsurance, a response to a problem recognized in several cities in 1967.
The wider economic loss included jobs, tax revenue and the customers of the shops that never came back. The Newark riot, which cost 26 lives by the usual count, left a similar bill, and the long hot summer of 1967 produced losses in many places. The Kerner Commission later cited such costs when it argued that disorder harmed the communities it started in.
Arrests and detention
The scale of the arrests was itself a crisis. With more than 7,000 people detained, the police stations and jails were overwhelmed. People were held in improvised places, including buses, a garage and other buildings, often in hot and crowded conditions, and many were held for days. Bail was set high in some cases, which drew criticism, and many charges were later reduced or dropped.
Remembering the days afterward
Residents’ memories of the week are varied. Many describe the sight of smoke over the city and of tanks and armored vehicles on neighborhood streets, the curfew, and the sense of being trapped in a war zone. Some recall neighbors sharing food and helping each other. Others recall anger at the police or at the troops, and others fear of the crowds.
Burned lots on 12th Street, which was later renamed Rosa Parks Boulevard, stayed empty for many years, and photographs of the ruins became a fixture of the city’s image. Some people describe the riot as a rebellion against mistreatment, and others as a catastrophe that harmed the very neighborhoods that suffered most. Both views have defenders among Detroiters. Public memory has also been shaped by books, films and oral-history projects, and by anniversaries such as the 50th in 2017, when the city held exhibitions and discussion events.