Support Street Fighting Man

There's a lot of stories about Detroit in the news today. Mostly bad, some good. They often talk about the broad implications of certain policies expected to go into effect, or policies that have damaged the city. Frequently, reporters and journalists discuss the decreasing population and the crime that is rampant in the city.

There are other stories that come from the suburbs, where non-Detroiters (like myself) talk about how they can renovate the city, make the public transportation better, revive the economy of Detroit. Without paying for city taxes, I'm sure...

But rarely do I see a story like the one that Andrew James is trying to tell with his next documentary project, Street Fighting Man. It's a personal tale of a group of citizens that decide to take the city's problems in their own hands. They are Detroiters. They are making their city a better place.

These are the kind of stories that people need to see, and as a suburbanite that wants to try to do what's best to help the city, I believe that one of the important things that people can do is help support filmmakers like James show what happens in Detroit today on the personal level. More and more in Documentary film, there is a sense that "personal is political." While this might not be Andrew James intent, so many many issues can and most likely will be at play in Street Fighting Man, and the delicacy with which James handles the subjects (some footage is shown at the kickstarter site as incentive to back the film) is in many ways beautiful. It's tragic, but beautiful nonetheless.

This is why I've decided to pledge $30 to back Andrew James' Street Fighting Man. As a Michigander, I want to see this film be made. I ask you to please check out the preview of the film and see if you too can support the film.