Survey Finds Black, White Metro Detroiters Feel Far Apart on Access to the Arts

A new national survey by the Knight Foundation and the Urban Institute focused on 11,000 people in 26 different cities. Here’s why the city of Detroit stood out.

A new report shows that white and Black metro Detroiters feel far apart when it comes to their ability to access arts and cultural institutions in their communities.

The report by the Knight Foundation and conducted by the Urban Institute is called “Community Ties.” The survey included more than 11,000 Americans in 26 cities including Detroit. 

Listen: Knight Foundation’s Priya Sircar and Evette Alexander break down the data from their latest report.


Its primary focus was on what attaches residents to the places they call home and how their sentiment about an area could potentially affect their behavior.

In Detroit, it found that while about 79% of white metro Detroit residents felt like they had “very easy access” to cultural programming and arts activities, 65% of nonwhite residents reported the same feelings about access to the arts.

According to the study, the racial disparity in Detroit measured higher than the national average.

In addition to arts accessibility, the study also focused on access to recreational and safe spaces in their community

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Author

  • Ryan Patrick Hooper
    Ryan Patrick Hooper is the award-winning host and producer of CultureShift on 101.9 WDET-FM Detroit’s NPR station. Hooper has covered stories for the New York Times, NPR, Detroit Free Press, Hour Detroit, SPIN and Paste magazine.