Recently, Detroit has been receiving much of the media attention. Detroit is another topic, for later. I’m here to talk about Youngstown, Ohio.

This city was once one of the fastest growing cities. Steel mills were proliferating all over. The car industry was booming, the city was booming, people were moving in, and everything was great. Now the town is called the “rust belt,” a completely different city.

It feels like a war zone. The streets are empty, the buildings are decaying, and stores are being abandoned. According to DaMareo Cooper, Community Organizer, The Mahoning Valley Organizing Collaborative:

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“I am a community organizer in Youngstown Ohio, one of the hardest hit post-industrial cities in the United States.  We currently have 4500+ vacant structures in a city that has about 70,000 people. We are loosing about 1,000 people every year due to the lack of jobs and training.  Our situation is dire as suburbs have sprouted up all around the city in a classic urban sprawl fashion.

In the past, Youngstown had reached a population of about 170,000, but since a major crash in the steel industry, the economy and population has steadly declined.  But there are attempts to save the city in progress. Right now, our mayor has presented something called the “2010 plan” which aims to “right size” the city in order to save on administrative and service cost.  The Mahoning Valley Organizing Collaborative (the organizing group that I work for) is working with the citizens of Youngstown to try and improve the quality of life for Youngstown citizens.”

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In the midst of bad news, fueled by the media, there are positive people and community programs. This is the best opportunity for the city to get back what they lost. Hope is not lost. Change is just around the corner.