--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942…" description: "\"“In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942 Life magazine article, Louis Martin and Ted Poston reported that 98.7 percent of all dwelling units in Detroi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg" --- # In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942 Life magazine… ![“In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942 Life magazine article, Louis Martin and Ted Poston reported that 98.7 percent of all dwelling units in Detroit had been occupied as of April, a figure well past the 85 percent “danger mark.” 29 Making matters worse, many of these residences were of poor…” quote by Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg) > ““In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942 Life magazine article, Louis Martin and Ted Poston reported that 98.7 percent of all dwelling units in Detroit had been occupied as of April, a figure well past the 85 percent “danger mark.” 29 Making matters worse, many of these residences were of poor quality. In 1938 over 58,000 dwellings were categorized as substandard, and two years later this number was nearly 70,000.30 “Detroit’s incredible housing mess,” Martin and Poston warned, was the city’s “sorest problem.” 31”” [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights Detroit’s severe housing crisis in the early 1940s, with most homes occupied but many substandard, making housing the city’s biggest problem. **In simple terms:** Detroit faced massive, low‑quality housing shortages. Key Takeaway Address urban housing decay urgently. Themes housing urban decay public health policy history Mood concerned urgent reflective Type historical analytical critical When to use this quote - city planning - public health officials - historical researchers - community activists Key Concepts substandard housing occupancy rates urban planning government response Questions to Reflect On - What policies could have prevented the housing decline? - How does poor housing affect community health? A Different Perspective Improving housing alone won’t solve deeper socioeconomic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [000 Dwellings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/000-dwellings-1891715/) [Detroit Occupied](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detroit-occupied-1891714/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Percent Dwelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent-dwelling-1891718/) [Poor quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor-quality/) [Two years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two-years/) [Units Detroit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/units-detroit-1891717/) [Worse Residences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worse-residences-1891716/) ## Related quotes > [“There is however, one reason why the arts so rarely accept a mission that IS within the power of the Church to alter. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aidan-nichols-o-p/there-is-however-one-reason-why-the-arts-so-rarely-accept-a-mission/) [Aidan Nichols O.P](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aidan-nichols-o-p/) > [Poor quality of representatives... is not a purely Australian phenomenon - it's a worldwide phenomenon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/poor-quality-of-representatives-is-not-a-purely-australian-phenomenon/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [Chinese brands will face many obstacles when marketing to Western consumers. Beyond the associations with poor quality and unsound environmental practices, they generally do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmalya-kumar/chinese-brands-will-face-many-obstacles-when-marketing-to-western/) [Nirmalya Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmalya-kumar/) > [The bitterness of poor quality is remembered long after the sweetness of low price has faded from memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldo-gucci/the-bitterness-of-poor-quality-is-remembered-long-after-the-sweetness/) [Aldo Gucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldo-gucci/) > [The American media produce a product of very poor quality. Its information is not reliable, it has too much chrome and glitz, its doors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crichton/the-american-media-produce-a-product-of-very-poor-quality-its/) [Michael Crichton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crichton/) > [Poor quality is remembered long after low prices are forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rolls/poor-quality-is-remembered-long-after-low-prices-are-forgotten/) [Charles Rolls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rolls/) > [To me the early childhood story is an ecumenical one. You take poverty seriously. You take seriously maternal depression. You take seriously children under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-manne/to-me-the-early-childhood-story-is-an-ecumenical-one-you-take-poverty/) [Robert Manne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-manne/) > [For a detective or street police, the only real satisfaction is the work itself; when a cop spends more and more time getting aggravated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-simon/for-a-detective-or-street-police-the-only-real-satisfaction-is-the/) [David Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-simon/) > [If you are building a thirty-story building and you use worm-eaten wood for the frame, inferior structural supports, and other fourth-rate, low-grade materials, what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-diamond/if-you-are-building-a-thirty-story-building-and-you-use-worm-eaten/) [Harvey Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-diamond/) > [“People aren't reading self-published authors because people can't even get past the poor quality of the samples. They aren't reading books they don't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-hilton/people-aren-t-reading-self-published-authors-because-people-can-t/) [Linda Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-hilton/) > [“To say it's the poor quality of the paint under socialism is correct, but it is not enough. To say it's soft-coal exploitation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavenka-drakuli/to-say-it-s-the-poor-quality-of-the-paint-under-socialism-is-correct/) [Slavenka Drakulić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavenka-drakuli/) > [The problem now is (that) the foods of poor quality are the ones coming in from home from teachers and staff, used for birthday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-murray/the-problem-now-is-that-the-foods-of-poor-quality-are-the-ones-coming/) [Robert E. Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-murray/) > [Mercosur is a customs union of poor quality that creates trade distortions and hurts its members.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javier-milei/mercosur-is-a-customs-union-of-poor-quality-that-creates-trade/) [Javier Milei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javier-milei/) > [Every university has its problems. The issues range from lack of amenities, plagiarism, poor quality research, sexual harassment, faculty moonlighting, and faulty and biased…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjaya-baru/every-university-has-its-problems-the-issues-range-from-lack-of/) [Sanjaya Baru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjaya-baru/) > [The food industry profits from providing poor quality foods with poor nutritional value that people eat a lot of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-hyman/the-food-industry-profits-from-providing-poor-quality-foods-with-poor/) [Mark Hyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-hyman/) ## More by Stephen M. Ward > [“Grace deeply identified with Mead’s view that ideas evolve historically. “Unlike the average American teacher of philosophy of his day,” she wrote, Mead “urged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/grace-deeply-identified-with-mead-s-view-that-ideas-evolve/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Initially, she responded by turning inward, pondering questions about the meaning of life and her place in the world. This led her to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/initially-she-responded-by-turning-inward-pondering-questions-about/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Jimmy and Grace returned to Detroit in late August, in time to participate in the final work to relaunch Correspondence. On September 21–22 the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/jimmy-and-grace-returned-to-detroit-in-late-august-in-time-to/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Thirteen million Negroes in America have never known three of the “Four Freedoms” which America is supposedly spreading to the rest of the world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/thirteen-million-negroes-in-america-have-never-known-three-of-the/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“What are you complaining about? If they don’t want you over here, why don’t you go over on Hastings Street and get yourself something?”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/what-are-you-complaining-about-if-they-don-t-want-you-over-here-why/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Jimmy likely wrote all three editorials, and one, titled “Who Is for Law and Order?” carried his byline. He argued that the spectacle, seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/jimmy-likely-wrote-all-three-editorials-and-one-titled-who-is-for-law/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“She told him the origins of the “buck dance,” when “white people would come up and say ‘N\_\_\_\_r, dance’, and then start shooting around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/she-told-him-the-origins-of-the-buck-dance-when-white-people-would/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“As a Chinese American growing up in a largely white world during the 1920s and 1930s, a sense of social marginalization marked her formative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/as-a-chinese-american-growing-up-in-a-largely-white-world-during-the/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Grace Lee Boggs was both product and producer of an improbable history. “I grew up in New York as a first generation Chinese American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/grace-lee-boggs-was-both-product-and-producer-of-an-improbable/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“As an Asian American woman within black radical circles, Grace surely was anomalous, but this raised no significant concerns or barriers to her participation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/as-an-asian-american-woman-within-black-radical-circles-grace-surely/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Under Weiss’s direction, Grace began to delve deeply into writings and ideas that would shape the rest of her life. To begin with, Weiss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/under-weiss-s-direction-grace-began-to-delve-deeply-into-writings-and/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“They listened to a series of speeches by civil rights luminaries, capped off by a rousing, crowd-pleasing address by Martin Luther King. While the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/they-listened-to-a-series-of-speeches-by-civil-rights-luminaries/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“public statements condemning segregation, sharply worded telegrams to Washington, and meetings with White House officials—were demonstrably ineffectual. New and more dramatic measures were in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/public-statements-condemning-segregation-sharply-worded-telegrams-to/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“Grace regarded her participation in the March on Washington Movement (MOWM) in Chicago as “the turning point in my life” because, as she told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/grace-regarded-her-participation-in-the-march-on-washington-movement/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) > [“BY MOST MEASURES, James and Grace Lee Boggs made an unlikely pair. Born in 1915 in Providence, Rhode Island, to Chinese immigrants, Grace Chin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/by-most-measures-james-and-grace-lee-boggs-made-an-unlikely-pair-born/) [Stephen M. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) [Explore all 21 Stephen M. Ward quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) [Deanna L. Lawlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deanna-l-lawlis/) > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942 Life magazine article, Louis Martin and Ted Poston reported that 98.7 percent of all dwelling units in Detroit had been occupied as of April, a figure well past the 85 percent “danger mark.” 29 Making matters worse, many of these residences were of poor quality. In 1938 over 58,000 dwellings were categorized as substandard, and two years later this number was nearly 70,000.30 “Detroit’s incredible housing mess,” Martin and Poston warned, was the city’s “sorest problem.” 31”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen M. Ward" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-life-magazine-article-louis/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-life-magazine-article-louis/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8e/stephen-m-ward-26459_life_in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-li_175700.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August 1942 Life magazine article, Louis Martin and Ted Poston reported that…” — Stephen M. Ward", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Stephen M. Ward", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-m-ward/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“In “Detroit Is Dynamite,” an August...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-life-magazine-article-louis/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-m-ward/in-detroit-is-dynamite-an-august-1942-life-magazine-article-louis/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```