Detroit’s population is growing for the first time in nearly seven decades, marking a significant turning point for the city’s future and the residents who have long demanded investment that matches their resilience.
New data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows Detroit’s population rose to 645,705 residents as of July 2024, an increase of 6,971 people from the previous year. The revision moves Detroit up to the 26th-largest city in the country, surpassing Portland, Oregon. It marks the second consecutive year of population growth—an outcome that has eluded the city since the 1950s.
The federal agency also corrected its 2023 count, raising Detroit’s total from 633,218 to 638,914 after years of local pushback over flawed counting methods. Those changes come on the heels of a lawsuit from Mayor Mike Duggan and the City of Detroit, which argued that the Bureau’s formula underestimated housing unit data and disproportionately harmed Black-majority cities.
Duggan, who previously challenged the Census for undercounting thousands of housing units, linked the revised estimates to progress in Detroit’s neighborhoods. “This is driven by people moving into the neighborhoods,” he said during a press conference Thursday. “Now the neighborhoods aren’t being forgotten by the Census Bureau.”
Census data is calculated using a basic formula—housing units multiplied by the average number of people per household. For Detroit, the average is just over two. The lawsuit filed by the city argued that between 2021 and 2022, at least 11,449 housing units were missed. That oversight may have left nearly 30,000 residents uncounted. The cost of those missed numbers is not just symbolic. It carries a real impact: hundreds of millions of dollars in potential lost federal funding.
In 2020, the Census Bureau acknowledged its methodology undercounted minority cities. The revised estimates now appear to confirm the validity of Detroit’s claims.
The population increase aligns with the Duggan administration’s longtime benchmark for success. From his first campaign forward, Duggan said his time in office should be judged by one question—whether he could stop and reverse population loss. That standard is now being measured with federal data and decades of context.
Detroit’s population collapse followed the mass exit of white families after World War II. Between 1947 and 1963, the region saw 25 new automotive plants open. Not one was located within the city. Instead, General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler chose the suburbs, accelerating disinvestment and stripping the Black workforce of opportunities. More than 143,000 jobs disappeared, taking with them the stability that once defined Detroit’s working class.
As white residents moved out and industry followed, Black Detroiters were locked out of suburban development. Racist housing covenants, predatory lending, and redlining practices corralled Black families into limited sections of the city. Many were pushed into neighborhoods like Black Bottom and Paradise Valley, which were later destroyed through government-led urban renewal projects.
By 1960, unemployment among Black Detroiters reached 18.2%. Among Black youth aged 18 to 24, it surged to 30%. At the same time, white unemployment in the region hovered at just 5.8%.
Sixty years later, the disparity remains. In 2022, the University of Michigan reported an 18% unemployment rate for Black Detroiters, compared to just 8% for white residents.
Those numbers are more than historic footnotes. They form the backdrop for why population growth now matters—because federal resources are still tied to population size. A growth trend, if sustained, opens the door to stronger infrastructure, expanded job programs, and restored public services in communities that have been overlooked for generations. Growth, if sustained, could lead to larger federal appropriations. More dollars for schools. Expanded access to transit. Greater opportunities for economic development that centers Detroit’s most impacted communities. It’s not enough to celebrate growth without addressing how those benefits will be distributed.
Who gets to stay in Detroit as investment returns? Who gets to build wealth? Who will control the direction of redevelopment? These are the questions that matter most to the people who never left. To the families who held on through bankruptcy, water shutoffs, school closures, and land grabs. To the everyday Detroiters who raised generations while waiting for the city to once again work for them.
The stakes of the data correction extend beyond headline numbers. They determine how Detroit can respond to poverty, housing insecurity, and public transit needs. For a city that is nearly 78% Black, federal miscounts do not happen in a vacuum. They reinforce structural gaps already present in every sector of daily life.
The Census correction and back-to-back years of growth may mark a shift in perception nationally, but Detroiters on the ground have long demanded to be counted. Residents and grassroots leaders have spent years challenging systems that treat their presence as an afterthought. The growth confirms what many in the community already knew—people are staying, returning, and investing in the neighborhoods that have always held the city together.
Still, growth must be paired with equity. The people fueling Detroit’s resurgence are often the same ones who experienced the worst of its decline. A changing count must lead to policy that centers their needs—not just developer interests or commercial projects disconnected from the city’s roots.
Duggan’s administration credits its blight removal strategy for opening more housing opportunities, but advocates continue to raise questions about how revitalization is defined. Who benefits from demolition? What protections exist for longtime residents as redevelopment accelerates?
Population growth by itself doesn’t solve Detroit’s disparities. But it shifts the ground for what is possible when every resident is accounted for, when neighborhoods gain visibility, and when the federal government acknowledges past missteps.
The national comparison reveals how unusual Detroit’s gains are. While cities like New York, San Antonio, Houston, Fort Worth, and Charlotte led in raw growth, others—Philadelphia, New Orleans, and Memphis—posted population declines. Detroit’s ability to reverse a generational trend while many urban areas are shrinking puts it in a position to shape new narratives about legacy, recovery, and representation.
The population increase signals that more residents are choosing to live and remain in the city. That decision carries weight. It underscores the importance of policy decisions that protect affordable housing, support small businesses, and fund schools—not just for economic growth, but for dignity.
Detroit’s road back cannot be paved solely by mayors or agencies. It moves forward through residents who refused to leave, who organized despite austerity, and who continue to demand a city that works for all. Growth must affirm their presence—not erase their history.
The numbers are official. The count has changed. But the work of rebuilding trust, equity, and opportunity continues—on the same blocks where it all began.
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