Deforce: to take away property from its rightful owner by force.
Andrew Rodney ’05 chose to use “Deforce” as the title of his documentary, which shows the disintegration of Detroit, Mich., and the hardships faced by those living in the inner cities.
“I wanted something that contained Detroit but had a deeper meaning,” Rodney said. “The rightful owners of property in Detroit have had it taken away from them by a variety of sources.”
Rodney majored in accounting at Hillsdale but also studied politics, history, financial analysis, and economics. After graduating, he moved to New York and began producing film. After a few years, however, he moved back to his home: Detroit.
With his experience in film-making and his passion for the recovery of Detroit, Rodney decided to make a short film to draw attention to the issues in the city.
“One night it struck me that it was a story that needs to be told,” he said.
While Rodney did not direct the film, he wrote the initial script, conducted interviews, managed the finances, and researched heavily.
The crew of “Deforce” tried to choose Detroit residents who had high character. Rodney’s favorite interview is of Lupe Birdman, who was a University of Michigan anthropology student. He went to the inner city and lived with juvenile students, documenting their lives.
“Deforce” also highlights Detroit’s drug war violence. Rodney documented that 50 to 70 percent of the violence has some relation to drugs.
“Drugs are the financial resources of the underground economy. It fuels the violence,” Rodney said.
Through research, Rodney also discovered that since 1969 there have been more than 21,000 murders in Detroit.
“It’s probably double the city of Hillsdale wiped off the map,” he said.
Rodney does not seek to gain recognition from the film or advance his career. Instead, he seeks to raise awareness about Detroit and break stereotypes about people in the city.
“We’re are just a voice in the wilderness trying to get more people to realize what is not being talked about and how bad it is,” Rodney said. “I hope that more people see it and more actions will be taken.”
Rodney sees his Hillsdale roots become apparent when he examines the justice system. He attributes the violence and destruction in Detroit to a broken system, rather than just socioeconomic conditions.
“Going to Hillsdale, one thing that upsets me is that you hear a lot about economic oppression and government intervention and how it’s so problematic. You hear a lot of anger and fury about how bad it is,” Rodney said. “But you don’t see conservatives interacting in the places that are the worst.”
Gary Wolfram, professor of economics, helped Rodney after the production process. Rodney was a family friend through the Mackinaw Center for Public Policy, as well as Wolfram’s student in Economics 105.
Rodney sent Wolfram “Deforce” to show to both students and faculty at Hillsdale.
“I said, ‘Wow this is really good. Do you mind if I send it out?’” Wolfram said.
After receiving the video, Wolfram gave it to many people in Detroit who he believed had influence over public policy, including Dennis Muchmore, Rick Snyder’s Chief of Staff, and Howard Morris, a member of the Michigan Strategic Fund Board.
Wolfram hopes that spreading the video will cause a discussion of Detroit’s issues.
“What do they say? A picture’s worth a thousand words,” he said. “You hear there are 100,000 abandoned homes. But if you watch the video and you see two or three blocks of abandoned homes, it has a greater impact.”
eepperson@hillsdale.edu
