Youth-run Collectives
In 2012 a small group of youth in Southwest Detroit began gathering around their mutual interest in technology and a desire to learn media skills. They had four netbooks, slow internet and a few skill share courses. They began teaching themselves coding and eventually several professional mentors came to the table to start teaching graphic design and provide some structure. The youth named themselves Radical Productions. This became the first youth run collective.
Today, Radical Productions has 13 members, Stitching up Detroit has 18 members and we are building out a network of adult cooperatives as well. As Detroit’s downtown becomes more and more full of wealthy, highly-skilled people, we believe that cooperative wealth building, skill training, and ownership in the neighborhoods become increasingly important.