Talk:1970 Memorial Park riot

untitled
I was inspired to write this article by conversations with Pamela Applin Sales, an old friend who was a participant in the aftermath of this riot along with me. Cullen 328  Let's discuss it  04:36, 6 May 2012 (UTC)

Conflict of interest disclosure
I hereby disclose that I was a participant in many of the events of over four decades ago described in this article. I am basing this article on what reliable sources of the time say about the events. Please discuss any concerns with me. Thank you.  Cullen 328  Let's discuss it  04:36, 6 May 2012 (UTC)

False information
The lede alleges that Memorial Park was not the scene of open-air drug dealing.

I'm a nearly life-long resident of Royal Oak (with occasional time away for college & military service, and 4 years when my family lived in what is now Rochester Hills, MI. The fact of the matter is that Memorial Park is STILL TO THIS DAY known as a place where there was an unconscionable amount of drug dealing going on in the late 1960's, and happening within a few yards of the city's premier baseball facilities(*) which have always been in heavy use during the spring and summer, and used by all leagues down to the 7~9 year old T-ball leagues.  And then the outfield of the large diamond is also used for flag-football during the fall.  There is a small wooded dell IMMEDIATELY due east of the baseball fields, which used to be the headwaters of one of the branches of Red Run, a local tributary to the Clinton River.  This area was strewn with broken bottles and needles such that most parents wouldn't allow children to go there, out of fear for both safety (risk of wounds by sharp glass or needles) and just being influenced by strung-out hippies.

Any sources saying that it's untrue that there was open air drug dealing going on at Memorial Park are absolutely, positively NOT reliable sources.

As for the claim that there was a lack of recreation facilities. That also is a damned lie.

Royal Oak had at that time, within its 4 square miles, over 50 public parks and school yards with baseball diamonds (36 being public parks, plus 2 high schools (Dondero, and Kimball), 4 junior high schools (Clara Barton, Jane Addams, Helen Keller, and Winston Churchill), and about 2 dozen elementary schools). In addition, the grounds of the two high schools have to this day over a half-dozen tennis courts each. And there were (and are) many more tennis courts in parks around the city. Many of the tennis courts are converted into ice skating/hockey rinks during the winter (and have been for long before 1970), and groomed as such by the city's Parks & Recreation division. There were 6 more football fields (the 2 high schools and the 4 junior high schools). There was and still is a year round indoor ice-skating facility with various times for open skating and open hockey practice (outside of the generally early morning hockey team practice and league play times). Both high schools also had even at that time large swimming pools (for competitive swimming team meets) AND 1 and 3 meter diving boards, and Kimball also already had a pair of 10 meter diving boards (The roof of the pool at Dondero isn't high enough to install a 10-meter diving board)

On top of that, the city features several hobby shops, the most notable in 1970 being a place called "Tiny Tim's", less than a mile down Woodward Avenue from Memorial Park, which featured 3 1:24 scale slot-car race tracks (each with 6 to 8 lanes), over a dozen coin-op games of various types, as well as the usual hobby stuff (model railroad stuff, HO slot car supplies, plastic model kits, flyable airplane kits (both prefab plastic and balsa-wood build it yourself kits, 0.049 cubic-inch liquid-fuel engines, and even radio control equipment), model rocketry, and other assorted hobby stuff.

On top of this there was (and is) a local Boy's Club and a Girl's Club, a YMCA, a YWCA, and youth organizations at nearly every one of a couple dozen churches within the city.

All of this in an area of 4 square miles with a population of around 75,000.

This doesn't even count other facilities within a half mile of the borders of Royal Oak with other adjoining cities.

Any complaint by high school kids and young adults that there weren't enough recreation facilities in the city was just making an excuse for delinquent behavior and/or being a druggie.

In the parlance of EncyclopediaDramatica: "This page is complete shit. You can help by completely rewriting it."

(*) lights for night games, actual "dugouts" for the team benches, and a PA system for each of the 3 diamonds -- 2 60-foot basepath Little League diamonds and 90-foot basepath full-size diamond, with outfield fences at distances typical of MLB stadiums; the left field foul line being 360 feet, compared to Tiger Stadium which had a 300 foot fence on the left field foul line), which have always been in heavy use during the spring and summer, and used by all leagues down to the 7~9 year old T-ball leagues. And then the outfield of the large diamond is also used for flag-football during the fall.

2601:40A:8100:6AB0:0:0:0:CB34 (talk) 04:41, 18 July 2023 (UTC)
 * The IP is correct that there was open drug dealing at Memorial Park in 1970. No reliable sources contest that assertion. I have removed the unreferenced content that whitewashes the facts. Cullen328 (talk) 02:01, 7 August 2023 (UTC)