Detroit Bankruptcy 2013: Latinos Hope Bankruptcy Paves Road to Recovery

Detroit is facing its largest municipal bankruptcy in American history. On Thursday, it became the largest city in the U.S to ever file for bankruptcy. But to some Latinos this may be a "path to recovery," according to NBC Latino.

The CEO of JA Quality Assurance, Julio Rodriguez, believes that bankruptcy could mean stopping the city's decline and beginning the long road to recovery, according to the article. "It's like when you go through personal bankruptcy. You start out with clean slate. But the first things you've got to do is take that extra money and put it into the police and the fire departments," Rodriguez told NBC Latino.

Mexican restaurant El Rancho, in the heart of Detroit, felt the impact the city's financial crisis when it went from having 2 million people to 750,000. To Jeannette Avila, the restaurant's Director of Business Operations, the loyal customers are keeping El Rancho afloat. "We are very grateful for them. Until the city makes it more attractive for people to come here, to hang out after sporting events, we won't get that outside traffic," Avila told NBC Latino.

The filing of bankruptcy could not only mean layoffs of government employees and scaling back basic services, but also selling off some of the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) masterpieces, like that of famous Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. According to NBC Latino, this is move Detroit's emergency manager Kevyn Orr is trying to avoid, although in May he requested an inventory of the DIA's art collection, which started rumors that some of the works could be sold.

Some of the city's assets could be put up for sale in order to help make up Detroit's roughly $18 billion in liabilities, reported The Wall Street Journal. "Right now we are looking at the reality of the negotiation with our creditors. We aren't addressing those issues right now," Orr told CNBC.

According to The Economist, the museum's collection was appraised at $1 billion in 2004. It started in 1885 and includes the acclaimed mural painted by Rivera, a tribute to Detroit's manufacturing base; Vincent van Gogh's "Self Portrait" (worth $60 million) and August Rodin's famous "The Thinker."

Although the city's culture may be in danger, Latinos in Detroit hope the cuts in spending will help the city get back on its feet. Avila told NBC Latino that something had to be done in the struggling city. "Anytime you're talking about bankruptcy you have to see where they are making those cuts. But without any more specifics I guess we just have to wait and see," Avila said.