DETROIT — “We needed something catchy, like ‘What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas,’ or ‘Virginia is for Lovers,” said Detroit Mayor David Bing, “but considering that we just became the first major American metropolitan area to file for bankruptcy, we figured we should leverage the situation.”
Detroit’s new slogan, “Relatably Broke,” hopes to encourage Americans, who have a cumulative credit card debt of $807.5 billion, to come to a place that also manages its finances with shocking incompetence.
“We’re broke, you’re broke,” said Bing, “so come to a place where we can wallow in pity together, as opposed to a place like New York, what with so many well-to-do finance types judging you all the time. Here, no one knows how to handle money.”
The city has fallen on tough times, going from a population peak of close to two million in the 1950’s to a 2013 population of 714,000. It hopes that by highlighting its understanding of economic dire straits, tourists will overlook the city’s skyrocketing crime rate and general dereliction.
Bing also said that, unlike other cities that have gone broke, such as Stockton, CA or Jefferson County, AL, Detroit is a real city.
“We have four major sports teams, some museums, and I think we might even still make cars,” Bing said. “You should come. Why be broke at home when you can be broke in the broke capital of the world?”
