Completed in 1964, the freeway was built through a historic district known as Black Bottom, which was home to a community of black-owned businesses that had become run down by the 1950s and 1960s - attracting lower-income residents who lived in overcrowded housing units.
Racial justice advocates say the freeway was constructed to facilitate 'white flight' and deprive black communities of housing and commercial opportunities, as more than 100,000 black residents were displaced by a barrier between downtown Detroit and communities to the east.
That said, some have warned that Michigan's plan to build a six-lane city boulevard risks replacing one busy roadway with another - while many longtime black residents worry they may be priced out of the city as the improvements will lead to gentrification.