Fwd: RWP #21 - Saturday, March 21st!
Valerie Blakely
From: ridewithpurpose <ridewit...@proton.me>
Date: Tue, Mar 10, 2026 at 1:06 PM
Subject: RWP #21 - Saturday, March 21st!
To:
Hey riders, we can’t wait to hit the streets with you this spring! 🐝 Read on for details about our next ride.🚲
We’re gearing up for our first ride of the year on Saturday, March 21st, the day before World Water Day. 💦 Our dear friend, Jo Coutts, an artistic cartographer and water protector, will be leading us on a journey along buried waterways, in search of “blue lines”. These blue lines were spray painted on sidewalks near residences and businesses who were slated to have their water shut off by the city. ❌ We’ll tally blue lines, block-by-block, to create an artistic rendering of shutoffs in juxtaposition to buried waterways, seeking to visually represent the absurdity of limiting water access — that Detroiters could be cut off from the water they need to survive while water once abundantly flowed near their homes. 🫗 The lines we’ll encounter were known by many as “blue lines of shame” — identifiers that stigmatized residents who struggled to afford high water bills. We seek to reverse that narrative by showing that water access affects entire communities, not just individuals and families. 🏘️ Having your water shut off is no moral failing, it is a consequence of a system that values money over people. For our ride this month, we’ll explore this issue and advocate for water as a human right. 🚰
Date: Saturday, March 21st
Time: 2pm to 4pm
Location: O’Shea Playground, 15810 Capitol St, Detroit, MI 48227
Route: ~10 miles round-trip
Flyer below. Please reply to this email if you need to borrow a bike!
If you’d like to submit your location for the map, please email ridewit...@proton.me and send us your nearest cross streets. We’re recording neighborhood shutoffs in relation to buried waterways, starting with the northwest side of the city. The map will be published on World Water Day (Sunday, March 22nd).
After our ride, be sure to check out Water for Everybody, an event hosted by We the People of Detroit (a grassroots organization fighting for water affordability in the city) featuring art and performances telling the story of water in Detroit. Event details will be shared closer to the date. 🎨
On World Water Day, Sunday, March 22nd, our friends at the People's Water Board Coalition (a coalition that advocates for clean, affordable water) are hosting an event at General Baker Institute (15798 Livernois, Detroit, MI 48238) from 4 to 6pm. The event will feature speakers, an open mic, and memorial — all connecting water rights and gender, exploring the disproportionate impacts of water shutoffs on women. 👩🏽 Please join us there and get a sneak preview of our map.
Then on Monday, March 23rd, Jo will be presenting on her Buried Waterways project at the Southfield Public Library (26300 Evergreen Rd, Southfield, MI 48076) from 6 to 8:30pm. Attend to learn more about her work recentering land perspectives around living beings rather than streets. 🗺️
Love,
LB & Andy
“To love. To be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never get used to the unspeakable violence and the vulgar disparity of life around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty in its lair. To never simplify what is complicated or complicate what is simple. To respect strength, never power. Above all, to watch. To try and understand. To never look away. And never, never to forget.”
― Arundhati Roy