This year’s U.S. Pavilion at the prestigious Venice Architecture Biennale aims to celebrate “the power of architecture” through a showcase of “speculative architectural projects designed for specific sites in Detroit,” its curators say. But wait—what do Detroit residents want? This article, by Ned Cramer, discusses the critical stance taken by Detroit Resists, a group of activists, artists, architects, and community members who see the U.S. Pavilion project as yet another mobilization of “the power of architecture” for the interests of an elite few. Cramer states, “It shouldn’t come as a surprise when the historically disadvantaged perceive architecture as a symbol of inequality and a manifestation of unsympathetic, top-down authority.”

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