In March 1932, during the depths of the Depression, thousands of women and men, young and old, crossed the bridge in the cold to deliver fourteen demands to the Rouge plant up the road. Over a bitter mile, dozens were shot and five people lost their lives: Joe Bussell, Joe Deblasio, Coleman Leny, Curtis Williams, and Joe York. Nine years later, the Rouge was unionized and wages began to rise, helping Detroiters gain a better life. In October 1969, the oily water of the Rouge River caught fire, making clear that something had to change. People marched to demand a cleaner environment and to reject pollution as the cost of prosperity. Because of those movements and demands, people gained a better life through cleaner air and water, a decent wage, a safe workplace, community, equity, justice, and recovery.