Decked out smartly in suits and scarves, dozens of people greeted and hugged one another as they waited for two financial titans to speak at an event called Detroit Youth Rising. Steaming buffets of short-rib sliders and piles of rice, vegetables, and cookies lined the perimeter of the venue, an industrial-chic loft. In one corner, a group of children in matching blue outfits swayed as they belted out a Jay-Z and Alicia Keys hit originally about New York: “Now you’re in Dee-trooiiitt!”

In the shiny downtown of the Motor City,...