HAMTRAMCK, Mich. — On Saturday evening in the fowling area of Hamtramck, the surrounding streets were jam-packed with cars, bumper-to-bumper, bringing life to a neighborhood that is otherwise desolated throughout the week. Hamtramck, with its Polish base and Middle Eastern influx, has been the subject of national stories. It sits roughly five miles outside the heart of downtown Detroit.



In this particular area, there’s an off-white, single-story shack that acts as a home. A worn, brown-metal fence separates a howling dog from the pothole-filled avenue. Then there’s a field. Another home. Then another field. The cycle continues. The neighborhood surrounds a driving school for semi-trucks. Elongated metal panels and brick walls keep trespassers out. The sounds of the slamming car doors are the white noise in an otherwise subdued area.



But on this day, and close to a dozen-or-so more throughout the spring and summer months, Hamtramck...