Gary is heart, soul, rhythm and blues. Tough, proud, resilient.

Councilwoman Lori Latham's family has been in Gary since the 1920s, drawn here like so many by the mill. Ask her what being from Gary means, and she doesn't blink: "An easy way for people to know I'm Black, tough, proud, and resilient." To her, that's inseparable from the city's own history: "The birthplace of Black political empowerment."

That same pride is exactly why she won't let U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel off easy: "Having to ask and beg for cleaner air says a lot more about them than us. It's disheartening that they could be comfortable, taking away from people who have given so much to them, their whole lives."

She pictures a different Gary in the future with people safe, thriving, and living longer. “A city where we don’t have to leave to succeed. Living in Gary would be the flex."

Photos: Tyrell Anderson / Decay Devils