In Michael Moore's film Roger and Me GM's plan was to close eleven factories in the United States and open eleven in Mexico, and pay the workers lower wages. Then they were going to use the money they saved by moving to Mexico to buy out other companies mostly high tech firms. Then GM also told the union that they were broke so the workers would take a pay cut, then GM took that money and opened up more overseas factories.
This plan had a devastating effect on the city of Flint, Michigan. In Flint 30,000 jobs were eliminated. People began leaving the city in record numbers, leaving behind abandoned buildings which caused the rat population to outnumber the human population. Also garbage collection got pushed back to once of month because the city did not have the tax money to continue regular garbage collection. Also many people in Flint were being evicted from their homes because they could not afford to pay their rent. In addition Flint had the highest violent crime rate in the nation and became the unemployment capital of the United States.
To deal with the effect GM's plan had on them the people of Flint developed several coping strategies. Some people had mental breakdowns, some began to sell Amway products, and one woman even sold rabbits and rabbit meat. Some people coped by finding new jobs some ex auto workers worked at Taco Bell while some were trained to work as prison guards. Many people also turned to the Starlight Theater for some entertainment. The local government also tried to help the city bringing in tv evangelist Robert Schueller and the they also tried to turn the city in to a tourist attraction. .
The city built new hotels and several other tourist attractions. Many of these coping strategies were ineffective. Many of those who were hired by Taco Bell were fired because they could not handle the pace. Also the attempt to turn the city into a tourist attraction failed, and the hotels and other attractions eventually closed.