Race, Poverty, and American Cities [Paperback]

John Charles Boger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 14, 1996

Precise connections between race, poverty, and the condition of America's cities are drawn in this collection of seventeen essays. Policymakers and scholars from a variety of disciplines analyze the plight of the urban poor since the riots of the 1960s and the resulting 1968 Kerner Commission Report on the status of African Americans. In essays addressing health care, education, welfare, and housing policies, the contributors reassess the findings of the report in light of developments over the last thirty years, including the Los Angeles riots of 1992. Some argue that the long-standing obstacles faced by the urban poor cannot be removed without revitalizing inner-city neighborhoods; others emphasize strategies to break down racial and economic isolation and promote residential desegregation throughout metropolitan areas.

Guided by a historical perspective, the contributors propose a new combination of economic and social policies to transform cities while at the same time improving opportunities and outcomes for inner-city residents. This approach highlights the close links between progress for racial minorities and the overall health of cities and the nation as a whole.

The volume, which began as a special issue of the North Carolina Law Review, has been significantly revised and expanded for publication as a book.

The contributors are John Charles Boger, Alison Brett, John O. Calmore, Peter Dreier, Susan F. Fainstein, Walter C. Farrell Jr., Nancy Fishman, George C. Galster, Chester Hartman, James H. Johnson Jr., Ann Markusen, Patricia Meaden, James E. Rosenbaum, Peter W. Salsich Jr., Michael A. Stegman, David Stoesz, Charles Sumner Stone Jr., William L. Taylor, Sidney D. Watson, and Judith Welch Wegner.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Boger and Wegner are associate dean and dean of the law school, respectively, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The papers are from the 1993 symposium on "Race, Poverty, and the American City: The Kerner Commission Report in Retrospect," sponsored by the UNC Department of City and Regional Planning and the Charles M. and Shirley F. Weiss Fund for Urban Livability. Using the 1968 Kerner Commission Report as a reference point, the essays address the need for a national urban policy; the effects of residential mobility on education, employment, and racial integration; the impact of race on health, education, and welfare policies; the influence of the media on racial conflict; and the need for policy change. Although written for scholars and policymakers, the essays will be of interest to informed layreaders as well. For academic and larger public libraries.?William L. Waugh, Georgia State Univ., Atlanta
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Although written for scholars and policymakers, the essays will be of interest to informed layreaders as well.

Library Journal

In a time of failing national vision, the editors have provided a convincing diagnosis and thoughtful studies of alternatives.

Gary Orfield, Harvard University

Product Details

• Paperback: 614 pages
• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press (August 14, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807845787
• ISBN-13: 978-0807845783
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,924,350 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)