The Urban Politics Reader by Strom, Elizabeth; Mollenkopf, John H.;

Short description:

This Reader provides an essential resource for students of urban politics by drawing together important but widely dispersed writings. It includes contributions from Robert K. Merton, Samuel P. Hays, Susan Fainstein and Saskia Sassen.

Long description:

The Urban Politics Reader draws together classic and contemporary writings that best illuminate the basic questions of urban politics – how interests contend for power over the distribution of resources and why some win while others lose. Contributions from Martin Shefter, Clarence Stone, Rufus P. Browning and Saskia Sassen are included among the thirty-two generous selections.

The Reader juxtaposes the main theoretical approaches to urban power with vivid accounts of actual political experiences on such key themes as the urban crisis, the politics of race, ethnicity and gender, national urban policy, suburbanization and globalization. Strom and Mollenkopf illustrate how thinking about cities is central to our understanding of democracy and citizenship, and how although the parties to urban politics may change over time, the struggle of new groups to gain access and representation is a constant theme.

The Editors' introductions suggest topics and questions for class discussion, demonstrate the significance of urban politics, and suggest directions for further reading and thinking, while the associated bibliography enables deeper investigations. By drawing together important but widely dispersed writings, The Urban Politics Reader provides an essential resource for students of urban politics. The volume will also have widespread appeal for students of urban sociology, urban affairs, urban planning and public policy.

Table of Contents:

Introduction  Part 1: The Social and Economic Context of Urban Politics  A Top 10 List of Things to Know About American Cities Elvin K. Wyly, Norman J. Glickman, and Michael L. Lahr.  Poverty, Social Rights, and the Politics of Place in the United States Margaret Weir.  Overview and Economic Restructuring as Class and Spatial Polarization Saskia Sassen.  Social Polarisation, Economic Restructuring and Welfare State Regimes Chris R. Hamnett  Part 2: The Roots of Urban Politics  Tammany Hall and the Democracy Richard Croker.  The Ward Organizations Milton Rakove.  Why Political Machines have not Withered Away and Other Revisionist Thoughts Raymond E. Wolfinger.  Writing the Rules to Win the Game: The Middle-Class Regimes of Municipal Reformers Amy Bridges and Richard Kronick.  Resistance from Outside: Machine Politics and the (Non) Incorporation of Immigrants Michael Jones-Correa  Part 3: Understanding Urban Power  How to Study Urban Political Power John H. Mollenkopf.  Who Governs? Robert A. Dahl. The Interests of the Limited City Paul E. Peterson.  Looking Back to Look Forward: Reflections on Urban Regime Analysis Clarence Stone.  In Search of the Growth Coalition: American Urban Theories and the Redevelopment of Berlin Elizabeth Strom  Part 4: The Political Economy of Cities and Communities  The Postwar Politics of Urban Development John Mollenkopf.  The Political Economy of Urban Fiscal Crises Martin Shefter.  The Political Economy of Urban Regimes H.V. Savitch, Paul Kantor, and Selena Vicari.  Congress Threatens to Leave D.C. Unless New Capitol is Built 'The Onion' Community Empowerment Strategies: The Limits and Potential of Organizing in Low Income Neighborhoods Peter Dreier.  Gender, Development and Urban Social Change: Women’s Community Action in Global Cities Amy Lind  Part 5: The Politics of Race, Ethnicity and Gender  Has Political Incorporation Been Achieved?: Is it Enough? Rufus P. Browning, Dale Rogers Marshall, and David H. Tabb.  Demobilization in the New Black Political Regime: Ideological Capitulation and Radical Failure in the Post-Segregation Era Adolph Reed.  Black, White and Blurred Rob Gurwit.  Wanting In: Latin American Immigrant Women and the Turn to Electoral Politics Michael Jones-Correa.  Ethnic Stability and Urban Reconstruction: Policy Dilemmas in Polarized Cities Scott Bollens  Part 6: Cities, Regions and Nations  Swimming against the Tide: A Brief History of Federal Policy in Poor Communities Alice O’Connor.  The Urban Electorate in Presidential Elections Richard Sauerkopf and Todd Swanstrom.  Urban Sacrifice Buzz Bissinger.  Regionalisms Old and New Peter Dreier, John Mollenkopf and Todd Swanstrom.  Are Europe’s Cities Better? Pietro Nivola.  The American City in the Age of Terror Peter Eisinger.  A Progressive Agenda for Metropolitan America Bruce Katz