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Book Reviews

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SLOW AND SUDDEN VIOLENCE : Why and When Uprisings Occur

Howard Gillette, Jr., Author of The Paradox of Urban Revitalization 

 

“By exposing the deep roots of contemporary racial unrest, Derek Hyra lays bare the failures of urban policy to overcome social inequalities as they have metastasized over time. His prescriptions for addressing the multiple effects of what he calls slow violence in such places as Ferguson and Baltimore cry out for action in the private as well as the public sector.” 

Patrick Sharkey, William S. Tod Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at Princeton University 

 

“Slow and Sudden Violence goes beyond the immediate, surface-level explanations for the uprisings in Ferguson and Baltimore. Hyra provides a rich historical account combined with vivid interviews to make a powerful argument: What happened in Ferguson, Baltimore, Minneapolis and many other cities is not simply about the police. It is about social policies that have destabilized, oppressed, and in some cases destroyed Black communities.” 

Lance Freeman, Author of A Haven and a Hell: The Ghetto in America 

 

“From the draft riots of the civil war to the urban unrest in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, America’s cities have been the sites of episodic spasms of violence. Hyra revisits these spasms offering up fresh insights into their occurrence and possible solutions to dampen the likelihood of such outbursts. Slow and Sudden Violence is a must read for anyone seeking to understand cities and unrest.”  

RACE, CLASS AND POLITICS IN THE CAPPUCCINO CITY

Taja Blokland | Journal of Urban Affairs 

 

“The book asks difficult questions bur provides no easy answers. Consequently, it is a must-read for anyone interested in gentrification, social mixing. diversity and equity. It should provoke self-questioning and, it is hope, also much discussion on both sides of the Atlantic.” 

Japonica Brown-Saracino | American Journal of Sociology 

 

“Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City is a significant accomplishment. Given the timeliness of the complex issues it engages, it ought to be read widely within and beyond the academy.” 

Loretta Lees | International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 

 

“Hyra is a scholar activist par excellence––he worked as an organizer in DC for many years; his frontline experience, sensitivity and understanding is evident through the book. He is also an ethnographer in the tradition of Swedish anthropologist Ulf Hannerz and US anthropologist Elliot Liebow, who produced classics based on Washington, DC’s Shaw/U Street neighbourhood. Also looking at DC’s Shaw/U Street neighbourhood, Hyra sets out to investigate the complex strategies people adopt as they struggle to survive, no longer just surviving in poverty as in the 1960s, but now also surviving the threats from gentrification. . . . Hyra’s book is political, but in a grounded and more strategic way. This is a great book which all critical urbanists should read.” 

CAPITAL DILEMMA: Growth and Inequality in Washington, DC

Stephen S. Fuller, Professor, George Mason University 

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“The scope of Capital Dilemma and the depth of the research it reports makes this book a foundational read for anyone interested in. . . understanding how today’s cities might better interrelate their past and current growth patterns with their. . . potentials to achieve a stronger and more balanced and viable social and political framework for the future. . . . Students of urban development, social change and political reform at all levels will find Capital Dilemma an intellectually enriching and important addition to the literature.”

Mindy Thompson Fullilove, author of Root Shock and Urban Alchemy 

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“In 2011, as the economy of Washington DC was booming, its black population slipped below 50%. This is the ‘capital dilemma’ explored in this fascinating book. Astute analysis, lively writing and deep concern for human survival characterize this superb set of essays. Elegantly conceived to cover the complexity of the urban landscape, the chapters dovetail neatly to stimulate our thinking and push our questions. This is a terrific book and students of history, American cities, race relations and economic development will all find it a great asset.”

Gareth Potts | Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal 

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“It is in its nuanced treatment of gentrification that the book is especially strong. . . . [T]his is an excellent collection. Any urbanist studying or working in/on DC should access a copy and most urbanists elsewhere should give it a look.”

THE NEW URBAN RENEWAL: The Economic Transformation of Harlem and Bronzeville

Kesha S. Moore | Urban Affairs Review 

 

“New Urban Renewal greatly advances our understanding of how and why urban neighborhoods change. Both the methods and the results of this study are innovative contributions to the field of urban sociology. Through its multilayered comparative approach, New Urban Renewal reveals the global, national, and local processes responsible for transforming low-income black neighborhoods into gentrified communities. . . . It is written with clear, straightforward language that makes it easily accessible to undergraduates and of sufficient theoretical rigor to engage graduate students. [It] will be of particular value to courses, scholars, and individuals focused on community development, race and class stratification, and urban politics.” 

William Julius Wilson, Author of When Work Disappears: The World of the New Urban Poor 

 

“The New Urban Renewal will change the way many people think about socioeconomic stratification within black America. Derek Hyra’s study of the local, national, and global factors that led to the economic transformation of two historic black communities is insightful. And many of his findings on how this revitalization affected relations between the black poor and the black middle are original. It is an important addition to the burgeoning literature on intraracial class conflict.” 

Derek Hyra is a professor in the School of Public Affairs and Founding Director of the Metropolitan Policy Center at American University. His research focuses on processes of neighborhood change, with an emphasis on housing, urban politics, and race. He is a leading expert on gentrification and equitable neighborhood development policy.

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