Description
Urban policy is not only written or legislated—it is performed. From public housing and greenspace initiatives to immigration policy and gentrification, policies rely on carefully constructed narratives and public performances that shape how people understand cities, who belongs in them, and who benefits from change. The Performative City introduces students to a critical framework for analyzing how urban policies create not only physical spaces but also social meanings, exclusions, and inequalities.
Bringing together original accessible case studies from cities across the United States, this edited volume reveals how policies aimed at promoting equity, community, or growth often mask deeper struggles over power and identity. Topics include the racial politics of gentrification, contested public housing policies, performative greenspace projects, and the complexities of immigrant belonging. Designed for use in urban studies, sociology, public policy, and planning courses, The Performative City equips students with the tools to critically engage with the policies and performances that shape urban life.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction (Deirdre A. Oakley and James C. Fraser)
2. Urban Policy as a Spatial Project
3. Selling the Dream of a United Atlanta: Atlanta United Football Club, Performative Community, and Inequality in 21st Century Atlanta (Declan Abernethy, Megan Conville, and Opal Gay)
4. Is Collective Efficacy Real? Government-Sponsored “Empowerment” and the Implications for Health, Crime, and Education in Poor Urban Neighborhoods (Jennifer M. Carpenter and Rafia J. Malick)
5. Liberation or Damnation? Examining Performativity in Human Trafficking (Kayland Arrington)
6. The Significance of 20th-Century Urban Renewal Policies for Racially Reparative Planning (James C. Fraser and Kathleen Lawlor)
7. Breaking Down the Harm in U.S. Public Housing Assistance in the Name of Affordable and Decent Living Environments (Jennifer M. Carpenter)
8. Where Do We Fit in the Vegetable Tray or Salad Bowl? Immigrants Navigating through Physical Spaces in U.S. Cities (Rafia J. Malick)
9. Make Way for the White, Young Professionals: How the Rhetoric of Gentrification Is Deployed to Racially Reshape Urban Spaces (Jennifer Simon)
10. “Tree Equity is Health Equity” Exploring Urban Green and Recreational Spaces as a Proxy for Health Equity (Kayland Arrington)
11. Conclusion: Considerations for Policy Studies
2. Urban Policy as a Spatial Project
3. Selling the Dream of a United Atlanta: Atlanta United Football Club, Performative Community, and Inequality in 21st Century Atlanta (Declan Abernethy, Megan Conville, and Opal Gay)
4. Is Collective Efficacy Real? Government-Sponsored “Empowerment” and the Implications for Health, Crime, and Education in Poor Urban Neighborhoods (Jennifer M. Carpenter and Rafia J. Malick)
5. Liberation or Damnation? Examining Performativity in Human Trafficking (Kayland Arrington)
6. The Significance of 20th-Century Urban Renewal Policies for Racially Reparative Planning (James C. Fraser and Kathleen Lawlor)
7. Breaking Down the Harm in U.S. Public Housing Assistance in the Name of Affordable and Decent Living Environments (Jennifer M. Carpenter)
8. Where Do We Fit in the Vegetable Tray or Salad Bowl? Immigrants Navigating through Physical Spaces in U.S. Cities (Rafia J. Malick)
9. Make Way for the White, Young Professionals: How the Rhetoric of Gentrification Is Deployed to Racially Reshape Urban Spaces (Jennifer Simon)
10. “Tree Equity is Health Equity” Exploring Urban Green and Recreational Spaces as a Proxy for Health Equity (Kayland Arrington)
11. Conclusion: Considerations for Policy Studies
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