The Urban Crisis:
Historical Perspectives On Modern American Cities
(L22 385 History; L98 AMCS 385 in American Culture Studies)

Joseph Heathcott
jheathco@artsci.wustl.edu
Wahington University
St. Louis, Missouri, USA
Fall 2000
(Course taught with Jennifer Slosar, TA.)

SYLLABUS

Introduction

What is the purpose of this course?

Since World War Two, American cities have gone through enormous changes. Industrial decline, crumbling homes and schools, overcrowded neighborhoods, rigid segregation and racial trauma, rising crime and violence, and an alarming drain of revenues have all contributed to a troubled urban landscape. For a brief time, large-scale government interventions seemed to point the way to urban salvation. But in the wake of massive urban renewal, expressway construction, and public housing projects, cities seem worse off than ever. Meanwhile, many sought refuge in the supposed safety of the vast new suburbs that encircled the old cities. But many found that suburban life brought new kinds of problems, such as auto dependency, increased pollution, and a loss of public life. Moreover, the old problems of American cities never went away, and have swept through suburban communities. Today, scholars, journalists, planners, policy makers, and citizens increasingly realize that urban issues are not confined to inner cities, but are broadly metropolitan and national--they involve everyone in an urban region as well as the nation.

This course will equip students with an historical perspective on the urban crisis. Rather than simply identifying urban problems, we will use the tools of historical inquiry to grapple with the underlying causes of these problems. Students will learn the value of history as a method for illuminating the social, cultural, political, and economic forces which underlie the current urban crisis. Students will also apply their historical understandings toward the creation of an informed position on urban policy and planning issues.


What will students do in this course?

H385 is designed as a lecture, reading, and discussion course. It will provide students with an immersion in the study of American cities and suburbs after World War II. Each of you will move through the course at a variety of levels, from the personal act of reading to the mass experience of the lecture hall. It is my job, and the job of the Teaching Assistant, to make the experience integral, challenging, and rewarding.


Readings:
At the most personal level will be your work with texts. Since texts are the primary way in which historians communicate ideas, you will have the opportunity to develop a relationship with a number of scholars. Besides a course reader available at the History department, required texts include:
  • Raymond Mohl and Arnold Richard Hirsch, eds. Urban Policy in the Twentieth-Century America. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1993.
  • Thomas Sugrue. The Origins of the Urban Crisis: Race and Inequality in Postwar Detroit. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1996.
  • Kenneth T. Jackson. Crabgrass Frontiers: The Suburbanization of the United States. New York, Oxford University Press, 1985.
  • Jon C. Teaford. Rough Road to Renaissance: Urban Revitalization in America, 1940-1985. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1990.
  • Peter Medoff and Holly Sklar. Streets of Hope: The Fall and Rise of an Urban Neighborhood. Boston, MA: South End Press, 1994.
  • Philippe I. Bourgois. In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996 (1st paperback edition); 1995.
Lectures:
Every Tuesday you will attend lecture. Lectures are designed to provide crucial historical background and connections for the readings, papers, exams, and discussions. Occasionally lectures will touch on material covered by texts, but more often than not lectures will provide a broad framework for understanding materials, and fill the gaps. Attendance at lectures is not only required, but is also critical to your success in the course, since material from the lectures will invariably show up on exams.

Workshops:
Every Thursday you will attend a workshop. The workshop is like lecture, in that we all meet together in the same room. However, workshops are dedicated to the close consideration of some particular urban topic or problem. On some days we will look at documents, maps, data sets, or other primary sources in order to analyze them and to tease out their meanings. Other times we will invite guest lecturers to come in and discuss their approaches to studying urban problems and devising solutions. And occasionally we will watch important documentary films on issues such as urban renewal, disinvestment, gentrification, and neighborhood activism. As with lectures, attendance at Thursday workshops is required.

Policy Groups:
Students will form policy groups to study particular aspects of cities and suburbs after World War II. We will form these groups at the beginning of the semester, and students will meet with their fellow policy wonks for the duration of the semester. Each group will name their "think-tank" and will draw up a contract with an agency (me!) to study the historical parameters of an urban problem, to flesh out the complexities of the problem, to account for past attempts to solve the problem, and to hazard recommendations for a course of action.

Assignments:
In addition to a policy portfolio, which will include a number of short assignments and the final policy study, you will be responsible for several assignments. There will be a mid-term and final exam, designed to connect readings, videos, and lectures through a series of identification and essay questions. You will also write a short analysis of a group, agency, or organization that is involved in tackling urban issues and solving problems faced by cities today. Finally, throughout the semester, you will participate in class discussions, group problem-solving exercises, and other activities.


How will students be evaluated for the course?

In History 385, you will not be asked to retain large amounts of content (like a survey course) or to produce extensive original research (like a seminar). Rather, you will be asked to think critically and insightfully about American cities and their problems in a historical context.

Grades are based on a 500-point total. Due dates for the assignments are clearly indicated on the syllabus, so there is no reason--save for serious emergencies--to hand in late work. Late work will be penalized at the rate of a half letter grade per day.

Exams:
There will be a mid-term and a final exam, consisting of short-answer identification and essays. The short ID's are worth 20 points and the essays 80 points, for a total of 100 points per exam. The exams will count as 40% of the final grade. NOTE: STUDENTS MUST TAKE THE FINAL EXAM TO PASS THE COURSE. The essay exam will test your ability to apply your historical knowledge. Simply mentioning dates and events is not enough. You will be required to explain and interpret why certain events happened when they happened. You will need to integrate insights gained from all of the readings and lectures and discussions into your essays. I will only offer make-up exams in very special cases. If you know beforehand that you will need to miss an exam, you must make arrangements well in advance.

Policy Study:
Each policy group will submit a series of papers to constitute a final portfolio. The studies should strive to bring a historical lens to bear on a well-defined metropolitan issue. Early in the semester, your group should define an urban problem for study and submit a one-page brief. From the brief, the group and the professor will negotiate the scope and parameters of the study, and draw up a contract. Subsequently, the group will fulfill the contract by submitting a working bibliography, an abstract and detailed outline, and a final draft. The final portfolio will be graded on the depth of the analysis, the quality of the writing, the coherence of the argument, and the merits of the conclusions and recommendations. The portfolio will count for a possible 200 points, spread out over several assignments, for a total of 40% of the final grade.

Organization Report:
Each student will collect materials and information for a 3-page report on one group, agency, or organization which is dedicated to tackling urban issues in America. The organization can be non-profit or for-profit, public or private, local or national in scope, official or unofficial. The organization can be directly engaged in policy making or research, or it can be oriented toward lobbying, advocacy, community organizing, or direct action. The report will include a 3-page summary and supporting materials (brochures, web pages, correspondence, or other documents). The organization should NOT be directly related to the policy study that you are undertaking, so that you may broaden your grasp of urban activism. The report will count for a possible 50 points, or 10% of the final grade.

Participation:
Your participation in the life of the course is crucial. By participation, I do not mean just showing up to class. Rather, active participation suggests completing the readings and assignments in a timely fashion, coming to class prepared to contribute your ideas and insights, and engaging your peers in the spirit of civil dialogue and mutual support. Participation will count for a possible 50 points, or 10% of the final grade.


What is the Grading Scale?

94-100% = A 83-87% = B 73-77% = C 63-67% = D
90-93% = A- 80-82% = B- 70-72% = C- 60-62% = D-
88-89% = B+ 78-79% = C+ 68-69% = D+ 59% ??? = F


CLASS SCHEDULE

PART ONE:   THE URBAN CRISIS UNFOLDS

Week One, 8.31   Orientation
Reading:
Students should begin reading for week two.

Week Two, 9.5-9.7   Roots of the Urban Crisis
Reading:
Raymond Mohl, "Shifting Patterns of Urban Policy Since 1900" in Urban Policy;
Holly Sklar and Peter Medoff, "Remembering" in Streets of Hope;
Thomas Sugrue, "Introduction" in Origins of the Urban Crisis.

Week Three, 9.12-9.14   Making the American Ghetto
Reading:
Thomas Sugrue, chs. 1-2; 7-9 in Origins of the Urban Crisis;
Arnold Hirsch, "With or Without Jim Crow" in Urban Policy.


PART TWO:   POLITICS, PLANNING, AND THE INNER CITY

Week Four, 9.19-9.21   From Tenements to Taylor Homes: Public Housing in America
Reading:
Thomas Sugrue, ch. 3 in Origins of the Urban Crisis;
Margaret Crawford, "Daily Life on the Home Front: Women, Blacks, and the Struggle for Public Housing" (reader).

Week Five, 9.26-9.28   Urban Renewal and the New Metropolis
Reading:
John Bauman, "The Paradox of Postwar Urban Planning: Downtown Revitalization versus Decent Housing for All" (reader);
Nathan Glazer, “Renewing America’s Cities,” (reader);
Herbert Gans, “The Failure of Urban Renewal” (reader).


PART THREE:   POLITICS, PLANNING, AND THE NEW AMERICAN SUBURB

Week Six, 10.3-10.5   Suburbia: Land, Homes, and Settlement Cultures after WWII
Reading:
Kenneth Jackson, Crabgrass Frontiers.

Week Seven, 10.10-10.12   Rivers of Concrete: Transportation Policy and Practice
Reading:
John Teaford, Rough Road to Renaissance (first half);
Clay McShane, "Urban Pathways: The Street and Highway, 1900-1940" (reader);
Raymond Mohl, "Race and Space in the Modern City: Interstate 95 and the Black Community in Miami" in Urban Policy.


PART FOUR:   RIOTS AND MALAISE: THE CRISIS DEEPENS

Week Eight, 10.17-10.19   Deindustrialization: Economic Change and Metropolitan Form
Reading:
Thomas Sugrue, chs. 5-6 in Origins of the Urban Crisis;
Carl Abbott, "Through Flight to Tokyo" in Urban Policy.

Tuesday, 10.17: In-class Midterm Exam

Week Nine, 10.24-10.26   Urban Insurrection and the Politics of Neglect
Reading:
John Teaford, Rough Road to Renaissance (second half);
Gerald Horne, The Fire This Time, ch. 2 (reader);
“Watts Still Seething” Life (1969) (reader);
Excerpts from The Moynihan Report (reader).


PART FIVE:   THE MARGINAL CITY

Week Ten, 10.31-11.2   Homelessness, Shelter Poverty, and the Struggle for Public Space
Reading:
Kim Hopper, "Redefining the Cursed Word: A Historical Interpretation of Homelessness in America" (reader);
Paul Koegel et al, "The Causes of Homelessness" (reader);
Kim Hopper, "Homelessness Among African-Americans: A Historical and Contemporary Perspective" (reader);
Harry Simon, "Municipal Regulation of the Homeless in Public Space" (reader).

Thursday, 11.2: Organizational Report due in class.

Week Eleven, 11.7-11.9   Street Crime in the Two-Tiered City
Reading:
Philippe Bourgois, In Search of Respect, Intro, chapters 2-5, Conclusion. Students should read the entire book if they have the opportunity.


PART SIX:   CITIES IN A GLOBAL AGE

Week Twelve, 11.14-11.16   Edge City: Suburban Sprawl and Metropolitan Ecology
Reading:
William Sharpe and Leonard Wallock, "Bold New City or Built-up 'Burb?: Redefining Contemporary Suburbia" (reader);
Edward Soja, "Inside Exopolis: Scenes from Orange County" (reader).

Week Thirteen, 11.21-11.23   Theme-ing the New Downtown
Reading:
Carl Abbott, "Five Strategies for Downtown: Policy Discourse and Planning Since 1943" (reader);
John Rennie Short and Lisa Benton, "The Reconstruction of a Postindustrial City" (reader);
M. Christine Boyer, "Cities for Sale: Merchandising History at South Street Seaport" (reader).

NOTE: Thursday 11.23 is Thanksgiving, so we will not meet.
Students should be reading Holly Sklar and Peter Medoff, Streets of Hope.


PART SEVEN:   CONSERVING AND ACTING

Week Fourteen, 11.28-11.30   The Grass Roots City
Reading:
Finish Sklar and Medoff, Streets of Hope. Materials on squatters and residents in the Lower East Side of Manhattan (reader).

Week Fifteen, 12.5-12.7   Preservation, Conservation, and Urban Action
Reading:
Sam B. Warner, "Eco-Urbanism and Past Choices for Urban Living" in Raymond Mohl, ch. 7;
Lynne Hollen Lees, "Urban Public Spaces and Imagined Communities in the 1980s and 1990s" (reader);
Dolores Hayden, “Place Memory and Urban Preservation” (reader).

Thursday, 12.8:   Policy studies due in class

Week Sixteen, 12.12-12.14   Reading Week
No class meeting.

Week Seventeen, 12.14   Finals Week

Final Exam, 12.15   Cupples II 200, 1:00pm-3:00pm




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Syllabus prepared for archive 12 Feb 2001.