In this Book
University of California Press
- Abandoned in the Heartland: Work, Family, and Living in East St. Louis
- Book
- 2011
- Published by: University of California Press
summary
Urban poverty, along with all of its poignant manifestations, is moving from city centers to working-class and industrial suburbs in contemporary America. Nowhere is this more evident than in East St. Louis, Illinois. Once a thriving manufacturing and transportation center, East St. Louis is now known for its unemployment, crime, and collapsing infrastructure. Abandoned in the Heartland takes us into the lives of East St. Louis’s predominantly African American residents to find out what has happened since industry abandoned the city, and jobs, quality schools, and city services disappeared, leaving people isolated and imperiled. Jennifer Hamer introduces men who search for meaning and opportunity in dead-end jobs, women who often take on caretaking responsibilities until well into old age, and parents who have the impossible task of protecting their children in this dangerous, and literally toxic, environment. Illustrated with historical and contemporary photographs showing how the city has changed over time, this book, full of stories of courage and fortitude, offers a powerful vision of the transformed circumstances of life in one American suburb.
Table of Contents
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- Illustrations
- pp. ix-x
- Acknowledgments
- pp. xi-xvi
- Chapter One: In America’s Heartland
- pp. 30-57
- Chapter Four: Hustling, Clean and Dirty
- pp. 98-124
- Chapter Six: “Gotta protect my own”
- pp. 154-179
- Chapter Seven: The Cost of Abandonment
- pp. 180-184
- Epilogue: Obama and East St. Louis
- pp. 185-192
- Selected Bibliography
- pp. 215-230
Additional Information
ISBN
9780520950177
Related ISBN(s)
9780520269316
MARC Record
OCLC
747411313
Pages
262
Launched on MUSE
2017-01-01
Language
English
Open Access
No