Best blogs, books, videos, events to learn about urban planning & race/inequality/equity

[studious_kirby]

Hi all, I'm new to the urban planning and community economic development sphere, but it has come up in my work (government grantmaking, public investments, anti-gentrification organizing) so I want to learn more about dialogue happening within the field as it pertains to inequality/race/equity and how it intersects with other issues (criminal justice, environmental justice, health equity, etc). Never took a class on it in undergrad or anything -- 

What books, blogs, videos have been most impactful on you as aspiring urban planners? 

 

(Currently waiting to hear back from MPA programs, through which I'd hopefully be able to take some electives in urban planning & community econ dev. But don't want to be 

[yellowsurf]

The Color of Law is frequently recommended! Also Evicted and The New Jim Crow are good, not exactly straight-up planning but solid social justice reads. It also might be worth reaching out to a professor or your local APA and asking for book recommendations.

[studious_kirby]

1 hour ago, yellowsurf said:

The Color of Law is frequently recommended! Also Evicted and The New Jim Crow are good, not exactly straight-up planning but solid social justice reads. It also might be worth reaching out to a professor or your local APA and asking for book recommendations.

I've heard of and read parts of each of these during my Poli Sci undergrad, so glad to hear I'm not completely off-base!

[jbourne1]

Personally, I found some of the deepest insight was looking into a specific city and reading about the planning/urban history there. If you're not from or not planning to go to school in a big city or at least a town/city/region with a deep history and canon, just choose one you have an affinity for. Here are some I've read:

LA: City of Quartz by Mike Davis

Bay Area: American Babylon by Richard O. Self; The Road to Resegregation by Alex Schafran; City for Sale by Chester Hartman

NYC: There Goes the Hood by Lance Freeman

Edited February 25, 2021 by jbourne1

[OtisLopez]

On 2/25/2021 at 4:59 PM, jbourne1 said:

Personally, I found some of the deepest insight was looking into a specific city and reading about the planning/urban history there. If you're not from or not planning to go to school in a big city or at least a town/city/region with a deep history and canon, just choose one you have an affinity for. Here are some I've read:

LA: City of Quartz by Mike Davis

Bay Area: American Babylon by Richard O. Self; The Road to Resegregation by Alex Schafran; City for Sale by Chester Hartman

NYC: There Goes the Hood by Lance Freeman

Thank you so much for these recommendations, it's very helpful for me.

[OtisLopez]

On 2/25/2021 at 4:59 PM, jbourne1 said:

Personally, I found some of the deepest insight was looking into a specific city and reading about the planning/urban history there. If you're not from or not planning to go to school in a big city or at least a town/city/region with a deep history and canon, just choose one you have an affinity for. Here are some I've read:

LA: City of Quartz by Mike Davis

Bay Area: American Babylon by Richard O. Self; The Road to Resegregation by Alex Schafran; City for Sale by Chester Hartman

NYC: There Goes the Hood by Lance Freeman

In addition to all this, I am sure that in today's conditions, we should raise our youth to be strong and resilient, raise them to be patriots of their country. On https://writingbros.com/essay-examples/jrotc/ I have read a lot of useful information about jrotc, about military training of young men and I think it is a good strategy.

This is really very helpful for me, thanks again!