don’t blame the fha for the rise of the suburbs

One of the most important trends in the post-WWII US was the rise of the suburbs. The creation of the suburbs involved a transformation of economic and political life, as well as a new era of racial segregation. Historians have long laid the blame for the emergence of the suburbs on the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), arguing that the FHA favored new single-family houses in the suburbs over multi-family rental properties in cities, and that the FHA discriminated against minority homebuyers. A new article by Judge Glock, a history PhD student at Rutgers, argues that this condemnation of the FHA is entirely misplaced. In How the Federal Housing Administration Tried to Save America’s Cities, 1934–1960, Glock argues that the FHA: “was more likely to be involved in (1) multifamily and rental housing than single-family homes, (2) urban housing than suburban, and (3) to provide relative equality to white and minority borrowers, after significant political prodding.” (2016: 292) What did historians miss?

a chance to interact with randy collins about interaction

Annette Lareau asked me to pass along the information and an invitation to the entire sociology community to join in celebrating the career and contributions of Randy Collins. The event has a great line up of speakers including Michèle Lamont, Elijah Anderson, Viviana Zelizer, Philippe Bourgois, Alice Goffman, among many, many more. The event is free with limited first-come first-serve housing opportunities for doctoral students. Check out the event and sign up on the website.

the stories we tell.

I read two seemingly unrelated professionalization pieces last week:  The Chonicle‘s “Operation Keep My Job” and IHE‘s “Advice from an Outlaw Writer.” The two couldn’t be more different from one another. Bethany Albertson discusses a number of the insights anyone seeking professionalization will hear time and again (e.g., “just say no,” “ask for help,” “keep trying”) and Jane Ward encourages us to work against common refrains -“don’t chip! binge!”

However, they shared an important wisdom – although articulated differently – urging caution in how we connect with those around us.

CFP: Workshop on Historicizing “The Economy”

On September 23-24, Adam Leeds, Onur Ozgode, and I are organizing a workshop at Harvard on historical understandings of “The Economy.” This workshop aims to bring together scholars working on the emergence and the history of different conceptions of the “economic” and the “economy” as objects of economic thought and political practice. The deadline for abstract submissions is May 1st. Details, including the full call for submissions, are available at the workshop website.