Sidewalk

In 1961, Jane Jacobs changed the literature of urban life forever with The Death and Life of Great American Cities, a now-classic study grounded in her observation of her own neighborhood, Greenwich Village. In Sidewalk , Mitchell Duneier (author of the acclaimed Slim's Table) takes us back to the streets of the Village, but finds a scene very different from the one Jacobs described. Much of the architecture remains, and many people live the way Jacobs suggested, but there is another population in the Village today---poor black men who make their lives on the sidewalks by selling secondhand goods, panhandling, and scavenging books and magazines left out for recycling, and whose appearance and behavior are affronts to the sensibilities of many passersby. By now the men are known to many Village residents: Hakim Hasan, who sells "black books" and acts as an informal mentor to young men; Ishmael, Grady, Ron and Marvin, who sell magazines and other merchandise, only to have their wares thrown out by police when they leave their block to relieve themselves; Mudrick and "Joe Garbage," who sell items retrieved from the trash; Keith, who panhandles outside the ATM vestibule; and other men! (and one woman) who come and go on what they call "the blocks." In recent years, these men and others like them have become the targets of "quality of life" campaigns in cities nationwide. Mayors scold them. Police keep after them. Businesses want them off the streets. Even liberal whites feel uneasy in their presence. These men are seen as proof of the influential "broken windows" theory, which holds that the mere appearance of social disorder leads to crime. But Duneier contends that, far from being incitements to crime, the men on the street are necessary and beneficial to city life today, and that their behavior, which often appears disorderly, actually contributes to the order and well-being of the neighborhood. For five years, he spent time on the blocks with them - working with them at their vending tables, hearing their stories, and observing the roles they play in the ongoing life of the city. Often he was accompanied by Ovie Carter, whose photographs depict Village life with rare breadth and insight. Sidewalk brings us into the hearts and minds of the men on the street, showing us not only their common human values but also the many practical and moral choices they must make every day. Duneier explains how cultural and political factors can spur people to self-destructive behavior, and illustrates how the same people can weave together complementary elements of a city - laws, friendships, popular culture, and the spirit of a neighborhood - in their struggle to survive. No other recent book has managed to convey the character of contemporary urban life in all its complexity - its vitality, its class and race conflicts, and the surprising opportunities it offers for empathy among strangers. Sidewalk gives us a clear, sharp picture of city life today - as it is, and as it might be. Presents The Lives Of Poor African-american Men Who Make Their Subsistence Wages By Selling Used Goods On The Streets Of Greenwich Village In New York; And Discusses How They Interact With Passing Pedestrians, Police Officers, And Each Other. An Exceptional Ethnography Marked By Clarity And Candor, Sidewalk Takes Us Into The Socio-cultural Environment Of Those Who, Though Often Seen As Threatening Or Unseemly, Work Day After Day On The Blocks Of One Of New York's Most Diverse Neighborhoods. Sociologist Duneier, Author Of Slim's Table, Offers An Accessible And Compelling Group Portrait Of Several Poor Black Men Who Make Their Livelihoods On The Sidewalks Of Greenwich Village Selling Secondhand Goods, Panhandling, And Scavenging Books And Magazines. Duneier Spent Five Years With These Individuals, And In Sidewalk He Argues That, Contrary To The Opinion Of Various City Officials, They Actually Contribute Significantly To The Order And Well-being Of The Village. An Important Study Of The Heart And Mind Of The Street, Sidewalk Also Features An Insightful Afterword By Longtime Book Vendor Hakim Hasan. This Fascinating Study Reveals Today's Urban Life In All Its Complexity: Its Vitality, Its Conflicts About Class And Race, And Its Surprising Opportunities For Empathy Among Strangers. -- Publisher's Description The Informal Life Of The Sidewalk. The Book Vendor -- The Magazine Vendors -- The Men Without Accents -- New Uses Of Sidewalks. How Sixth Avenue Became A Sustaining Habitat -- The Limits Of Informal Social Control. Sidewalk Sleeping -- When You Gotta Go -- Talking To Women -- Accusation: Caveat Vendor? -- Regulating The People Who Work The Streets. The Space Wars: Competing Legalities -- A Christmas On Sixth Avenue -- The Construction Of Decency. A Scene From Jane Street -- Conclusion -- Afterword / Hakim Hasan -- Appendix: A Statement On Method. Mitchell Duneier ; With Photographs By Ovie Carter And An Afterword By Hakim Hasan. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 359-380). "In Sidewalk, Mitchell Duneier takes us back to the streets of the Village, but finds a scene very different from the one Jacobs described. Much of the architecture remains, and many people live the way Jacobs suggested, but there is another population in the Village today - poor black men who make their livelihoods on the sidewalks by selling secondhand goods, panhandling, and scavenging books and magazines left out for recycling, and whose appearance and behavior are affronts to the sensibilities of many passersby."--BOOK JACKET. "In recent years, these men and others like them have become the targets of "quality of life" campaigns in cities nationwide. Mayors scold them. Police keep after them. Businesses want them off the streets. Even liberal whites feel uneasy in their presence. These men are seen as proof of the influential "broken windows" theory, which holds that the mere appearance of social disorder leads to crime."--BOOK JACKET. "But Duneier contends that, far from being incitements to crime, the men on the street are necessary and beneficial to city life today, and that their behavior, which often appears disorderly, actually contributes to the order and well-being of the neighborhood. For five years, he spent time on the blocks with them - working with them at their vending tables, hearing their stories, and observing the roles they play in the ongoing life of the city. Often he was accompanied by Ovie Carter, whose photographs depict Village life with rare breadth and insight."--BOOK JACKET. "Sidewalk brings us into the hearts and minds of the men on the street, showing us not only their common human values but also the many practical and moral choices they must make every day."--BOOK JACKET. Chronicling the fortunes and misfortunes of street peddlers in New York, this study of modern urban street culture follows a dozen people who sell on the streets of Greenwich Village and their struggle to survive.