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The Black Butterfly: The Harmful Politics of Race and Space in America
The world gasped in April 2015 as Baltimore erupted and Black Lives Matter activists, incensed by Freddie Gray's brutal death in police custody, shut down highways and marched on city streets. In The Black Butterfly—a reference to the fact that Baltimore's majority-Black population spreads out on both sides of the coveted strip of real estate running down the center of the city like a butterfly's wings—Lawrence T. Brown reveals that ongoing historical trauma caused by a combination of policies, practices, systems, and budgets is at the root of uprisings and crises in hypersegregated cities around the country.
Putting Baltimore under a microscope, Brown looks closely at the causes of segregation, many of which exist in current legislation and regulatory policy despite the common belief that overtly racist policies are a thing of the past. Drawing on social science research, policy analysis, and archival materials, Brown reveals the long history of racial segregation's impact on health, from toxic pollution to police brutality. Beginning with an analysis of the current political moment, Brown delves into how Baltimore's history influenced actions in sister cities like St. Louis and Cleveland, as well as its adoption of increasingly oppressive techniques from cities like Chicago.
But there is reason to hope. Throughout the book, Brown offers a clear five-step plan for activists, nonprofits, and public officials to achieve racial equity. Not content to simply describe and decry urban problems, Brown offers up a wide range of innovative solutions to help heal and restore redlined Black neighborhoods, including municipal reparations. Persuasively arguing that because urban apartheid was intentionally erected it can be intentionally dismantled, The Black Butterfly demonstrates that America cannot reflect that Black lives matter until we see how Black neighborhoods matter.
Putting Baltimore under a microscope, Brown looks closely at the causes of segregation, many of which exist in current legislation and regulatory policy despite the common belief that overtly racist policies are a thing of the past. Drawing on social science research, policy analysis, and archival materials, Brown reveals the long history of racial segregation's impact on health, from toxic pollution to police brutality. Beginning with an analysis of the current political moment, Brown delves into how Baltimore's history influenced actions in sister cities like St. Louis and Cleveland, as well as its adoption of increasingly oppressive techniques from cities like Chicago.
But there is reason to hope. Throughout the book, Brown offers a clear five-step plan for activists, nonprofits, and public officials to achieve racial equity. Not content to simply describe and decry urban problems, Brown offers up a wide range of innovative solutions to help heal and restore redlined Black neighborhoods, including municipal reparations. Persuasively arguing that because urban apartheid was intentionally erected it can be intentionally dismantled, The Black Butterfly demonstrates that America cannot reflect that Black lives matter until we see how Black neighborhoods matter.
1 pages, Audio CD
First published January 26, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
February 1, 2021
In 2019, when then president Donald Trump called Baltimore “a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess,” everyone intrinsically knew he wasn’t referring to actual rats and rodents. The illiberal euphemisms were crystal clear. Such is the nature of bigotry in the 21st century, it manifests itself under the guise of “plausible deniability.”
Professor Lawrence T. Brown’s Black Butterfly is a pull-no-punches exposé on the disempowerment of black families, black communities, and black coalitions in America. Brown tends to paint the national landscape with a rather broad brush, but he scrutinizes and analyzes the city of Baltimore in microscopic detail.
I can think of no higher praise for Black Butterfly than to say it put me in mind of Race Matters by Dr Cornel West. West, writing in 1993, talks about the shortcomings of both the political right and the political left and identifies the key issue as American Nihilism. Brown does much the same, but on a smaller, more comprehensible scale, and emphasizes American Apartheid rather than nihilism (a difference that is arguably semantic). Both works are substantial, both are extremely relevant, and both are highly recommended.
Professor Lawrence T. Brown’s Black Butterfly is a pull-no-punches exposé on the disempowerment of black families, black communities, and black coalitions in America. Brown tends to paint the national landscape with a rather broad brush, but he scrutinizes and analyzes the city of Baltimore in microscopic detail.
I can think of no higher praise for Black Butterfly than to say it put me in mind of Race Matters by Dr Cornel West. West, writing in 1993, talks about the shortcomings of both the political right and the political left and identifies the key issue as American Nihilism. Brown does much the same, but on a smaller, more comprehensible scale, and emphasizes American Apartheid rather than nihilism (a difference that is arguably semantic). Both works are substantial, both are extremely relevant, and both are highly recommended.
January 9, 2022
This book was incredible. The author gives such a comprehensive and clear view of the problems facing black neighborhoods in Baltimore, and gives the full history of the consistent decisions by the city of Baltimore to destroy and segregate those neighborhoods.
It is with this historical perspective that you can see just how extreme and intentional the discrimination has been, and how clear the impacts of it continue from the past into the present.
He also does a good job of providing specific solutions to these problems, with cost estimates and policies that would actually help these communities in a structural way, rather than throwing some money at the problem and having it all go to development companies anyway.
Great book to read if you’ve ever lived in Baltimore, or if you just have basic human compassion
It is with this historical perspective that you can see just how extreme and intentional the discrimination has been, and how clear the impacts of it continue from the past into the present.
He also does a good job of providing specific solutions to these problems, with cost estimates and policies that would actually help these communities in a structural way, rather than throwing some money at the problem and having it all go to development companies anyway.
Great book to read if you’ve ever lived in Baltimore, or if you just have basic human compassion
February 27, 2026
thoroughly researched with apparently reasonable, cost-effective solutions for addressing the harmful impacts of racism, segregation, and redlining across america and specifically Baltimore. would love to see a second edition/update for trump round ii
June 6, 2021
Baltimore is used as an example of how Black Apartheid became the norm in the US—through federal state, and local government policies and societal reinforcement of racial tropes that have been around for so many years. Not only are the root causes and resulting policies described, but in the final chapters, Brown offers concrete solutions—based on Baltimore, but these solutions could be extrapolated to other cities.
January 9, 2026
This is a must-read for anyone and everyone. The specific examples of systemic issues really helped put things in perspective for me, especially those based in Baltimore. I love this city and want better for all people who call it home. We have a long way to go, and I appreciate the provided solutions. I wish there were recommendations specific for individual actions, aside from the usual education and voting.
February 21, 2021
Worth picking up for the appendixes alone. It is a clear and damning recount of the relentless physical and policy violence against the black community in Baltimore and throughout the country. I appreciate the specific recommendations and the focus on the solidarity economy. I'm always a bit disappointed when writers fall short of being explicitly anti-capitalist. Also, it seems out of keeping with the times to avoid an intersectional lens. (The relative invisibility of black women on the left and in the arts in Baltimore is a little shocking at times.) But my biggest complaint is that I now have about 30 more books on my to read list.
November 8, 2021
this was a great read, especially if you are interested in the history of American structural racism and displacement/segregation, and/or the city of Baltimore and racism. it was relatively easy to read, but included a lot of information/concepts that at times could be difficult to fully remember/contextualize. i really liked how Brown periodizes Black progress vs. white retaliation, and his organization of certain harms by type (e.g. neighborhood destruction, historical trauma, etc). he also was very thorough in areas that should be addressed for healing and equity, and gave really reasonable and practical steps (tracks 5-6ish?). i'm rambling but i recommend this overall if it's something that sounds interesting to you (maybe not so much if not)!
December 25, 2020
I received a copy of this book through the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.
This is a thorough and interesting book!
It's more dense than I expected and well researched. We focus on the Black Butterfly - a part of Baltimore where the majority of Black residents live. The book gives history to why the city looks the way it does now through various policies and lived traumas that current policies continue. The book also gives specific steps that nonprofits and the city can take to begin to repair the harm caused by racist policies, racist history, and anti-Blackness that was created and upheld to benefit non-Black residents.
There's a lot of helpful information and context from this book!
This is a thorough and interesting book!
It's more dense than I expected and well researched. We focus on the Black Butterfly - a part of Baltimore where the majority of Black residents live. The book gives history to why the city looks the way it does now through various policies and lived traumas that current policies continue. The book also gives specific steps that nonprofits and the city can take to begin to repair the harm caused by racist policies, racist history, and anti-Blackness that was created and upheld to benefit non-Black residents.
There's a lot of helpful information and context from this book!
March 13, 2021
This book was an accessible introduction about how inequity works in one city. Because Dr. Brown is a professor of public health, I expected this to be a dense body of work that was hyperfocused on lead poisoning in the city of Baltimore.
However, it was more of the 10,000-foot view of how various systems work together to create the current mess and what it would take to solve it.
He introduced some concepts that I had never seen before such as "whitelash" and "root shock." "Whitelash" is the reactionary oppression that happens when the white establishment is uncomfortable with change. The Donald Trump presidency was an example of whitelash. "Root shock" is the trauma experienced by displaced communities. It specifically refers to the displacement of Black communities during the "urban renewal" of the 1950s and 1960s.
It was interesting to see Dr. Brown referencing Noliwe Rooks term "segrenomics," that she used to describe how resources can be hoarded in white schools to the detriment of Black schools.
Toward the end of the book, Dr. Brown described that equity is not politically aligned. Sometimes Black communities can work inside the Democratic Party and sometimes outside of it. The part where he described Jackson, MS as a place where the community can work inside the Democratic Party already looks dated when the Black residents of Jackson are still boiling their water many weeks after cold weather broke the aged system that was delivering potable water to the Black residents of the city.
I hope that we see the type of authentic racial equity process that Brown would like to see. I liked that he warned us that there are a lot of people discussing racial equity that are not seeing the larger picture. The process of firing Black teachers and closing the schools that serve the most Black students is a racial equity issue.
However, it was more of the 10,000-foot view of how various systems work together to create the current mess and what it would take to solve it.
He introduced some concepts that I had never seen before such as "whitelash" and "root shock." "Whitelash" is the reactionary oppression that happens when the white establishment is uncomfortable with change. The Donald Trump presidency was an example of whitelash. "Root shock" is the trauma experienced by displaced communities. It specifically refers to the displacement of Black communities during the "urban renewal" of the 1950s and 1960s.
It was interesting to see Dr. Brown referencing Noliwe Rooks term "segrenomics," that she used to describe how resources can be hoarded in white schools to the detriment of Black schools.
Toward the end of the book, Dr. Brown described that equity is not politically aligned. Sometimes Black communities can work inside the Democratic Party and sometimes outside of it. The part where he described Jackson, MS as a place where the community can work inside the Democratic Party already looks dated when the Black residents of Jackson are still boiling their water many weeks after cold weather broke the aged system that was delivering potable water to the Black residents of the city.
I hope that we see the type of authentic racial equity process that Brown would like to see. I liked that he warned us that there are a lot of people discussing racial equity that are not seeing the larger picture. The process of firing Black teachers and closing the schools that serve the most Black students is a racial equity issue.
September 12, 2022
This was a challenging read (and suffered from being a book I owned and therefor was not under a library due date to finish). This book is absolutely a must read for anyone in public policy/elected office, but also incredibly thorough in understanding the segregation and continued disivestment in Black neighborhoods. Brown proposes a number of practical, actionable solutions that should be inacted. The academic tone makes this a difficult read, but well worth the time.
August 30, 2024
Brilliantly-constructed book that presents the spatial history spatial of Baltimore so succinctly and clearly while still incorporating the complexities of policy, sociology, and economics that have made Baltimore the city it is today. Through the lens of Baltimore, Brown provides a framework for analyzing the “harmful politics of race and space” in any city in the US. He establishes a link between forced displacements of Black Americans, resultant Black uprisings against racism, and the subsequent, devastating whitelash to such events. But he doesn’t stop at mere analysis - he provides detailed, thorough, and hopeful suggestions for how to heal the segregated, redlined communities of Black Baltimore and allow them to flourish.
In addition to being incredibly applicable to American history in general, The Black Butterfly has helped illuminate the context to what I see on the streets of Baltimore everyday. Reading this as I familiarize myself with the city has been incredibly informative and as I go about my new job with an urban forestry organization, I hope my work is a small component to the multifaceted mission to make Baltimore a thriving, whole city.
In addition to being incredibly applicable to American history in general, The Black Butterfly has helped illuminate the context to what I see on the streets of Baltimore everyday. Reading this as I familiarize myself with the city has been incredibly informative and as I go about my new job with an urban forestry organization, I hope my work is a small component to the multifaceted mission to make Baltimore a thriving, whole city.
July 2, 2023
Interesting book that focused on Baltimore and the history of African Americans in the US. I appreciate how the book was broken into different focus areas but I felt at times was really repetitive and I wasn’t learning anything new. Other books on this topic and Baltimore City I thought were better written (Not In My Neighborhood, Blackout) but was still interesting.
June 12, 2026
The injustices of Baltimore and so many places like it, particularly in communities of color that were legally and socially barred from success and are now blamed for it by the establishment and white culture, have and continue to be utter bullshit.
December 30, 2025
very interesting read - i think everyone who lives in baltimore or any major city should read this. the author provides a very informed and comprehensive account of race and space in baltimore and the american apartheid. also he talks about the south baltimore land trust so bonus points
February 9, 2023
If you live in Baltimore - if you live in the US - you should read this
January 28, 2021
This was a well researched book. I liked how it gave the history, the problems and suggested solutions. I hope more people read this especially in the Baltimore area.
Read
January 25, 2021The Black Butterfly is the highly anticipated release by Lawrence T. Brown highlighting the structural inequities of urban planning, using Baltimore City as a case study. Brown offers us clear and innovated solutions on how to help heal and restore red-lined Black neighborhoods, including municipal reparations. Persuasively arguing that because urban apartheid was intentionally erected it can be intentionally dismantled, The Black Butterfly demonstrates that America cannot reflect that Black Lives Matter until we see how Black neighborhoods matter.
-Odessa
-Odessa
July 30, 2024
Writing: 1 stars
Logic/Research: 5 stars
Equally Weighted Average (score given): 3 stars
If you work in Baltimore housing, this is a must-read regardless of the dense and difficult writing style and overly complicated language.
The book is rich in history, tracing today's modern apartheid in Baltimore all the way back to the location's large part in the slave trade. The book carries tons of great information, often repeated because it's easy to forget things in the barrage of facts. The book is now about shocking numbers. history, and challenges; if you are looking for revelations in your knowledge and perspective, you will find none here. We know the slave trade left enduring damage; we know Black neighborhoods are systemically mistreated; we know, we know, we know.
However, this book connects the dots between facts that led to the deterioration of Black life in Baltimore. It does so without missing a single connection, and for that reason, the book is both terribly tedious and also wonderfully thorough. If you work in Baltimore housing, you need this book because of the latter.
The connections are there but long-winded, as Dr. Brown has not quite mastered the art of practical writing. I am a scholar, and I can appreciate how difficult it is to simplify and sensationalize research for general audiences, so I feel a lot of the writing issues fall on Dr. Brown's editors as well. This book would have actually been a DNF for me just a couple of chapters in if I did not have to read this for work.
Logic/Research: 5 stars
Equally Weighted Average (score given): 3 stars
If you work in Baltimore housing, this is a must-read regardless of the dense and difficult writing style and overly complicated language.
The book is rich in history, tracing today's modern apartheid in Baltimore all the way back to the location's large part in the slave trade. The book carries tons of great information, often repeated because it's easy to forget things in the barrage of facts. The book is now about shocking numbers. history, and challenges; if you are looking for revelations in your knowledge and perspective, you will find none here. We know the slave trade left enduring damage; we know Black neighborhoods are systemically mistreated; we know, we know, we know.
However, this book connects the dots between facts that led to the deterioration of Black life in Baltimore. It does so without missing a single connection, and for that reason, the book is both terribly tedious and also wonderfully thorough. If you work in Baltimore housing, you need this book because of the latter.
The connections are there but long-winded, as Dr. Brown has not quite mastered the art of practical writing. I am a scholar, and I can appreciate how difficult it is to simplify and sensationalize research for general audiences, so I feel a lot of the writing issues fall on Dr. Brown's editors as well. This book would have actually been a DNF for me just a couple of chapters in if I did not have to read this for work.
January 30, 2025
The majority of the book concerns the history of and present conditions for the ongoing system of hypersegregation, ghettoization, and "whitelash," and the resulting generational trauma. As the Brown notes, we cannot do the work of fixing systemic racism in this country if we cannot understand what caused it in the first place.
While the history of spatial racism & accounting of modern systemic racism (which Brown convincingly and evocatively describes as "apartheid") are robust and compelling, the remedies offered are maddeningly light on details at times: what does it really mean for communities to have "more democratic participation" in local ordinances, or to "share in the profits" from a development? He briefly mentions that black workers should own the means of production, which is arguably the most radical policy prescription in the book, then immediately continues to the next proposal with the kind of casualness that doesn't usually follow grand Marxist declarations.
Yet at other times, the calls to action are burdened by a baffling excess of detail -- why did Brown feel the need to pontificate about laser-guided, AI-driven, trackless gadgetbahns when talking about addressing racial transit inequity?
This audiobook was narrated (to great effect!) by Lady Brion.
While the history of spatial racism & accounting of modern systemic racism (which Brown convincingly and evocatively describes as "apartheid") are robust and compelling, the remedies offered are maddeningly light on details at times: what does it really mean for communities to have "more democratic participation" in local ordinances, or to "share in the profits" from a development? He briefly mentions that black workers should own the means of production, which is arguably the most radical policy prescription in the book, then immediately continues to the next proposal with the kind of casualness that doesn't usually follow grand Marxist declarations.
Yet at other times, the calls to action are burdened by a baffling excess of detail -- why did Brown feel the need to pontificate about laser-guided, AI-driven, trackless gadgetbahns when talking about addressing racial transit inequity?
This audiobook was narrated (to great effect!) by Lady Brion.
July 28, 2022
"The Black Butterfly: The Harmful Politics of Race and Space in America" by Lawrence T. Brown tries to show where racial inequity begins and how it remains, focusing specifically on hyper-segregated Baltimore.
Many organizations exist to attack the problem, more than I could possibly list here but excessive rents, high property taxes, low income, and the removal of recreational areas still occur. Blame whomever you please: the issues go higher than you think.
Years ago, when President Trump called Baltimore "a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess", he roused his supporters and ticked off natives. Brown saw it as needless name-calling and tried to get to the root of the problem. You may not agree, but you have to trust that he has done more research than you have.
If the past 16 years in politics have taught us anything, we have learned that different people have their own definition of America. When the wealth and taxes seem to favor certain sections over others, you see what happens to those that feel excluded.
In my favorite movie "Sideways", Maya says she likes wine because of what it makes her think about. Books like analyze problems in new ways and give me hope that somebody has a solution-based approach, not just a convenient opinion.
Many organizations exist to attack the problem, more than I could possibly list here but excessive rents, high property taxes, low income, and the removal of recreational areas still occur. Blame whomever you please: the issues go higher than you think.
Years ago, when President Trump called Baltimore "a disgusting, rat and rodent infested mess", he roused his supporters and ticked off natives. Brown saw it as needless name-calling and tried to get to the root of the problem. You may not agree, but you have to trust that he has done more research than you have.
If the past 16 years in politics have taught us anything, we have learned that different people have their own definition of America. When the wealth and taxes seem to favor certain sections over others, you see what happens to those that feel excluded.
In my favorite movie "Sideways", Maya says she likes wine because of what it makes her think about. Books like analyze problems in new ways and give me hope that somebody has a solution-based approach, not just a convenient opinion.
February 3, 2021
This is an amazing blend of accessible theory, breaking complex history and politics down in a clear and readable way for non-specialists, with a level of exhaustive research that just can't be denied. Much of the information (the particular non-profit organizations, government entities, local laws and budgets, etc.) is specific to Baltimore, but I viewed that easily as an in-depth case study, which is also kept conceptually to larger issues that are relevant to everywhere in the country where a black neighborhood exists. It's gotten me on a whole quest to learn more about the post-segregation actions that affected the black neighborhood where I lived in Minneapolis, where conditions seemed at the time to have just grown up naturally, but now I know that wasn't the case at all. Much of this is less public than the obviousness of Southern segregation, which is why this level of research is so valuable. It's a springboard, too, into thinking about how to re-envision all kinds of things about the world, from the microcosm of the neighborhood to the university, for example, and then to our system of government as a whole.
If you're thinking you're not interested in Baltimore as such, or that this looks a little policy-wonky, I'd recommend you get over that! It's great.
If you're thinking you're not interested in Baltimore as such, or that this looks a little policy-wonky, I'd recommend you get over that! It's great.
September 6, 2021
I recently moved to Baltimore and this was on my list for quite a bit, so I am stoked to check if off. Heads up, it did not leave me with a warm and fuzzy feeling, *but* I feel like it is my duty to at the very minimum read about this city and acknowledge the plight of Black people through the years. While the book focused primarily on Baltimore I have no doubt that the theories and legal practices are pervasive in other communities of color that face the same racial injustices. At the risk of sounding stupid, I had no idea that Baltimore was a prominent slave trading site and later on the site of the first bloodshed of the Civil War. It is not what I thought the “South” looked like, but it clearly has shaped the city’s deep rooted segregation. My favorite part was the chapter about how to solve some of the injustices. I understand my limitations as a student and acknowledge that I might not be able to act upon many of his suggestions, but I think it is important to be aware of the politics and policies so that I can do my part, whatever that may be. Fun fact, I was set to take a history of Baltimore course and this was the book my teacher had on his syllabus
May 23, 2021
What makes this book a 5 for me is the offering of ideas for solutions. It does more than identify and describe challenges. Brown is creative.
He identifies forces that have resulted in "constant battering" of Black neighborhoods, weathering them over time and causing destruction. He points out that "concentrated poverty is a misleading phrase that fails to highlight who concentrated the poverty, how it became concentrated . . . ." p. 191. He describes forces like neglect, disrespect, gentrification, redlining, subprime lending, hypersegregation, and hyperpolicing.
He describes dynamics for example how campaign contributions to politicians, including Black politicians, lead to economic development commissions, panels and the like that lack Black voices and perspectives, which results in funding and tax policies in which Black futures are ignored.
He also recommends solutions. For example addressing homelessness by setting up a foreclosure and eviction prevention fund that bridges homeowners and renters for six months. p. 203.
He identifies forces that have resulted in "constant battering" of Black neighborhoods, weathering them over time and causing destruction. He points out that "concentrated poverty is a misleading phrase that fails to highlight who concentrated the poverty, how it became concentrated . . . ." p. 191. He describes forces like neglect, disrespect, gentrification, redlining, subprime lending, hypersegregation, and hyperpolicing.
He describes dynamics for example how campaign contributions to politicians, including Black politicians, lead to economic development commissions, panels and the like that lack Black voices and perspectives, which results in funding and tax policies in which Black futures are ignored.
He also recommends solutions. For example addressing homelessness by setting up a foreclosure and eviction prevention fund that bridges homeowners and renters for six months. p. 203.
August 12, 2026
I may end up ranking this lower.
I picked this book up on a whim after reading in the summary about how the public infrastructure of Baltimore built in the era of expansion created massive inequality and crime amongst the Balitmorites (?). To Brown's credit, he definitely did highlight how massive government investment distributed wealth unequally there and why attempts to help the inner-city poor have either not worked or made things worse.
Where he lost me was the final chapters, where he advocates for his solution of asking all of the wealthiest non-profits or sponsors to liquidate 50% of their net worth to solve all of the race-related issues within Baltimore. Practicality aside, should not the first chapters of this book argue against this, as big money is the reason that the Black Butterfly is the way that it is? Will large amounts of capital suddenly change gang violence? This seems to be indicative of educated people saying that large amounts of money will solve all problems when the last 70 years of support has not changed anything.
I picked this book up on a whim after reading in the summary about how the public infrastructure of Baltimore built in the era of expansion created massive inequality and crime amongst the Balitmorites (?). To Brown's credit, he definitely did highlight how massive government investment distributed wealth unequally there and why attempts to help the inner-city poor have either not worked or made things worse.
Where he lost me was the final chapters, where he advocates for his solution of asking all of the wealthiest non-profits or sponsors to liquidate 50% of their net worth to solve all of the race-related issues within Baltimore. Practicality aside, should not the first chapters of this book argue against this, as big money is the reason that the Black Butterfly is the way that it is? Will large amounts of capital suddenly change gang violence? This seems to be indicative of educated people saying that large amounts of money will solve all problems when the last 70 years of support has not changed anything.
June 25, 2026
This book offers a wealth of information on the plight of the city of Baltimore. Baltimore occupies in my mind the same position of other forgotten or culturally rich Black second-tier cities. That is it that she is related to Memphis, Cleveland, and various others that the author named in the book. Many of the conclusions that he comes to especially those from the economic and implementation portion are with which I completely agree and totally understand since they mirror many conclusions to which I have come on mine own. Black Baltimore also occupies a special place in my heart as a studier of languages. Their accent is so strong and unique. Great stuff.
July 3, 2026
Un ensayo ligero que recomiendo enormemente para entender la historia de Estados Unidos desde una mirada crítica. Iré al grano: va sobre racismo. Baltimore es una ciudad muy peculiar en este sentido, porque tanto su planificación urbanística como su legislación municipal reflejan la historia del racismo en este país y, como muestra el libro, cómo esas estructuras perviven en el presente. Yo viví tres años en esta ciudad y gracias a este libro pude comprender mejor la cultura y las estructuras de poder que me rodeaban, desde una conversación de bar hasta mis clases en la universidad. Si visitas la Costa Este, diría que es lectura obligatoria.
June 13, 2021
This book is thoroughly researched and provides a lot of information about the history and present-day reality of racism and racist policies in Baltimore. I appreciated that the author presents detailed recommended solutions towards addressing the racial inequality in Baltimore. The one thing I would have liked to see is maps and diagrams to help break down the information in a more visual way. It would have been very useful, for instance, to have maps that supplemented the narrative descriptions of Baltimore's geography and to be able to see on the map the neighborhoods mentioned.
July 30, 2021
tell me. I'm already well versed in the history of Baltimore's racist, segregating housing and other policies that have led to some of the myriad of issues that the city now faces. I also didn't care for the writing style. It felt a little jumpy to me. I do appreciate that Brown offered up suggested solutions to the problems he writes about in the book. I don't know that any of them will come to fruition and some of them seem very much pie in the sky, but I did like that he is at least trying to offer ways to move the city forward.
September 1, 2022
Wow, this book is a lot 😳 very detailed, researched, and thoughtful about a strategy to transform black neighborhoods in Baltimore and beyond. Very dense with statistics and analysis, light on narrative. It is SO insightful and practical I would recommend it to everyone, but it could be a very tough book for many to read. Also, it does not take into account nuance in a lot of the situations it described, so that frustrated me from time to time, but I think that was very intentional in the purpose and style it’s written in. Overall very important and necessary
December 30, 2021
Well researched account of the relationship between racial inequality/inequity and urban policies and planning. The highlight for me was the way the author reframed American history in terms of Black dispossession and disenfranchisement. Really eye opening and very accessible. I also appreciate the really concrete suggestions of the author for overcoming the “segrenomics” currently affecting most of the United States’ urban areas. Definitely worth a read.
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