City of Disorder: How the Quality of Life Campaign Transformed New York Politics

In the 1990s, improving the quality of life became a primary focus and a popular catchphrase of the governments of New York and many other American cities. Faced with high levels of homelessness and other disorders associated with a growing disenfranchised population, then mayor Rudolph Giuliani led New York's zero tolerance campaign against what was perceived to be an increase in disorder that directly threatened social and economic stability. In a traditionally liberal city, the focus had shifted dramatically from improving the lives of the needy to protecting the welfare of the middle and upper classes-a decidedly neoconservative move. In City of Disorder, Alex S. Vitale analyzes this drive to restore moral order which resulted in an overhaul of the way New York views such social problems as prostitution, graffiti, homelessness, and panhandling. Through several fascinating case studies of New York neighborhoods and an in-depth look at the dynamics of the NYPD and of the city's administration itself, Vitale explains why Republicans have won the last four New York mayoral elections and what the long-term impact Giuliani's zero tolerance method has been on a city historically known for its liberalism. Alex S. Vitale is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Brooklyn College, City University of New York.

Author: Alex S. Vitale
Publisher: New York University Press
Published: 04/01/2008
Pages: 252
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.03lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.16w x 0.81d
ISBN13: 9780814788172
ISBN10: 0814788173
BISAC Categories:
- Social Science | Sociology | Urban
- History | United States | State & Local | Middle Atlantic (DC, DE, MD,
- Political Science | American Government | Local