Sidewalk Mitchell Duneier

Greenwich Village, NYC

Hakim Hasan Book vendor At first, predominantly “Black books” – by or about African-Americans Exceptionally well-read Becomes romantically involved with Alice, merge tables

When asked, Hakim says he is a “public character” Phrase comes from Jane Jacobs’ 1961 book The Death and Life of Great American Cities Also about Greenwich Village

Structure of sidewalk life hangs partly upon Public characters Frequent contact with a wide circle of people News of sidewalk interest travels this way

Jacobs described how Local shopkeepers Used to have spare keys for neighbors Watchful eye on children Call police if threatening figures loomed Had an interest in law and order

Unlike suburban America where Errands are done by cars, In Greenwich village, most people walk to do them Sidewalk life crucial – strangers must sense mutual support Behaviors and boundaries clearly defined

Currently, Poor Black men make their lives on the village sidewalks Different than 1961 Then – stricter racial segregation, well-policed skid row areas of NYC Now – have to handle their own social boundaries

Why these changes? Extreme concentration of poverty Crack epidemic Workfare changes – loss of benefits

How sidewalk life works today Some magazine vendors are homeless Some find that police throw their tables out into garbage trucks when they leave for a minute Some scavenge garbage to sell on street Some panhandle

Duneier asks sociological questions About order, exclusion, stigmatization, city’s response, etc.

Street life provides social support For those not receiving it from social service agencies or religious groups Chance to earn wages, support self and others Carves order out of chaos

Government response “Broken windows” theory – minor signs of disorder lead to more serious crime Therefore –city has social controls – limiting vending space, throwing away belongings “Quality of life” issues are big concerns in major U.S. cities

Sidewalk life influenced by larger forces Global level – deindustrialization National level – stratification of race and class and gender NYC level – punishment/restriction of vendors

“Mitch” Duneier did participant observation One type of social research Worked as scavenger/vendor Parts of “professor” or “scholar” to some

Ovie Carter Photojournalist Helps him to see things he hadn’t noticed

In immersing himself in the sidewalk Duneier hopes to explain the social forces that determine how sidewalk life is lived

Issues with this type of research Subjectivity Generalizability Trust