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Manufacturing Decline: How Racism and the Conservative Movement Crush the American Rust Belt
For decades, the distressed cities of the Rust Belt have been symbols of deindustrialization and postindustrial decay, their troubles cast as the inevitable outcome of economic change. The debate about why the fortunes of cities such as Detroit have fallen looms large over questions of social policy. In Manufacturing Decline , Jason Hackworth offers a powerful critique of the role of Rust Belt cities in American political discourse, arguing that antigovernment conservatives capitalized on―and perpetuated―these cities’ misfortunes by stoking racial resentment.
Hackworth traces how the conservative movement has used the imagery and ideas of urban decline since the 1970s to advance their cause. Through a comparative study of shrinking Rust Belt cities, he argues that the rhetoric of the troubled “inner city” has served as a proxy for other social conflicts around race and class. In particular, conservatives have used images of urban decay to craft “dog-whistle” messages to racially resentful whites, garnering votes for the Republican Party and helping justify limits on local autonomy in distressed cities. The othering of predominantly black industrial cities has served as the basis for disinvestment and deprivation that exacerbated the flight of people and capital. Decline, Hackworth contends, was manufactured both literally and rhetorically in an effort to advance austerity and punitive policies. Weaving together analyses of urban policy, movement conservatism, and market fundamentalism, Manufacturing Decline highlights the central role of racial reaction in creating the problems American cities still face.
Hackworth traces how the conservative movement has used the imagery and ideas of urban decline since the 1970s to advance their cause. Through a comparative study of shrinking Rust Belt cities, he argues that the rhetoric of the troubled “inner city” has served as a proxy for other social conflicts around race and class. In particular, conservatives have used images of urban decay to craft “dog-whistle” messages to racially resentful whites, garnering votes for the Republican Party and helping justify limits on local autonomy in distressed cities. The othering of predominantly black industrial cities has served as the basis for disinvestment and deprivation that exacerbated the flight of people and capital. Decline, Hackworth contends, was manufactured both literally and rhetorically in an effort to advance austerity and punitive policies. Weaving together analyses of urban policy, movement conservatism, and market fundamentalism, Manufacturing Decline highlights the central role of racial reaction in creating the problems American cities still face.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 26, 2021
Important book about how the media distorts the changes going on in our cities and some of the bad actors working to prevent them from succeeding. Seems as though America needs to conquer its racism before any of the programs needed to fix our cities can have any hope of being sustained long enough to work. Note that the study is limited to the Midwest (an area through Ohio -- further east than some would think of "Midwest" -- the nature of the housing stock in places like Baltimore are, the author believes, too different to make comparisons work. Thus, for this book, anything we are learning in cities in other American regions is not useful for understanding what we need to do for the cities in this region.
There are no groups of billionaires working to make our farms fail or make our suburbs fail with anything like the intensity of rich people wanting our cities to fail.
There are no groups of billionaires working to make our farms fail or make our suburbs fail with anything like the intensity of rich people wanting our cities to fail.
April 21, 2020
Have you ever read something that coalesced seemingly disparate phenomena? Jason Hackworth’s Manufacturing Decline is one of the best examples of that. He removes all the distracting, pacifying political talk and reveals the core of how conservatives, inspired by racism (although they would vehemently deny that and make proclamations about the free market - a tactic Hackworth dismantles) employed organized deprivation to foster urban decline. With my beloved hometown, Detroit, being a prime example or consequence of those efforts. Hackworth’s research is as stellar as is his commitment to truth.
June 17, 2024
‘Above all, the focus of critical activism, scholarship, and journalism should center on two mutually reinforcing tactics: undermining the hegemon and developing an alternative’ - p. 144 manufacturing decline
Being a resident of a white flight suburb in St. Louis, I’ve understood for some time that there is a major economic, social, and racial divide between the city and county. This book has strengthened my awareness of the processes, practices, and racial animus that accumulated to the reality St. Louis City faces today. I’m excited to take what I’ve learned and critically apply it to thinking about how the Left can start laying the groundwork for a more united and fleshed-out opposition to the current conservative juridical hegemony in Missouri and beyond.
Being a resident of a white flight suburb in St. Louis, I’ve understood for some time that there is a major economic, social, and racial divide between the city and county. This book has strengthened my awareness of the processes, practices, and racial animus that accumulated to the reality St. Louis City faces today. I’m excited to take what I’ve learned and critically apply it to thinking about how the Left can start laying the groundwork for a more united and fleshed-out opposition to the current conservative juridical hegemony in Missouri and beyond.
November 27, 2019
Jason Hackworth manages to take decades of historical context on the nature of racism and the evolution of conservative policy and frame their effects on rust belt cities. He is up front in his conclusions and does not leave the question of "what is accelerating the decline of these cities" unanswered. But, unlike much of the political discourse today, Hackworth logically progresses through countless studies, research, and cases to back up his arguments. Many times, the issues discussed in the book have enlightened me to some of the deeper issues seen in other parts of life. It is eye opening and a very interesting read.
January 9, 2020
"Manufacturing Decline" is function over form, but all its dry subject matter and statistics isn't too difficult for the layman to understand. This is good, because the central message is important: the decline of the rust belt's urban centers was not an accident. The decline was the outgrowth of not only neoliberal policy, but specifically racialized policies, usually inflicted on cities from state or county governments that are majority white. This understanding contradicts our usual understanding that either the decline was inevitable or caused by bad city governance.
August 18, 2020
It's definitely an academic argument kind of work, something others will be able to make a cogent argument against. Keep that in mind while reading; but it's a compelling argument for the most part and presents a fresh framework for viewing shrinking cities, and especially the near-total acquiescence to demolition-first policies.
April 26, 2020
This is an excellently researched and composed explanation of how and why Rust Belt cities are in the state they're in. It's an academic read that's well worth the investment of time and focus, and it should especially resonate with those who live in or grew up in the Midwest.
January 23, 2020
Well written with facts to back up points. I found it at times straying off topic or really grasping at straws to make points. Overall worth the read
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March 28, 2023A hard read in that it deals with very real things that make me very mad. Very dense but worthy read.
February 22, 2020
This book is very thorough, it discusses the shift from Keynesian economics to supply side (Reaganomics), laissez-faire economics and how Rust Belt states (and there major cities) were battle grounds for conservatives. How the new deal was horrible for conservative businessman so they had to go in with paid politicians to use fear mongering to convince white people that new African-American mayors (like Coleman Young, mayor of Detroit) didn’t know what they were doing, calling them antibusiness, and taking their hard earned tax dollars (sidebar: deindustrialization was happening, as a result of the 1970s energy crisis and businesses were looking to help their bottom line by dispersing their manufacturing plants, and Roger Smith, the CEO of GM moved 60,000 jobs from Flint, Michigan but OK continue).
This book also goes into detail about how conservatives took power away from local cities to get revenue from the federal government how to go through the state and the state could veto it because they didn’t believe that welfare was the answer. The state also restricted the cities eminent domain capabilities. Eminent domain is where the city buys a piece of property (public or private) and uses it for development, growth, and schools.
HOWEVER...
I must say, move out the hood. I live Texas and some of this you do have to deal with but also there are copious amounts of blue-collar jobs in the state that allow you to live in a comfortable setting with a excellent public school with a sports program if your kid is talented can get a scholarship to a big-time school in power five conference. I’m not saying what they are doing is morally correct, I’m just saying you can only control what you can control.
P.S. This book uses a lot of SAT words so have your dictionary & thesaurus ready.
This book also goes into detail about how conservatives took power away from local cities to get revenue from the federal government how to go through the state and the state could veto it because they didn’t believe that welfare was the answer. The state also restricted the cities eminent domain capabilities. Eminent domain is where the city buys a piece of property (public or private) and uses it for development, growth, and schools.
HOWEVER...
I must say, move out the hood. I live Texas and some of this you do have to deal with but also there are copious amounts of blue-collar jobs in the state that allow you to live in a comfortable setting with a excellent public school with a sports program if your kid is talented can get a scholarship to a big-time school in power five conference. I’m not saying what they are doing is morally correct, I’m just saying you can only control what you can control.
P.S. This book uses a lot of SAT words so have your dictionary & thesaurus ready.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews