Inequality, Poverty, and Neoliberal Governance

Activist Ethnography in the Homeless Sheltering Industry

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Anthropology, Sociology
Cover of the book Inequality, Poverty, and Neoliberal Governance by Vincent Lyon-Callo, University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Vincent Lyon-Callo ISBN: 9781442635845
Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division Publication: October 1, 2004
Imprint: Language: English
Author: Vincent Lyon-Callo
ISBN: 9781442635845
Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division
Publication: October 1, 2004
Imprint:
Language: English

Why did the rate of homelessness remain at significant levels while the US economy was supposedly booming and hundreds of millions of dollars were spent in the homeless sheltering industry? Drawing upon five years of ethnographic fieldwork in a homeless shelter in Northampton, Massachusetts, Lyon-Callo argues that homelessness must be understood within the context of increasing neoliberal policies, practices, and discourses. As advocates, activists, policy makers, and homeless people focused attention on market-based and individualized practices of reform and governance, collective efforts that challenged an economy dependent on low wage jobs, declining housing affordability, and the dismantling of the social safety net were marginalized and ignored. Homelessness continued, despite, and partly due to, the limitations of the neoliberal approach.

Combining the rich detail of an ethnographic study with the systemic examination of political economic studies, this book offers a view of homelessness and inequality that is rarely explored elsewhere. Chapters include discussion of the medicalization of homelessness, the difficulty of finding paid employment given broader political economic conditions, how shelter staff are trained to manage homeless people, how statistics are used to produce ideas of homeless people as deviants, and how funding concerns affect possibilities for resistance. Key to the study is an activist approach that raises the possibilities and problems associated with a publicly engaged anthropology.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Why did the rate of homelessness remain at significant levels while the US economy was supposedly booming and hundreds of millions of dollars were spent in the homeless sheltering industry? Drawing upon five years of ethnographic fieldwork in a homeless shelter in Northampton, Massachusetts, Lyon-Callo argues that homelessness must be understood within the context of increasing neoliberal policies, practices, and discourses. As advocates, activists, policy makers, and homeless people focused attention on market-based and individualized practices of reform and governance, collective efforts that challenged an economy dependent on low wage jobs, declining housing affordability, and the dismantling of the social safety net were marginalized and ignored. Homelessness continued, despite, and partly due to, the limitations of the neoliberal approach.

Combining the rich detail of an ethnographic study with the systemic examination of political economic studies, this book offers a view of homelessness and inequality that is rarely explored elsewhere. Chapters include discussion of the medicalization of homelessness, the difficulty of finding paid employment given broader political economic conditions, how shelter staff are trained to manage homeless people, how statistics are used to produce ideas of homeless people as deviants, and how funding concerns affect possibilities for resistance. Key to the study is an activist approach that raises the possibilities and problems associated with a publicly engaged anthropology.

More books from University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division

Cover of the book The Trial of Tempel Anneke by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Dying and Death in Canada, Third Edition by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Thinking Government by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Indigenous Peoples of North America by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book This Happened in My Presence by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book As Others See Us by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Reading the Middle Ages, Volume II by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book European Magic and Witchcraft by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book A History of Science in Society, Volume I by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Red Flags and Lace Coiffes by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Comparing Political Regimes by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Against the Grain by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Eating Culture by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book The Trial of Tempel Anneke by Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cover of the book Provinces by Vincent Lyon-Callo
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy