CHAPTER 4

PG 112-116
 ECONOMY ROLE IN SUBURBANIZATION

1. The predominant geography of Fordism was suburbanization, which supported the formation of
nuclear families and reinforced patriarchal relations.
2. In the 1970s, profitability began to decline due to the oil crisis and the problems of
• low growth
• rising inflation
• high unemployment.

1. In New York City, the crisis became particularly acute due to the increasing cost of social welfare
programs and the declining property tax revenues due to white middle-class flight.
2. A new economic paradigm was emerging, characterized by flexible or just-in-time production and
targeted advertising.
3. The new economic order has led to the hollowing out of the nation-state and the rise of global
economic structures, as well as the importance of both global and local institutions.
 NEOLIBERISM

Neoliberalism is the dominant mode of governing in the post-Fordist era, based on the
philosophy of Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek.

“It involves the privatization of public services, retraction of government from social
service provision, outsourcing of these tasks to nonprofit or for-profit organizations,
and shifting the focus of government from providing for residents' collective
consumption needs to facilitating private investment and entrepreneurship.”

• Post-Fordism has redefined urban governments' role in the global economy and their
relationship to their residents, engaging in urban entrepreneurialism and heavy-handed
policing tactics.
 ROLE OF URBAN GOVERNMENTS

I. The role of urban governments has shifted over time, but there is still a need for local decision-
making bodies that will keep the city functioning.
II. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, city governments were ruled by political machines,
which were used to gain votes and loyalties of particular neighborhoods or communities. Middle-
class reformers pushed back against the anti-democratic aspects of the machines and enacted
reforms such as hiring professional city managers to oversee local government bureaus, creating
a professional civil servant class that stayed in their jobs regardless of who was in office, and
electing representatives city-wide rather than by neighborhood or district.
III. Machine politics are not common in U.S. cities today, but similar patronage systems continue to
dominate city governments in many parts of the world.