This groundbreaking book brings the study of whiteness and postcolonial perspectives to bear on debates about urban change.
A thought-provoking contribution to debates about urban change, race and cosmopolitan urbanism
Brings the study of whiteness to the discipline of geography, questioning the notion of white ethnicity
Engages with Indigenous peoples' experiences of whiteness - past and present, and with theoretical postcolonial perspectives
Uses Sydney as an example of a 'city of whiteness', considering trends such as Sydney's 'SoHo Syndrome' and the 'Harlemisation' of the Aboriginal community
"Shaw does a fascinating job combining the literature on urban transformation with whiteness studies and creating a unique reading of Sydney as a space of white privilege .The book is well researched and tells a fascinating story of racialized urban change." (
Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, December 2008)
List of Figures.
List of Boxes.
Acknowledgements.
Introduction.
1. Encountering Cities of Whiteness.
Journeying to Inner Sydney.
Cities as Cultural Constructions – Gentrification and Urbanism.
The Birth of Whiteness Scholarship.
Cities of Neo–colonial Whiteness.
2. (Post)colonial Sydney.
From Dangerous to Endangered City.
Securing Whiteness in the Paradoxical City.
Conclusions.
3. ′The Good Old Days′.
Heritage Dreaming.
Performing Sydney Heritage.
Activating Heritage.
Architectures of Escape 1: Into the Past.
Conclusions.
4. Cosmopolitan Metropolitanism (Or The Indifferent City).
Introduction.
Manhattan Dreaming (in Sydney Australia).
Architectures of Escape 2: Sydney′s SoHo Syndrome.
Conclusions.
5. Cities of Whiteness.
Geographies of Urban Whiteness.
Studying Cities.
The End of (Cities of) Whiteness?
Bibliography.
Index.
Wendy S. Shaw is a Senior Lecturer in Geography at the University of New South Wales. Her research interests include the meanings of heritage in Australia and other Pacific places, the impacts of high–rise developments, and the status of Indigenous peoples in Australia and around the world.
In
Cities of Whiteness, Wendy S. Shaw challenges existing ideas about urban change, race and cosmopolitan urbanism. By questioning the notion of white ethnicity and engaging with Indigenous peoples experiences of whiteness, past and present, Shaw provides new ways of seeing cities and of conceptualizing the processes of power that are at work within them. In doing so, she pushes the boundaries of critical race studies in Geography and studies of the city more broadly.
Cities of Whiteness follows three main theoretical trajectories: it highlights the weaknesses of current theories of whiteness; it demonstrates how urban transformation is imbued with processes of whiteness; and it gives an account of formations of power. Shaw grounds her analysis using Sydney as an example of a city of whiteness , considering trends such as Sydney s ′SoHo Syndrome′, the ′Harlemization′ of the Aboriginal community, and the ′Manhattanizing′ of Sydney as it has evolved vertically.