About this book
Overview
Anderson walks us through Center City Philadelphia, revealing and illustrating through his ethnographic fieldwork how city dwellers often interact across racial, ethnic, and social borders. People engage in a distinctive folk ethnography. Canopies operating in close proximity create a synergy that becomes a cosmopolitan zone. In the vibrant atmosphere of these islands of civility, comity is the order of the day. However, incidents can arise that threaten and rend the canopy, including scenes of great tension involving issues of race, class, and gender. But when they do, the resilience of the canopy prevails. In this space all kinds of city dwellersùfrom gentrifiers to the homeless, cabdrivers to doormenùmanage to coexist in the urban environment, gaining a racial education that helps reinforce and spread tolerance through contact and mutual understanding. --
