Battle for Bed-Stuy

"Battle for Bed-Stuy is about an unlikely alliance that changed the shape of urban policy in the United States. The book reinterprets Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty from the ground up and shows how Johnson's "unconditional" crusade, launched in 1964, grew out of the rich exchange of ideas that had been unfolding in New York neighborhoods for years beforehand. The critical neighborhood in this story was Bedford-Stuyvesant, where the drive to end poverty dovetailed with a vibrant civil-rights movement. The book emphasizes the policy role of the area's African-American middle-class, especially women, who acted as brokers between politicians and the poor. In particular, they worked with Mayor Robert F. Wagner in the 1950s and early '60s to develop new social work techniques and a new model of neighborhood-based planning. Such partnerships laid the groundwork for the federal Community Action Program, the centerpiece of the War on Poverty."--Provided by publisher.