The Capitalist City

Urban development and its causes, character and significance provide the focus of this book. The authors argue that this development can best be understood by examining cities in the light of the links that connect them to the world economy, with dominant multinationals and processes of economic restructuring. The book shows how these transnational linkages work, and how different cities participate in the global economy through developing specializations such as financial services. The role of the state in restructuring global, national and local economies is examined, and the everyday activities of households and communities are shown to be constitutive elements in the process of urban transformation. Contributors include - Michael Peter Smith, Joe R. Feagin, Michael Timberlake, Norman J. Glickman, Richard Tardanico, David C. Perry, Saskia Sassen-Koob, Richard Child Hill, Edward W. Soja, Patricia Anne Wilson, Desmond S. King, Sophie Body-Gendrot, Helen Safa, June Nash, Enzo Mingione, Susan S. Fainstein, Margit Mayer and John Walton.