Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City

Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City, a tremendously insightful book by American University professor Derek S. Hyra, analyzes the process and consequences of redevelopment in Washington D.C.’s Shaw/U Street neighborhood. The neighborhood has undergone significant change: “In 1970, the community was 90 percent Black; however, by 2010, African Americans comprised only 30 percent of its population.” Inversely, since 2000, the White population has risen from 23 percent to 53 percent.

Exploring all aspects of this process, Race, Class… is engaging throughout, but it’s most enlightening sections are the ones that explore previously under-researched topics of community redevelopment. Rather than focus on the low-income citizens being displaced by an influx of new residents, Mr. Hyra instead explores the political and cultural displacement of low-income residents who stay in redeveloping Shaw/ U Street. But he doesn’t just explore race relations. Mr. Hyra also explores the role of class and sexual orientation in community tensions, although he only hints at the impact of age and religion in Shaw/U Street’s redevelopment. Assured and forceful, Mr. Hyra’s book is so useful because he asks and answers penetrating questions about all aspects of Shaw/U Street’s redevelopment.