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Uneasy Peace: Patrick Sharkey

Patrick Sharkey charts the Great Crime Decline, offering urban policy solutions to prevent future crime waves.

Since the 1990s, urban crime has dropped dramatically, transforming city life in positive and negative ways. Areas once known for violent crime now face rising rents and the forces of gentrification. In his book Uneasy Peace: The Great Crime Decline, the Renewal of City Life, and the Next War on Violence, Patrick Sharkey reveals how the country confronted an epidemic of violence—and how these measures impact cities today.

In 2014, most American cities were safer than they had ever been in the history of recorded statistics on crime. Sharkey details the striking consequences: improved school test scores, since children are better able to learn when not traumatized by nearby violence; better chances that poor children will rise into the middle class; and a striking increase in the life expectancy of African American men.

But the forces that led to this crime drop had mixed consequences, from increased policing and mass incarceration to the formation of community organizations, with residents mobilizing to fight crime in their neighborhoods.

In this talk, Sharkey details successful strategies for crime prevention and resolution, arguing that community-level organizing will be integral to the fight against urban crime in decades to come. A Q&A will follow.











When: Wed., Feb. 7, 2018 at 6:30 pm
Where: New York Public Library—Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library
476 Fifth Ave. (42nd St. Entrance)
212-340-0863
Price: Free
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Patrick Sharkey charts the Great Crime Decline, offering urban policy solutions to prevent future crime waves.

Since the 1990s, urban crime has dropped dramatically, transforming city life in positive and negative ways. Areas once known for violent crime now face rising rents and the forces of gentrification. In his book Uneasy Peace: The Great Crime Decline, the Renewal of City Life, and the Next War on Violence, Patrick Sharkey reveals how the country confronted an epidemic of violence—and how these measures impact cities today.

In 2014, most American cities were safer than they had ever been in the history of recorded statistics on crime. Sharkey details the striking consequences: improved school test scores, since children are better able to learn when not traumatized by nearby violence; better chances that poor children will rise into the middle class; and a striking increase in the life expectancy of African American men.

But the forces that led to this crime drop had mixed consequences, from increased policing and mass incarceration to the formation of community organizations, with residents mobilizing to fight crime in their neighborhoods.

In this talk, Sharkey details successful strategies for crime prevention and resolution, arguing that community-level organizing will be integral to the fight against urban crime in decades to come. A Q&A will follow.

Buy tickets/get more info now