internetshouldbeapublicutility's review against another edition
Since finishing this book, I think a lot about public bathrooms.
jess_es02's review against another edition
3.0
interesting insights and a nice blend of personal experience with academic theorisation, but i was expecting more empirical evidence - stats, etc. doesn't really give an impression of the systemic problems of cities as a result (or maybe that's just me). and i was expecting more discussion of ways to make things better, aside from just an acknowledgement that there are no panaceas, and that intersectionality needs to be considered when thinking of solutions. so overall it was interesting, but not fully satisfying
londonspredestrian's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
juliajjshields's review against another edition
3.75
I was first introduced to feminist city in undergrad where I was assigned passages in an ethics class. while I recalled some of the ideas presented, I wanted to take a deeper dive into Kern’s findings of a feminist city.
From the beginning, I appreciated Kern’s awareness of her privileged identities and the focus on accessibility within a city. I was nervous that a book titled feminist city would largely center white women & if that was the case I going to throw the book into the abyss (metaphorically considering I listened to it). However, Kern continuously amplified intersectionality of Black & Indigenous women’s issues as well as other women of color, queer women, and the disability community. Those with disabilities are often left out of many equity conversations, especially when it comes to urban space and landscape. I was so glad the author presented challenges women with disabilities rather than ignoring them entirely.
Something that stood out right away was the abundance of citations and quotes. At times it felt as if information was just being regurgitated and I couldn’t tell where new ideas were which was a bit disappointing as I had heard many of the notions cited before. The other let down for me was the description of the book says that “it’s time to dismantle what we take for granted about cities and ask how we can build more just, sustainable, and woman-friendly cities together” but we don’t really do that reimagining. This book provides context—which is needed for radical change—but doesn’t really outline an intersectional approach on how to get there as the description promises.
This book came out in 2019, pre pandemic and murder of George Floyd. I couldn’t stop wondering how this would be different if Kern wrote it today. Public space is so different. Civil unrest and understandings of Justice, equity, diversity etc. have vastly changed as well. As someone studying planning in the midst of the pandemic, it greatly influenced my view of urbanism. I think due to the changes since the writing of this book only 4 years ago, I felt some areas were lacking…Overall, I found it to be solid for anyone who’s new to understanding cities and the ways our lives are impacted by them. For someone a bit more advanced, it didn’t feel ground breaking! Resonant quotes & notes below
- “Less tangible but no less important are the psychic qualities of the city: anonymity, energy, spontaneity, unpredictability, and yes, even danger.”
- “Because the built environment is durable over long timespans, we’re stuck with spaces that reflect outdated and inaccurate social realities. This in turn shapes how people live their lives and the range of choices and possibilities that are open to them”
- “The suburbs were deliberately isolating for women. Keeping them attached to the inner world of the home and cultivating a sense of loneliness, and even despair”
On Friendship & Co-Ops etc.
- “Friendship has received very little attention as a way of life or a set of relationships and experiences that shape or is shaped by the city”
- “Ultimately I don’t think we can rely on urban policy and planning to sustain or generate the kinds of spaces that allow non traditional relationships to flourish. Planning paradigms and property regimes that favor particular kinds of ownership are slow to change.”
- “A focus on friendship has revolutionary potential. It defies patriarchal logic. There are bodies with other bodies laughing, crying, cooking, dancing, hugging with no imperative to procreation or other reproductive labors. Friendship as counter to capitalist ideologies. Friendship as its own economy.”
- “for women, anonymity and invisibility are always temporary and must be jealously guarded”
- “The conundrum is this: a woman alone is presumed always available to other men”
- ‼️“Women’s lack of comfort in certain spaces can be used as justification for a host of problematic interventions that increase danger for others. For example, homeless people and people of color, in the pursuit of comfort for middle class white women”
On Fear Controlling Behavior
- “The social function of women’s fear is the control of women. Fear restricts women’s lives. It limits our use of public spaces, shapes our choices about work and other economic opportunities, and keeps us in perhaps what is an actual paradox dependent on men as protectors.”
- “Our socially enforced fears keep us from fully inhabiting the city and from making the most of our lives on a day to day basis.”
- “Asking women to buy their safety through condo ownership, contributes to the trend of privatization where people are held responsible for their own well-being, even their safety from crime. Making safety a private commodity in the city means it’s less and less available to those who lack the economic means to secure themselves.”
- ‼️”James Baldwin wrote about the same neighborhoods as [Jane] Jacobs, whereas a queer Black man, he was regularly harassed by the police and viewed as a dangerous outsider, rather than part of the delightful diversity of Jacobs’ own version of Greenwich Village.”
- “Feminist City is an aspirational project. One without a ‘master plan’ that in fact resists the lure of mastery. The feminist city is an ongoing experiment in living differently, living better, and living more justly in an urban world.”
joanapereirinha's review
3.0
I thought this book would cover different alternatives of how to build a more female-friendly city however it is more about the experiences of the author in the city. I didn't find it so interesting, except for the chapters where she talks about the demonstrations and how it is different and what a woman has to consider when participating in one.