The ecology of homicide : race, place, and space in postwar Philadelphia /

Focused on homicide and policing in postwar Philadelphia's economically deprived Black neighborhoods, this volume by the late Schneider (formerly, Univ. of Pennsylvania) masterfully unveils an urban ecology spawning human conflict and violent death. It is an intriguing case study, highly suitable for upper-level college and graduate courses on urban studies and sociology. An expert on the topic, having previously authored Smack: Heroin and the American City (CH, Oct'09, 47-1164), which also deals authoritatively with Philadelphia, Schneider has organized this book topically to explicate how concentrated economic disadvantage, race, and discriminatory policing created an ecology of homicide segmented by both age and gender. Rooted in court records, interviews, and census and other data, the book examines a critical period of Philadelphia history (1945--80) when homicide cases initially waned and then waxed. Ultimately, this fine-grained, temporally specific case study of homicide and policing in Philadelphia is unique. Roger Lane's Bancroft Prize--winning Roots of Violence in Black Philadelphia, 1860--1900 (1986) explores similar issues, but in a different time frame. As noted above, Schneider's ecological approach to socioeconomic behavior makes this text most applicable to advanced students. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduates and graduate students. --John F. Bauman, emeritus, California University of Pennsylvania