Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City
For the past 10 years, Pitt Public Health has invited faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends to share the experience of reading and discussing our annual selection for the One Book, One Community (OBOC) program. We are pleased to announce that our Pitt Public Health OBOC selection for 2018-19 is
Evicted by Matthew Desmond.
According to Dean Burke, “
Evicted describes the plight of poor families who, for want of a few dollars, are forced to move from their homes, apartments, or trailers. An ethnographer, Desmond shares the intimate vicissitudes of his subject/friends as they struggle to make ends meet while negotiating a bewildering system of slumlords, public agencies, law enforcement, and courts, a system that seems almost designed to reinforce a downward spiral of poverty. The consequences of eviction are especially felt by mothers with young children, whose development is jeopardized by substandard housing, low-quality neighborhoods, and poor nutrition. Social factors are well known to be paramount determinants of health and well-being, and
Evicted heartbreakingly illuminates how poverty and lack of housing affect families and communities. America’s health compares poorly to other economically developed counties. Everyone interested in improving public health should read
Evicted to better understand poverty, housing, and health. A Pulitzer Prize winner and a New York Times Bestseller, it’s a terrific book.”
Please like
One Book, One Community (OBOC) on Facebookand stay tuned to The Week Ahead e-mails and the
OBOC Web page
for more information, including related OBOC events during the upcoming school year. Contact Kimmy Rehak (rehak@pitt.edu) with event ideas or questions.
7/25/2018