Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - Feminist City: Claiming Space in a Man-Made World

This was a paradigm-shifting book to me. It got me thinking in totally new ways. I've read a lot of feminist theory, but I've never read anything from geography studies before. This was a great introduction to that area of study. The whole thing is very engaging, and I learned so much.

The idea of the feminist city involves a lot of economic justice work, but it goes far beyond that. It involves looking at city structures that are biased towards cis men. Public transit caters towards the "average commuter" who goes into the city at 9 and leaves at 5 and makes no stops, but gender marginalized people often do care work that requires multiple stops and switching routes. She talks about how gender marginalized people experience the city through their friendships. And she talks a lot about how a feminist city can't just center the most privileged women. Some of the "safety measures" geared towards making white women feel safer (like extra police presence) make the city more dangerous for people of color and homeless people.

This was such an amazing book, and I loved how it got me thinking in new ways.

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lectricefeministe's review against another edition

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informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

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questingnotcoasting's review against another edition

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challenging informative medium-paced

4.0

This is a very short book considering how many ideas are packed into it. If I'd heard the terms "feminist geography" and "urban sociology" before picking this up I would have assumed they'd be complicated theories but as I was reading, it just seemed like common sense. However at the same time it brought up a lot of issues I'd never considered before. It's fairly academic but also includes a lot of Kern's own experiences, which is something I really like in non-fiction. She's also careful to look at the issues from an intersectional perspective. Overall it's a great, concise analysis of gendered inequalities in urban environments and I'd recommend it alongside books like Feminism, Interrupted by Lola Olufemi and Hood Feminism by Mikki Kendall.

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