When
Monday, August 15, 2022
6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
This is an in-person event — masks and RSVP required.
The 1970s fiscal crisis — when NYC nearly declared bankruptcy — was a defining moment for the city and the country, marking a fundamental shift towards austerity and neoliberalism. As Kim Phillips-Fein writes, “with unions and ordinary citizens refusing to accept retrenchment, the budget crunch became a struggle over the soul of New York, pitting fundamentally opposing visions of the city against each other.”
Join us to watch a film together and have a collective discussion about this period of NYC history, the contested forces shaping that moment, and in what ways it continues (and has changed) up until today. With optional, but encouraged readings!
- Fear City: New York’s Fiscal Crisis and the Rise of Austerity Politics — INTRODUCTION, Kim Philips-Fein ( 2017)
- Developing and Underdeveloping New York: The “Fiscal Crisis” and a Strategy for Fighting Austerity, Philip Mattera and Donna Demac (1976)
We’ll be screening the 1980 documentary about the fiscal crisis in NYC and Cleveland, Tighten Your Belts, Bite the Bullet. Learn more about the film and readings below.
Special thanks to Icarus Films for the film.