Urban Issues

CQ Researcher is the choice of librarians, researchers, and students seeking original, comprehensive reporting and analysis on the most vital issues shaping our world. Each weekly report offers in-depth, unbiased coverage of a single topic. Written by CQ Press′s staff of experienced reporters, these reports provide up-to-date information on a wide range of social, economic, political, environmental, and international issues.

• ANNOTATED CONTENTSPREFACECONTRIBUTORSEDUCATION1. Dropout RateIs societal change needed for graduation rates to rise?Are successful local dropout programs viable nationwide?Are the federal government’s efforts to raise graduation rates working?BackgroundEarly Origins“Waste We Cannot Afford”Seeking SolutionsResearch and ActionCurrent SituationWashington GridlockFewer “Dropout Factories”Concern Over StandardsOutlook: Striving for 90 PercentNotesBibliography2. Race and EducationWas court-ordered school desegregation effective?Have charter schools and school choice laws increased racial separation?Has teacher tenure contributed to racial disparities in education?BackgroundLegal SegregationBrown v. Board of EducationDesegregationIntegration DeclinesCurrent SituationEducation ChallengesEnforcing Civil RightsState ActionOutlook: Changes Coming?NotesBibliographyLAND USE AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT3. Coastal DevelopmentShould state and local governments block coastal development?Can the federal flood insurance program be fixed?Does New York City need floodgates?BackgroundWealth and Trade CentersRush to the ShoreCoasts Under PressureIn Harm’s WayCurrent SituationClashing SignalsFlood Insurance Fraud?Rising SeasOutlook: Resilient CoastlinesNotesBibliography4. Air Pollution and Climate ChangeIs President Obama’s Clean Power Plan good policy?Is the EPA’s new ozone standard good policy?Can renewable energy become a major contributor to the power industry?BackgroundEarly Air PollutionCarbon Dioxide MeasuredClean Air ActAcid RainRegulating EmissionsCurrent SituationGlobal NegotiationsCourt FightOutlook: Obama AgendaNotesBibliographyLAW ENFORCEMENT5. Police TacticsDo SWAT teams and military tactics and weaponry have a place in policing?Has police use of military-style tactics increased tensions with minority communities?Do body cameras prevent police misconduct?BackgroundTroops in the StreetsWar on DrugsDrawing FireNew TensionsCurrent SituationStemming the FlowTroubled CitiesOutlook: Re-engineering Police CultureNotesBibliography6. Racial ProfilingAre racial- and ethnic-profiling prevalent in U.S. law enforcement today?Do aggressive stop-and-frisk tactics help reduce crime?Should courts take a leading role in combating police racial and ethnic profiling?Background“A Difficult History”An ‘Indefensible’ Practice‘Deliberate Indifference’?Current SituationPressure for ChangeMixed Results for ProsecutorsOutlook: Regaining Trust?NotesBibliography7. Fighting GangsIs the gang threat growing?Is banning street gangs from congregating an effective anti-gang strategy?Can former gang members help quell street violence?BackgroundImmigrant GangsPostwar GangsBirth of Modern GangsCurrent SituationGangs on the InternetPolicy ProgressOutlook: Growing SophisticationNotesBibliographyRACE, CLASS, AND ETHNICITY8. Racial ConflictWould improving police interactions with African-Americans significantly advance race relations in America?Would new laws and government programs reduce institutional racism?Does government need to recommit to school desegregation?BackgroundSlavery and Jim Crow‘White Affirmative Action’Civil RightsEconomic ShiftsCurrent SituationPolice on TrialCampus RevoltsOutlook: Hope and FearNotesBibliography9. Housing the HomelessDoes unemployment cause most homelessness?Is Housing First the best way to keep people from reverting to homelessness?Should homeless families receive bigger or longer-lasting housing subsidies?Background“I Ain’t Got No Home”Emptying AsylumsThe “New Homeless”New StrategiesCurrent SituationArresting the ProblemAlternate ApproachOutlook: “A Human Right”NotesBibliography10. Wealth and InequalityDoes income inequality hamper economic growth?Are parental background and inheritance becoming more important for success?Should the wealthy be taxed more?Background‘Fatal Ailment’Postwar ProsperityThe Great SwitchCurrent SituationProposed FixesExecutive PayOutlook: ‘Oligarchic Evolution’NotesBibliography11. Housing DiscriminationAre current government policies contributing to residential segregation?Are current real estate and lending practices contributing to residential segregation?Can local officials do more to reduce racial segregation in housing?BackgroundSeparate WorldsSlow ChangesUnsettled TimesCurrent SituationStepping Up EffortsSquaring Off in CourtOutlook: Political ChallengesNotesBibliography12. Fighting Urban PovertyWould more federal aid reduce poverty in urban areas?Do federal housing programs alleviate urban poverty?Should the business community play a larger role in solving urban poverty?BackgroundExpanding SlumsDepression Era“War on Poverty”Recession Takes RootCurrent SituationPromise ZonesWorkplace IssuesPresidential CandidatesOutlook: Economy Is KeyNotesBibliography