Cities of Whiteness

In Cities of Whiteness, Wendy S. Shaw challenges existing ideas about urban change, race and cosmopolitan urbanism. By questioning the notion of white ethnicity and engaging with Indigenous peoples’ experiences of whiteness, past and present, Shaw provides new ways of seeing cities and of conceptualizing the processes of power that are at work within them. In doing so, she pushes the boundaries of critical race studies in Geography and studies of the city more broadly.

Cities of Whiteness follows three main theoretical trajectories: it highlights the weaknesses of current theories of whiteness; it demonstrates how urban transformation is imbued with processes of whiteness; and it gives an account of formations of power. Shaw grounds her analysis using Sydney as an example of a “city of whiteness”, considering trends such as Sydney’s 'SoHo Syndrome', the 'Harlemization' of the Aboriginal community, and the 'Manhattanizing' of Sydney as it has evolved vertically.