As the gears of federal government have ground to a halt, a new energy has been rocking the foundations of our urban centers. From Atlanta to Seattle and points in between, cities have begun seizing the initiative, transforming themselves into laboratories for progressive innovation. Income inequality, affordable housing, climate change, sustainable development, public health, participatory government—cities are tackling them all, bringing new urgency to some of the most vital questions of the day. Welcome to the age of big city progressivism! Cities Rising is The Nation’s contribution to the conversation.
It’s Time for the NYPD to Stop Treating Mentally Ill New Yorkers Like Criminals It’s Time for the NYPD to Stop Treating Mentally Ill New Yorkers Like Criminals
How a crisis intervention program pioneered in Memphis could save lives and prevent arrests.
Oct 9, 2014 / Agnes Radomski
Mental Illness, Homelessness, Drug Addiction: Do These Sound Like Crimes? Mental Illness, Homelessness, Drug Addiction: Do These Sound Like Crimes?
Why are we letting these serious social problems be handled by the criminal justice system?
Oct 9, 2014 / Mychal Denzel Smith
Is Pittsburgh Really Green—or Is It Just Outsourcing Its Pollution? Is Pittsburgh Really Green—or Is It Just Outsourcing Its Pollution?
How Pittsburgh’s greenhouse gases became Guangzhou’s problem.
Oct 8, 2014 / Mark Schapiro
For Muslim New Yorkers, a Long Path From Surveillance to Civil Rights For Muslim New Yorkers, a Long Path From Surveillance to Civil Rights
For years, Muslim New Yorkers have been spied on, not heard; now they’re finding their political voice.
Sep 9, 2014 / Moustafa Bayoumi
Minneapolis Has Long Been Fractured by Racial Inequity. Can a New Mayor Change That? Minneapolis Has Long Been Fractured by Racial Inequity. Can a New Mayor Change That?
Mayor Betsy Hodges wants to make Minneapolis live up to its progressive hype.
Sep 3, 2014 / Gabriel Thompson
Meet 3 Young Politicians Changing the Way New York City Works Meet 3 Young Politicians Changing the Way New York City Works
As young community leaders take office and a progressive power base grows, machine politics is losing its grip on the Big Apple.
Aug 1, 2014 / Max Rivlin-Nadler
If Congress Won’t Raise the Minimum Wage, These Cities Will If Congress Won’t Raise the Minimum Wage, These Cities Will
Since June, San Diego and Los Angeles have passed a trio of minimum wage increases. Which city will be next?
Jul 16, 2014 / Agnes Radomski and John Thomason
After Cory Booker Departs, a Radical Poet’s Son Rises as Mayor of Newark After Cory Booker Departs, a Radical Poet’s Son Rises as Mayor of Newark
Ras Baraka wants to reclaim New Jersey’s largest city from charter schools and Wall Street.
Jul 1, 2014 / Siddhartha Mitter
‘It’s Simply Mission Critical’: Mayor Bill de Blasio on the Revival of an Urban Agenda ‘It’s Simply Mission Critical’: Mayor Bill de Blasio on the Revival of an Urban Agenda
Katrina vanden Heuvel, Joan Walsh and Zerlina Maxwell sat down with de Blasio to discuss universal pre-K, the Working Families Party convention and the role of mayors.
Jun 10, 2014 / Katrina vanden Heuvel
How Local Governments Are Using Their Purchasing Power to End Sweatshop Labor How Local Governments Are Using Their Purchasing Power to End Sweatshop Labor
With the government's leverage as both a consumer and a steward of the public trust, the public sector can hold the line against the fashion industry’s race to the bottom
May 30, 2014 / Michelle Chen