Popular and academic discourses about business−government relations in the United States have long revolved around a forced and historically inaccurate binary: Business interests “oppose” governmental regulations, whereas reformers wish to “constrain” the operations of free enterprise. Although scholars have challenged such a narrow and bipolar framing for decades, the notion persists, too frequently dominating public discussions of issues from education and infrastructure to welfare, taxation, and social justice.
In Roaring Metropolis, Amsterdam joins a burgeoning community of scholars who challenge and subvert that duality by combining compelling historical research with a sophisticated understanding of the complex nature of “businessmen” as historical actors. This deeply researched book explores the pivotal role that economic elites played in urban policy making during the decade following World War I. Through precise case studies of Atlanta, Detroit, and Philadelphia, Amsterdam exposes how business leaders “turned to government-sponsored social policy” to build what he describes...