[URBANTH-L]anthropological responses to current
financialmeltdown
Stephen C. Maack
smaack at earthlink.net
Fri Oct 31 20:44:13 EDT 2008
Dear Vin Lyon-Callo,
You wrote in parentheses "(I have to admit to being a little dismayed at how
now that it is impacting priviliged people's investments we have a crisis,
while working class people across the globe have been suffering the impacts
of the faith based market economy for many years now and not many people
were too concerned-Greenspan didn't seem to mind the increasing economic and
social insecurities (in the US and globally)." Okay, I agree with your
dismay, but not with your contention that "not many people were too
concerned."
Like Brian Burke, most of my work has been in the U.S. and some of it has
involved direct action to help low-income people, like helping put together
Habitat for Humanity -- Los Angeles (which former President Jimmy Carter has
had work projects at twice since it got started just-in-time before the LA
Riots/Rebellion). Bill Clinton paid at least some attention to the middle
class now being impacted by the market economy so severely. (I assume by
"faith based" you meant faith in "the market" not "faith based" as used by
Reagan and both Bush Presidents). So at least one of the major U.S.
political parties seems to have paid some attention, as have applied
anthropologists that I know here in Southern California (not just me...).
As for "working class people across the globe," have you forgotten that
there are anthropologists working in the World Bank and the International
Monetary Fund (I know, hiss, boo about the organizations) to try to mitigate
the worst impacts of global capitalism on the working class? My own son
worked for anthropologist Ashraf Ghani for a while, doing precisely that at
the World Bank. Similarly, there are applied anthropologists working within
and as consultants to USAID and other agencies dealing with international
aid projects, including support of microfinance initiatives. My niece
worked with a Paraguay NGO on such microfinance projects and is currently
employed in the U.S. by a non-profit that deals with microfinance
initiatives.
So while Greenspan et al. might not have been paying much attention, applied
anthropologists, non-profits, NGOs, and many concerned individuals around
the world have certainly paid attention for many years. We wouldn't have a
microfinance "movement" if they had not done so. We wouldn't have
(economically privileged) university professors making careers out of
looking at global capitalism and its assorted impacts if people weren't
paying attention!! If no one cared, those professors wouldn't get tenure.
Go look up the history of Grupo Social in Colombia, a savings and loan that
became second largest in the country after deciding to take a risk on very
low-income lending by accepting the signature of a compadre
(godfather/godmother) as "collateral" because of the strength of the
compadrazgo relationship in that part of the world. One would not dare
default on a loan co-signed by the godparent of one's child!! I heard about
that institution circa the early 1980s. In the U.S. I think it is the
National Housing Organization that has for years (decades) been redefining
mortgage and home repair lending risks by getting bankers, city governments,
and community/neighborhood leaders to sit down and reconsider lending terms,
equity, interest rates, taking account of the different perspectives of the
individual stakeholders in such arrangements. I learned of them in the late
1970s. It turns out that "collateral," "equity," and other banking criteria
are, in fact, socially/culturally as well as economically based. Working
with that realization and working through changing the cultural/social
definitions is where applied urban anthropologists could be helping out more
right now with the mortgage crisis!! Same thing with credit card debt, and
the efforts to educate people about credit card use.
Thanks for listening and Happy Halloween!!
Best Regards,
Steve Maack
Dr. Stephen C. Maack
DBA REAP Change Consultants
2872 Nicada Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90077-2024
http://www.reapchange.com
E-Mail: consultant at reapchange.com
Telephone: 310-384-9717
FAX: 310-474-4161
-----Original Message-----
From: urbanth-l-bounces at lists.ysu.edu
[mailto:urbanth-l-bounces at lists.ysu.edu] On Behalf Of
bburke at email.arizona.edu
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2008 5:15 PM
To: Vincent Lyon-Callo
Cc: urbanth-l at lists.ysu.edu
Subject: Re: RE: [URBANTH-L]anthropological responses to current
financialmeltdown
It comes as absolutely no surprise that we do not only research far-off
places and people, as I have also done research in the US. Suggesting that
we examine the possible impacts of "the people and places we study" "around
the world" was not intended to exclude research on the US and Europe...
though I perhaps should have been more cautious with my language. Honestly,
I think that your work on homelessness and class/hegemony in the US provide
great perspectives from which to consider these economic changes (and
vice-versa).
The central point was to ask how we might build on our very specific
research (research conducted in places and with people) to think forward
about these economic changes. You're right that it "won't really be possible
to know" all of the answers today and it is important to recognize the
limitations of our knowledge, but I think there is some value in
anticipatory anthropology, especially if we hope to engaged in activist
anthropology in a manner that is not purely reactive.
best,
brian
----- Message from vincent.lyon-callo at wmich.edu --------- Date: Fri, 24
Oct
2008 19:37:12 -0400 From: Vincent Lyon-Callo
<vincent.lyon-callo at wmich.edu>Reply-To: Vincent Lyon-Callo
<vincent.lyon-callo at wmich.edu> Subject: Re: RE: [URBANTH-L]anthropological
responses to current financial meltdown To: bburke at email.arizona.edu
> It would be interesting to explore the ways in which the current
> situation is impacting communities in a wide range of locations around
> the world. Of course, like much of our work, that won't really be
> possible to know all that well today.
>
> I also want to second Sue's recommendation about Brett's work on
> credit and debt. The recent article in North American Dialogue has
> proven very useful for my discussions with students about some of what
> has contributed to today's conditions. Of course, this is one article
> among many that have been analyzing the 2 decade long trajectory of
> policies and practices that have helped produce today's situation (I
> have to admit to being a little dismayed at how now that it is
> impacting priviliged people's investments we have a crisis, while
> working class people across the globe have been suffering the impacts
> of the faith based market economy for many years now and not many
> people were too concerned-Greenspan didn't seem to mind the increasing
> economic and social insecurities (in the US and globally) resulting
> from his practices when it only impacting working class people).
>
> But, mostly I wanted to respond to the notion of "the people and
> places we study". It may still come as a surprise to some, but many
> of us do study people and places in the US and Europe (and have been
> doing so for many years now as anthropologists).
>
> --
> Vin Lyon-Callo
> Associate Professor
> Department of Anthropology
> Western Michigan University
> Kalamazoo MI 49008
> 269-387-3964
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: bburke at email.arizona.edu
> Date: Friday, October 24, 2008 6:42 pm
> Subject: RE: [URBANTH-L]anthropological responses to current
> financial meltdown
>
>>
>> There have been some great reading recommendations from the list.
>> Thanks for
>> those.
>>
>> I think that one of the ways anthropologists may be able to
>> contribute to conversations about the crisis is by thinking about how
>> this change in the global economic landscape might affect
>> individuals, households, and communities around the world. To date,
>> talk about the crisis has focused largely on the macro-economy and
>> individuals within the US, and the macro- economies of other global
>> financial centers. But can we begin to anticipate how these
>> changesmight "trickle down" to affect many of the people and places
>> we study? Can we use these projections to imagine possible responses
>> (whether local copingstrategies, supportive government policies, or
>> something else)?
>>
>> I certainly can't at this point, though I think we might get some
>> insights from other recent economic collapses (the East Asian Crisis,
>> the Brazilian and Argetine crises, the recent food crisis). I would
>> love to hear others'
>> thoughts
>> on this based on their areas of expertise.
>>
>> --brian
>>
>>
>> ---------------------------------------
>> Brian J Burke
>> University of Arizona
>> Department of Anthropology
>> & Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology
>>
>> International Honors Program & School for International Training
>> "Rethinking Globalization: Nature, Culture, and Justice"
>>
>>
>>
>> ----- Message from suhyatt at iupui.edu --------- Date: Fri, 24
>> Oct 2008
>> 16:50:25 -0400 From: "Hyatt, Susan" <suhyatt at iupui.edu>Reply-
>> To: "Hyatt,
>> Susan" <suhyatt at iupui.edu> Subject: RE: [URBANTH-L]anthropological
>> responses to
>> current financial meltdown To: "urbanth-l at lists.ysu.edu"
>> <urbanth-l at lists.ysu.edu>
>>
>> > Caitlin Zaloom's book, Out of the Pits: Traders and Technology
>> from
>> > Chicago to London was published in 2006 but I believe it deals
>> with
>> > the culture of risk in an age where investing is now done
>> through the
>> > internet rather than on trading floors. I also cannot recommend
>> > enough Brett Williams' book on debt-- Debt for Sale. It was
>> > published around 2004 or 2005 but it absolutely sets the stage
>> for
>> > what is happening now. She also has an excellent piece in this
>> > current issue of North American Dialogue, available for download
>> > through the SANA web site.
>> >
>> > Sue Hyatt
>> >
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: urbanth-l-bounces at lists.ysu.edu
>> > [urbanth-l-bounces at lists.ysu.edu] On Behalf Of David Valentine
>> > Sent: Thursday, October 23, 2008 9:28 PM
>> > To: urbanth-l at lists.ysu.edu
>> > Subject: re: [URBANTH-L]anthropological responses to current
>> > financial meltdown
>> >
>> > Hi Anke,
>> > Karen Ho, here at U Minnesota, is having her book published on
>> her work
>> > with Wall Street traders by Duke. Unfortunately it's not out yet
>> (she> sent back her final draft the same day Lehman Bros. went south,
>> and she
>> > is reworking her intro furiously to account for the last few
>> weeks), but
>> > I believe that Duke is working to get it fast tracked because of
>> > its timeliness. The title is "Liquidated" (can't remember the
subtitle).
>> > She's also just given birth and is on leave, but she is checking
>> email> intermittently should you want to contact her: karenho at umn.edu
>> > dv
>> >
>> > --
>> > david valentine
>> > assistant professor
>> > department of anthropology + university of minnesota
>> > 395 hubert h. humphrey center + 301 19th avenue south minneapolis,
>> > mn 55455 + 612.626.8692 + valen076 at umn.edu
>> >
>> > office hours fall 2008: tues 10-11am, weds 2:30-4:30pm and by
>> appointment>
>> >
>> > "everything here is something" - Marge Simpson
>> >
>> >
>> > _______________________________________________
>> > URBANTH-L mailing list
>> > URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
>> > http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
>> >
>> > _______________________________________________
>> > URBANTH-L mailing list
>> > URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
>> > http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
>>
>>
>> ----- End message from suhyatt at iupui.edu -----
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> URBANTH-L mailing list
>> URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
>> http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
>>
----- End message from vincent.lyon-callo at wmich.edu -----
_______________________________________________
URBANTH-L mailing list
URBANTH-L at lists.ysu.edu
http://lists.ysu.edu/mailman/listinfo.cgi/urbanth-l
More information about the URBANTH-L
mailing list