{"product_id":"refinery-town-steve-early-9780807029664","title":"Refinery Town: Big Oil, Big Money, and the Remaking of an American City","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe People vs. Big Oil--how a working-class company town harnessed the power of local politics to reclaim their community\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eWith a foreword by Bernie Sanders\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Home to one of the largest oil refineries in the state, Richmond, California, was once a typical company town, dominated by Chevron. This largely nonwhite, working-class city of 100,000 suffered from poverty, pollution, and poorly funded public services. It had one of the highest homicide rates per capita in the country and a jobless rate twice the national average. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e But when veteran labor reporter Steve Early moved from New England to Richmond in 2012, he discovered a city struggling to remake itself. In \u003ci\u003eRefinery Town\u003c\/i\u003e, Early chronicles the 15 years of successful community organizing that raised the local minimum wage, defeated a casino development project, challenged home foreclosures and evictions, and sought fair taxation of Big Oil. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA short list of Richmond's activist residents helps to propel this compelling chronicle: \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e- 94 year old Betty Reid Soskin, the country's oldest full-time national park ranger and witness to Richmond's complex history \u003cbr\u003e- Gayle McLaughlin, the Green Party mayor who challenged Chevron and won\u003cbr\u003e- Police Chief Chris Magnus, who brought community policing to Richmond and is now one of America's leading public safety reformers \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Part urban history, part call to action, \u003ci\u003eRefinery Town\u003c\/i\u003e shows how concerned citizens can harness the power of local politics to reclaim their community and make municipal government a source of much-needed policy innovation. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"\u003ci\u003eRefinery Town\u003c\/i\u003e provides an inside look at how one American city has made radical and progressive change seem not only possible but sensible.\"--\u003cb\u003eDavid Helvarg\u003c\/b\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Progressive\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Steve Early\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0807029661\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780807029664\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Beacon Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/16\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 232\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.70lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.90h x 6.00w x 0.60d","brand":"Steve Early","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":49148195373311,"sku":"9780807029664","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/refinery-town-steve-early-9780807029664","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}