Description
In Bosses of all Kinds, the seventh e-seminar in a series on the history of New York City, Professor Kenneth T. Jackson looks at Tammany Hall bosses, Robert Moses, and other political figures in the history of New York who, though unelected, have wielded extraordinary power. Professor Jackson offers insight into the relationship between Tammany politicians, who were often maligned, and their disenfranchised immigrant constituencies. Discussing The Power Broker, Robert Caro's monumental biography of Robert Moses, Professor Jackson provides counterpoint to Caro's critical view of Moses' accomplishments and motives. Professor Jackson stresses that, in ensuring that New York City would have the infrastructure it needed to become a modern city, Moses performed a service of enormous value.