Urban Farm DB
Research catalogue
Database research record2020·United States (New York City)

(Community) garden in the city: Conspicuous labor and gentrification

Fatmir Haskaj

Environment and Planning A Economy and Space

Urban Farm DB summary

This article explores the historical context of community gardens in New York and Oakland, California, to understand and contest hegemonic forces in the urban environment. It posits that the work of gardeners is co-opted into a value regime through a process called "conspicuous labor." This process reconfigures the urban poor as productive, passive, and pastoral, contributing to gentrification.