Othermothering in Detroit, MI: understanding race and gender inequalities in green stormwater infrastructure labor

ABSTRACT

As cities increasingly look towards the promotion of green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) in order to mitigate the effects of combined sewer overflows and stormwater pollution, the role of citizen labor is often expected and required for the success of these projects. Cities in the United States have come to rely upon such contributions from residents, however, very rarely do policies consider the impact of this request of labor. This paper aims to address this gap by employing Patricia Hill Collins’ theoretical framework of Othermothering in order to analyze qualitative data collected in 2017 with a Detroit city sponsored GSI educational program. Combined with ethnographic storytelling, I highlight the work Black Detroit women are putting into improving their city and argue for the application of a Black feminist social reproduction lens in understanding current race and gender divides in volunteer labor within GSI Initiatives. Together, analysis reveals how the labor contributed by Black women continues to be unfairly requested, unpaid, and essential to the success of GSI projects, while also becoming a site of resistance for larger structural inequalities in the surrounding urban landscape.

KEYWORDS:

• Green stormwater infrastructure
• detroit
• othermothering
• labor
• gender
• race

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the many colleagues who provided feedback on earlier drafts of this paper, in particular Dr. Andrew Newman, Dr. Hamil Pearsall & Sarah Heck. Thank you to the guest editors of this special issue and the anonymous reviewers for their insightful suggestions. Lastly, I would like to thank the women of Detroit who graciously provided their time and energy in sharing their stories and experiences.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 All personal names have been changed to protect the privacy of those involved.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Elizabeth Riedman

Elizabeth Riedman is a doctorate student in the department of Geography and Urban Studies at Temple University.