After Sprunki an unexpected encounter with a mysterious figure, Sprunki learns of a hidden power within themselves, one that could change the fate of the world.
Book review of Jamie J. Fader's On Shifting Ground: Constructing Manhood on the Margins (2024)
On Shifting Ground: Constructing Manhood on the Margins, by Jamie J. Fader (2024). Oakland, CA: University of California Press.
Jamie J. Fader’s new book, On Shifting Grounds: Constructing Manhood on the Margins, is a compelling sociological exploration of the lives of urban millennial men in the United States, particularly those of color. It examines the myriad processes that shape their versions of manhood and concepts of masculinity, situating their lived experiences at the intersection of two critical structural forces: economic downturns and the expansion of criminal-legal systems (CLS). As Fader shows, the two factors above have negatively affected these men’s lives from adolescence to adulthood, contributing to their overall marginalization within U.S. society.
Fader’s study took place between 2014 and 2019 in the Frankford neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA). She conducted interviews with 45 men from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, all born between 1981 and 1996, while emphasizing the shared characteristics of this generational cohort. First, at key moments in their working lives, these men experienced the 2008–09 “Great Recession” and the severe impact of COVID-19, both of which diminished the economic opportunities available to them in a post-industrial, racially stratified labor market. Many of them, as Fader recounts, lack educational credentials and, as such, struggle with securing stable employment that pays a living wage. Some acknowledged pursuing the sale of drugs, describing it as an “undesirable strategy for making ends meet” (41). According to Fader’s interviewees, drug sales are considered to be a highly risky and largely unprofitable activity, often leading to incarceration and thus further restricting opportunities for legitimate employment.
Second, Fader’s interlocutors are part of the first generation in U.S. history to live through rising incarceration rates (Chapter 1). Many had family members imprisoned for drug dealing, and others grew up in dysfunctional households with young, struggling single mothers and absent fathers. In school, they faced “zero tolerance” disciplinary policies that too frequently criminalize the behavior of boys and young men of color (4). Thus, these men’s narratives illustrate the damaging and precarious circumstances of their young adulthood – marked by the pervasive CLS that have, to date, shaped every aspect of their lives.
Along these lines, Fader critiques the U.S. CLS for their harmful impact on men’s social connections, highlighting how men of color adopt “network avoidance” strategies to protect themselves from the risks posed by contact with authorities – in essence, remaining indoors and avoiding public spaces. This approach disconnects them from the safety net of intimate relationships offering valuable social capital, again diminishing their economic opportunities. By contrasting the experiences of men of color with those of the white men in her study, who describe navigating public space without police scrutiny and experiencing relative freedom (Chapter 4), Fader shows the racial bias inherent in the CLS and their differential impact in shaping men’s choices in Philadelphia and elsewhere.
The strength of On Shifting Ground rests in how the book documents the agency that these men do express, even as they are forced to reckon with the structures of systemic inequality, racial-criminal stigma, and dominant gender ideals. By exploring the concept of “generativity” (Chapter 5), Fader emphasizes its significance in constructing a productive and moral sense of manhood rooted in caring for their families and communities. She suggests that generativity is a “trope and tradition widely shared within communities of color” (91). While network avoidance causes isolation, generativity re-kindles social ties through relationship building, mentoring, and nurturing. Fader asserts, “If there was any consensus about what the ‘American Dream’ meant, it was relational stability, as much as, if not more than, economic stability” (135). Notably, Fader’s empirical research critiques Erik Erikson’s model of generativity, a theory on human development that associates this phenomenon with middle adulthood (age 45-65). Her study reveals that men of color from the Frankford neighborhood of Philadelphia experience generativity at a much earlier stage of their young adulthood. Thus, psychosocial human development (per Erikson) is not a linear trajectory in the lives of these men, who must additionally struggle with economic depravity and overall racial disadvantage (86).
On Shifting Ground also offers key sociological insights into identity construction and relationship formation through the perceptions and actions of men of color in the urban United States. In Fader’s study, the construction of manhood involves a distinction between adulthood and masculinity; the former is associated with age and is defined as the ability to care for oneself, whereas masculinity and manhood are the attributes associated with the ability to care for others (118). Fader’s interviewees describe a “real man” as someone who desists from selling drugs and serving prison time and leaves behind the “drama” in order to care for his family (Chapter 3). Many of the men in Fader’s study experience fatherhood as a significant source of masculine identity; they express receiving immense love from their children and measure this success against their experiences with absent fathers, striving to provide a better childhood for the next generation (111). As one of these men asserts, a “real man” is he who provides a roof over his family’s head, ensures they have what they need, and does everything possible to support them (43). Traditionally, men’s work that provides financial support for their families has been central to defining a masculine identity. However, given their economic marginalization, the men of Fader’s study have had to redefine their masculinity through roles that necessitate emotional labor, such as taking on caregiving responsibilities within the domestic sphere.
Perhaps not unsurprisingly, very few of Fader’s interlocutors describe their ideal of a “real man” as someone who is not ashamed of doing care work and cannot make a monetary contribution to the family. These men did, however, emphasize the emotional, job-like labor that goes into care work – such as cooking, cleaning, and childcare – in contrast to the financial contributions made by their partners (Chapter 7; 109). However, few of the stay-at-home fathers described their care work as “real work,” arguing that it is a form of labor that they do daily, from preparing their children’s meals to driving them to school. Regardless, it signals the emergence of “caring masculinities” rooted in interdependence and relationality rather than in dominance (93).
The outstanding scholarship in On Shifting Ground points to new directions in research on caring masculinities. It would be valuable, in this regard, to see if Fader could map the shifting contours of masculinity and manhood in Philadelphia by including millennials of diverse sexual orientations, who – much like her interlocutors – also experience marginalization due to the twin structural forces of economic insecurity and the pervasive CLS. Additionally, further study on caring masculinities would benefit from the insights of those women who are a part of these men’s lives. In summary, Fader’s significant work has the potential to reach beyond academia and contribute to public sociology. The book’s rich empirical data, in-depth interviews, theoretical frameworks, and compelling arguments make it invaluable for scholars interested in mixed-methods research, urban ethnography, the sociology of care work, and race and sexuality studies.
Shivani Rajput teaches sociology at Miranda House College, University of Delhi (India). Her areas of interest include the sociology of gender, work, and pedagogy.