Starting with the very land SFO was built on, A People's History of SFO sees the airport as a microcosm of the forces at work in the Bay Area—from its colonial history and early role in trade, mining, and agriculture to the economic growth, social sanctuary, and environmental transformations of the twentieth century. In lively, engaging stories, author Eric Porter reveals SFO's unique role in the San Francisco Bay Area's growth as a globally connected hub of commerce, technology innovation, and political, economic, and social influence.
Praise for A People's History of SFO:
"With A People's History of SFO, Porter delivers a rich and dynamic history of the San Francisco Bay Area and an inclusive account of airports as agents of empire and modernity."
—Eric Avila, author of The Folklore of the Freeway: Race and Revolt in the Modernist City
"We tend to think of airports as spaces we pass through, culturally and geographically peripheral to the cities they serve. Porter shows us, however, that SFO is a place with a history, shaped by the same forces as the rest of the Bay Area and beyond. In this fascinating book, the airport is not the conduit—it's the destination."
—Natalia Molina, author of A Place at the Nayarit: How a Mexican Restaurant Nourished a Community
Eric Porter is Professor of History, History of Consciousness, and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at UC Santa Cruz, where he is also affiliated with the Music and Latin American and Latina/o Studies departments. He previously taught in the American Studies Department at UC Santa Cruz as well as at the University of New Mexico and the University of Nevada, Reno. His research and teaching interests include Black cultural and intellectual history, US cultural history, jazz and improvisation studies, urban studies, and comparative ethnic studies. Among his previous books are two University of California Press publications: What Is This Thing Called Jazz? African American Musicians as Artists, Critics, and Activists (2002), winner of an American Book Award, and, with the photographer Lewis Watts, New Orleans Suite: Music and Culture in Transition (2013).
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Meet the Author(s)
