The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York

Robert Moses, by his own admission, designed some of his projects to exclude poor people and people of color from public life. How has that affected demographics and attitudes in New York City? Consider drawing on research from reputable urban planning publishers like The Architectural League of New York or exploring historical phenomena like “white flight.”

To what extent can Al Smith be considered a father figure for Moses? How does this factor into Moses’s feelings about his family and his Jewishness?

What is the role of Robert Caro in The Power Broker? How visible is he in the narrative? How does he anticipate and counter accusations of bias in the text?