The Effects of Deindustrialization

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The industrial revolution began in Europe in the 18th century. The revolution prompted significant changes, such as technological improvements in global trade, which led to a sustained increase in development between the 18th and 19th century. These improvements included mastering the art of harnessing energy from abundant carbon-based natural resources such as coal. The revolution was economically motivated and gave rise to innovations in the manufacturing industry that permanently transformed human life. It altered perceptions of productivity and understandings of mass production which allowed specialization and provided industries with economies of scale. The iron industry in particular became a major source of economic growth for the United States during this period, providing much needed employment, which allowed an abundant population of white people as well as minorities to contribute and benefit from the flourishing economy. Steel production boomed in the U.S. in the mid 1900s. The U.S. became a global economic giant due to the size of its steel industry, taking advantage of earlier innovations such as the steam engine and the locomotive railroad. The U.S. was responsible for 65 percent of steel production worldwide by the end of the 2nd World War (Reutter 1). In Sparrows Point: Making Steel: the Rise and Ruin of American Industrial Might, Mark Reutter reports that “Four out of every five manufacturing items contained steel and 40 percent of all wage earners owed their livelihood directly or indirectly to the industry.” This steel industry was the central employer during this era.

After WWII, the industrial revolution began to decline and economic focus was being shifted from manufacturing to service. Deindustrializatio...

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...lization is not a black problem or a white one, neither is it a Baltimore problem, it is currently an American problem that can be traced in part to the segregation.

Works Cited

Reutter, Mark. Sparrows Point: Making Steel : the Rise and Ruin of American Industrial Might. New York: Summit Books, 1988. Print.

Nandi, Arijit. Deindustrialization, Socioeconomic Deprivation, and Injection Drug Use Cessation in Baltimore. 2008. Print.

Cowie, Jefferson, and Joseph Heathcott. Beyond the Ruins: The Meanings of Deindustrialization. Ithaca: ILR Press, 2003. Print.

Executive Intelligence Review Economics Staff. “Deindustrialization Creates ‘Death Zones’.” Executive Intelligence Review. Jan 6, 2006: 4-26. Print.

Olson, Karen. Wives of Steel: Voices of Women from the Sparrows Point Steelmaking Communities. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005. Print.

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