Dream Books and Gamblers : Black Women's Work in Chicago's Policy Game

Schlabach, Elizabeth Schroeder

University of Illinois Press（2022/11発売）

• 製本 Hardcover:ハードカバー版／ページ数 216 p.
• 言語 ENG
• 商品コード 9780252044786
• DDC分類 795.380977311

Full Description

Ubiquitous illegal lotteries known as policy flourished in Chicago's Black community during the overlapping waves of the Great Migration. Policy "queens" owned stakes in lucrative operations while women writers and clerks canvased the neighborhood, passed out winnings, and kept the books. Elizabeth Schroeder Schlabach examines the complexities of Black women's work in policy gambling. Policy provided Black women with a livelihood for themselves and their families. At the same time, navigating gender expectations, aggressive policing, and other hazards of the infromal economy led them to refashion ideas about Black womanhood and respectability. Policy earnings also funded above-board enterprises ranging from neighborhood businesses to philanthropic institutions, and Schlabach delves into the various ways Black women straddled the illegal policy business and reputable community involvement.

Vivid and revealing, Dream Books and Gamblers tells the stories of Black women in the underground economy and how they used their work to balance the demands of living and laboring in Black Chicago.

Contents

Acknowledgments Introduction

"The Best Job I Ever Had"
Chicago's First Policy Queens
Chicago's Most Famous Policy Queen
Dream Books, Fortune-Tellers, and Mediumship
What Arrest Records Reveal
Legal Strategies for Policy Women

Conclusion Notes

Select Bibliography

Index