Book Talk: The Rise of Uber

Join the DC History Center at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, February 23 with moderator Gerren Price, president and CEO of the Downtown BID, and authors Katie Wells and Declan Cullen to look back at the recent history of Uber’s arrival in the District. Drawing on a decade of interviews with gig workers, policymakers, Uber lobbyists, and community organizers, Wells and Cullen explain Uber’s success not as innovation but a symptom of urban weakness and low expectations of local, city politics.

Across the country, gig companies like Uber appear as a solution to urban problems: underemployment, failing public transit systems, racial inequities, and anxieties about global economic competitiveness. DC was no exception.

Hear from the authors how Uber’s victory in DC raises questions about private companies’ role in usurping government responsibility and undercutting the value of social services. After the conversation, get your books signed by the authors. Stick around the Carnegie for Apple’s Friday evening DJ series from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.

Click here for more information and to RSVP.