Wikipedia

Christopher W. Shaw

Christopher W. Shawis an American historian, author, and policy analyst. In 2013, Shaw earned aPhDin history from theUniversity of California, Berkeley.[1]One of the primary focuses of his research has been the history of theUnited States Postal Serviceand its decline in recent decades, particularly due to the actions ofPostmaster GeneralLouis DeJoy.[2][3]He was one of the first to recommend restarting postal banking in 2006, and has continued to promote this idea.[4][5]Shaw is a project director atRalph Nader's Center for Study of Responsive Law.[6]

Christopher W. Shaw
EducationPhD,University of California, Berkeley
Occupation(s)Historian, author, and policy analyst

Research and works

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Shaw's 2019 bookMoney, Power, and the People: The American Struggle to Make Banking Democraticcovered the history of the Americanbanking systemduring theProgressive Eraand theNew Deal era,along with how events such as theGreat Depressionaffected the public's trust in the system.[7]The focus of the book is revealing the impact of collective action by working people on the U.S. banking system. This includes creation of theFederal Deposit Insurance Corporation,United States Postal Savings System,andFederal Farm Loan Act.The book covers all of this, but parts also are in journal articles.[8][9][10]It also includes how collective action by working people reduced the influence of bankers on theFederal Reserve Systemin theBanking Act of 1935.[11]Based on Shaw's research, he has called for making the Federal Reserve more accountable to citizens.[12]

His research on the U.S. Postal Service documents its importance to American democracy.[13]He was one of the first to recommend restarting postal banking in 2006, and has continued to promote this idea.[4][5]He also proposed creating a "Post Office Consumer Action Group" that would give the public an organized voice to help counter the influence of large corporations on the U.S. Postal Service.[6]

The validity of his research has been extensively and favorably reviewed.[7][14][15][16]

Published works

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  • First Class: The U.S. Postal Service, Democracy, and the Corporate Threat.City Lights Books. 2021.ISBN978-0872868779.[17]
  • Money, Power, and the People: The American Struggle to Make Banking Democratic.University of Chicago Press. 2019.ISBN9780226636337.[18]
  • Preserving the People's Post Office.Essential Books. 2006.ISBN978-1893520035.

References

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  1. ^"Christopher W. Shaw".University of Chicago Press.Archivedfrom the original on April 20, 2023.RetrievedApril 9,2023.
  2. ^Kim, Mina (October 13, 2021)."Mail Delivery Slowdown Speaks to Bigger Problems for the U.S. Postal Service".KQED.Archivedfrom the original on April 15, 2023.RetrievedApril 15,2023.
  3. ^Jonah Chester (October 4, 2021)."First-Class Mail: The History And Future Of The U.S. Postal Service".A Public Affair(Podcast).WORT.Archivedfrom the original on April 15, 2023.RetrievedApril 15,2023.
  4. ^abPreserving the People’s Post Office, pp. 171-186; First Class: The U.S. Postal Service, Democracy, and the Corporate Threat, pp. 174-180
  5. ^abShaw, Christopher W. (July 21, 2020)."Postal Banking is Making a Comeback: Here's How to Ensure It Becomes Reality".Washington Post.Archivedfrom the original on September 15, 2022.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  6. ^abFirst Class, pp. 154-158;Barr, Stephen (December 15, 2006)."Nearing Takeoff: Compensation For Justice Lawyers' Travel Time".Washington Post.RetrievedApril 17,2023.
  7. ^abDayen, David (May 13, 2020)."Dr. Jekyll, or Mr. Biden?".The American Prospect.Archivedfrom the original on April 15, 2023.RetrievedApril 15,2023.
  8. ^Shaw, Christopher W. (December 8, 2014).""The Man in the Street Is for It": The Road to the FDIC ".Journal of Policy History.27.Cambridge University Press:36–60.doi:10.1017/S0898030614000359.S2CID154303860.
  9. ^Shaw, Christopher W. (September 9, 2017).""Banks of the People": The Life and Death of the U.S. Postal Savings System Get access Arrow ".Journal of Social History.52(1, Fall 2018): 121–152.doi:10.1093/jsh/shx036.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  10. ^Shaw, Christopher W. (2018).""Tired of Being Exploited": The Grassroots Origin of the Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 ".Agricultural History.92(4).Duke University Press:512–540.doi:10.3098/ah.2018.092.4.512.JSTOR10.3098/ah.2018.092.4.512.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  11. ^Money, Power, and the People, pp. 237-256
  12. ^Shaw, Christopher W. (March 30, 2023)."The Money Question: Is Trump Right About the Fed?".Harper's Magazine.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  13. ^Shaw, Christopher W. (October 27, 2020)."The U.S. Postal Service Was Designed to Serve Democracy: The 2020 Election Could Depend on Its Success".Foreign Affairs.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  14. ^Corrigan, Hope (October 7, 2021)."CHECK'S IN THE MAIL: Who doesn't want the USPS to bring banking back to the post office?".Quartz.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.Shaw, however, does not anticipate this issue being a strictly partisan one. "There is actually a decent amount of support for the postal service amongst Republicans, especially ones who represent a rural district because the postal service is so important in rural America," he says.
  15. ^Tsirkin, Julie; McCausland, Phil (October 4, 2021)."Politics news: Return of Postal Banking Service Tests New Financial Services".NBC.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  16. ^Small, Jalen; Rouhandeh, Alex J. (November 12, 2021)."Louis Dejoy's 10 year Plan is Death Knell for U.S. Postal Service".Newsweek.Archivedfrom the original on April 16, 2023.RetrievedApril 16,2023.
  17. ^Reviews forFirst Class:
  18. ^Reviews forMoney, Power, and the People:

Further reading

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