study compares anti-vice efforts in three U.S. cities: Chicago, New York, and San Francisco. I compare reform efforts within each city as well as across them in order to explore the historical and regional contours of racial formation. This approach represents the “illustrative type” of comparative/historical research, juxtaposing similar historical events, processes, and actors to contribute to theoretical explanations of social life.14 Although anti-vice reformers in Chicago, New York, and San Francisco shared overlapping goals, I focus on distinct racial projects in each locale.
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methadology
