After hearing so much about Robert Moses it was nice to read about what he actually did. I knew he was a major NYC influence, both socially and physically, but until now he was just a vague name among others in NY like Rockefeller and Vanderbilt. Famous man who built NYC, but only today are only vaguely known for what they did. It was surprising to read that he also shaped the surrounding suburbs of the city and some parts of upstate New York, even as far as Niagara. I didn’t realize his power and reach was so immense. After reading this I wonder if he has been the most powerful man in NYC history, because I cannot think of another man in NYC to not only shape it as much but have such a strong hold over almost every aspect of what was happening in it for over four decades.

With the emphasis of how much Moses shaped NYC, it seemed like it idolized Moses, besides the last page of the reading. Although it briefly talked about how he purposefully displaced mostly poor people minority people, I don’t feel like it properly addressed what I’ve been taught before of Moses: his very racist tendencies (like how he purposely made public pool water cold because he thought that African Americans didn’t like cold water). I also wonder how he could displace so many people without public backlash. At one point it mentioned that Moses was untouchable because he had the weight of public option for him. How could this be true when at the same time he uprooted thousands of people? This really made me want to read further into the life and influence of Moses.