Changemaker
Matthew Desmond
TL;DR
Matthew Desmond is the Princeton sociologist who wrote Evicted, the Pulitzer-winning book about families losing their homes. He also runs the Eviction Lab, which built the first national database of American evictions.
Sociologist at Princeton University and principal investigator of the Eviction Lab. He wrote Evicted, which won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize, and Poverty, by America. MacArthur Fellow.
Matthew Desmond is the Maurice P. During Professor of Sociology at Princeton University. He wrote Evicted after living for more than a year alongside Milwaukee families going through eviction, and the book won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction. His 2023 book Poverty, by America asks why the richest country keeps so many people poor.
He also leads the Eviction Lab at Princeton, a research team that built the first national database of eviction records in America, so researchers and reporters could finally see the scale of the problem.
Why OGSP Recommends It
Desmond wrote Evicted, the book we recommend alongside our film Home. His research explains how families lose housing, which is where our film’s story picks up.
Related Resources
Key Takeaways
- Desmond lived alongside Milwaukee families going through eviction for more than a year to write Evicted, which won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize.
- His Eviction Lab at Princeton built the first national database of American eviction records.
- His 2023 book Poverty, by America argues that poverty persists because others benefit from it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Matthew Desmond?
Matthew Desmond is a sociologist at Princeton University and the author of Evicted, which won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize. He leads the Eviction Lab, which built the first national database of American eviction records.
What is Matthew Desmond famous for?
His book Evicted, which won the Pulitzer Prize and followed eight families losing their homes. He also founded the Eviction Lab at Princeton, which built the first national database of American evictions.
Where does Matthew Desmond teach?
At Princeton University, where he is the Maurice P. During Professor of Sociology. He is based in Princeton, New Jersey.
What is the Eviction Lab?
The Eviction Lab is a research team at Princeton University led by sociologist Matthew Desmond. It built the first national database of eviction records in America so the scale of the problem could finally be measured.