Although the seemingly apocalyptic scale of the World Trade Center
disaster continues to haunt people across the globe, it is only the
most recent example of a city tragically wounded. Cities are, in
fact, perpetually caught up in cycles of degeneration and renewal.
As with the WTC, from time to time these cycles are severely
ruptured by a sudden, unpredictable event. In the wake of recent
terrorist activities, this timely book explores how urban
populations are affected by 'wounds' inflicted through violence,
civil wars, overbuilding, drug trafficking, and the collapse of
infrastructures, as well as 'natural' disasters such as
earthquakes. Mexico City, New York, Beirut, Belfast, Bangkok and
Baghdad are just a few examples of cities riddled with problems
that undermine, on a daily basis, the quality of urban life. What
does it mean for urban dwellers when the infrastructure of a city
collapses - transport, communication grids, heat, light, roads,
water, and sanitation? What are the effects of foreign investment
and huge construction projects on urban populations and how does
this change the 'look' and character of a city? How does drug
trafficking intersect with class, race, and gender, and what impact
does it have on vulnerable urban communities? How do political
corruption and mafia networks distort the built environment?
Drawing on in-depth case studies from across the globe, this book
answers these intriguing questions through its rigorous
consideration of changing global and national contexts, social
movements, and corrosive urban events. Adopting a 'grass roots up'
approach, it places emphasis on people's experiences of uneven
development and inequality, their engagement withmemory in the face
of continual change, and the relevance of political activism to
bettering their lives. It is especially attentive to the historical
interaction of particular cities with wider political and economic
forces, as these interactions have shaped local governance over
time. Imagining each city as a 'body politic', the authors consider
its capacity both to mediate local conflict and to broach the
healing of wounds.
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