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Bringing together comparative case studies from Belfast, Beirut,
Amsterdam and Berlin, this book examines the role of the urban
environment in social polarisation processes. In doing so, it
provides a timely and refreshingly innovative voice in the
confusing babble on (counter-)terrorism, urban conflict and
community cohesion. Despite their socio-political differences,
these cities are telling cases of how the location and shape of
very mundane objects such as rubbish bins, bridges, clothes'
stores, shopping malls and cafes - in addition to the obvious
fences, walls and barbed wire - are often subject to heated
controversies and influence the way urban conflict is 'lived' and
practised. Within a Science and Technology Studies (STS)
theoretical framework, the authors provide a systematic analysis of
these four cities and provide many concrete and richly illustrated
examples of 'material agency' without losing sight of their
specific historical, political, geographical and social conditions.
The STS angle permits some surprising, yet extremely convincing,
conclusions which are of use not only for a range of practitioners
but also to scholars interested in the social shaping processes and
the consequences of urban artefacts. The authors argue that,
although architecture and urban design is clearly not the sole
cause of conflict and polarisation, neither is it completely
innocent. Conversely, it cannot be the silver bullet to solve
related problems and to create community cohesion. However, the
materiality of our cities must not be ignored; in fact, it can and
should be 'enrolled' in our efforts. The book contains detailed
descriptions of such positive cases as inspiration for
practitioners as diverse as policy makers, architects, urban
designers, planners, community workers, consultants or police
officers.
Bringing together comparative case studies from Belfast, Beirut,
Amsterdam and Berlin, this book examines the role of the urban
environment in social polarisation processes. In doing so, it
provides a timely and refreshingly innovative voice in the
confusing babble on (counter-)terrorism, urban conflict and
community cohesion. Despite their socio-political differences,
these cities are telling cases of how the location and shape of
very mundane objects such as rubbish bins, bridges, clothes'
stores, shopping malls and cafes - in addition to the obvious
fences, walls and barbed wire - are often subject to heated
controversies and influence the way urban conflict is 'lived' and
practised. Within a Science and Technology Studies (STS)
theoretical framework, the authors provide a systematic analysis of
these four cities and provide many concrete and richly illustrated
examples of 'material agency' without losing sight of their
specific historical, political, geographical and social conditions.
The STS angle permits some surprising, yet extremely convincing,
conclusions which are of use not only for a range of practitioners
but also to scholars interested in the social shaping processes and
the consequences of urban artefacts. The authors argue that,
although architecture and urban design is clearly not the sole
cause of conflict and polarisation, neither is it completely
innocent. Conversely, it cannot be the silver bullet to solve
related problems and to create community cohesion. However, the
materiality of our cities must not be ignored; in fact, it can and
should be 'enrolled' in our efforts. The book contains detailed
descriptions of such positive cases as inspiration for
practitioners as diverse as policy makers, architects, urban
designers, planners, community workers, consultants or police
officers.
War and the City examines the geopolitical significance of the
Lebanese Civil War through a micro-level exploration of how the
urban landscape of Beirut was transformed by the conflict. Focusing
on the initial phase of the war in 1975 and 1976, the volume also
draws significant parallels with more recent occurrences of
internecine conflict and with the historical legacies of Lebanon's
colonial past. While most scholarship has thus far focused on
post-war reconstruction of the city, the initial process of
destruction has been neglected. This volume thus moves away from
formal macro-level geopolitical analysis, to propose instead an
exploration of the urban nature of conflict through its spaces,
infrastructures, bodies and materialities. The book utilizes urban
viewpoints in order to highlight the nature of sovereignty in
Lebanon and how it is inscribed on the urban landscape. War and the
City presents a view of geopolitics as not only shaping narratives
of international relations, but as crucially reshaping the space of
cities.
War and the City examines the geopolitical significance of the
Lebanese Civil War through a micro-level exploration of how the
urban landscape of Beirut was transformed by the conflict. Focusing
on the initial phase of the war in 1975 and 1976, the volume also
draws significant parallels with more recent occurrences of
internecine conflict and with the historical legacies of Lebanon's
colonial past. While most scholarship has thus far focused on
post-war reconstruction of the city, the initial process of
destruction has been neglected. This volume thus moves away from
formal macro-level geopolitical analysis, to propose instead an
exploration of the urban nature of conflict through its spaces,
infrastructures, bodies and materialities. The book utilizes urban
viewpoints in order to highlight the nature of sovereignty in
Lebanon and how it is inscribed on the urban landscape. War and the
City presents a view of geopolitics as not only shaping narratives
of international relations, but as crucially reshaping the space of
cities.
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