Changing spaces, making places Flashcards
District Six timeline
- District 6 was originally built in 1838 to accommodate a large influx of free black slaves that required housing.
- In the 1930s the city engineer, W.S.Lunn imagined a dramatic reconstruction that would completely transform District Six
- By the beginning of the Second World War, 1127 homes had been built, however many of the original locals could not afford the much higher rents now being charged.
- In 1950, the ‘Cape Times’ newspaper ran a series of articles attempting to save the area by portraying it in a positive light - contrary to the governments portrayal and hence its grounds for clearing it.
- On the 11th February 1966, the government declared District Six a whites only area under the Group Areas Act - grounds of ‘slum clearance’ cited for the destruction of the area.
- Removals started during 1968 and by 1982, more than 60,000 people had been relocated to the sandy, bleak Cape Flats township 25 kilometres away
- A total of 150,000 people were relocated at a cost of 30 million rand
- In 1970, the government renamed the area Zonnebloem after the original Dutch farm, in an effort to attract developers who would transform it into a modern suburb
- By 1985, the area’s population was 3,500, many of whom were middle-income, Afrikaans speaking whites.
- This was due to the building of Cape Technikon which accommodated students and staff and takes up 50% of the district
- Since the fall of apartheid in 1994, the South African government has recognised the older claims of former residents to the area, and pledged to support rebuilding
- From 2004, 1600 people are scheduled to return
- 135 homes have returned so far, and 42 of 150 acres are left free for building
District Six - cultural characteristics
- As a result of its varied mix of ethnicities, races and religions, District 6 became a multi-racial and vibrant community and a cultural location for the working class, with strong links to the carnival. District Six is remembered fondly as a place of hardship, but a tolerant and mutually supportive community that enjoyed lively entertainment.
- During the 1950s the Cape Times ran a series of articles aimed at ‘demythologising’ District Six’s reputation as a dirty, infested place full of gangs and brothels, and in the process created myths of its own that emphasized the lively, convivial and harmless nature of the area.
- The neighbourhood tended to break down racial barriers in an otherwise highly colour-conscious society.
- The neighbourhood’s vibrant atmosphere encouraged creativity among its youth, the community produced a number of skilled musicians, dancers, and artists
District Six - political characteristics
- In the days prior to the first phase of the removal project, the government issued four main reasons for the removals. They stated that interracial interaction bred conflict, requiring the separation of the races.
- They deemed District Six a slum, fit only for clearance, not rehabilitation.
- They also portrayed the area as crime-ridden and dangerous; they claimed that the district was a vice den, full of immoral activities like gambling, drinking, and prostitution.
- Despite the government’s reasoning, many residents believed that the government sought the land because of its proximity to the city centre, Table Mountain, and the harbour, areas of high retail price.
- Approximately 60,000 people were removed from District Six itself, at a cost of more than 30 million rand. Two thirds of the residents were moved to the Cape Flats, however housing provision was insufficient and there were 24,000 people on the municipal waiting list by the early 1970s.
- Police became increasingly oppressive in District Six. Residents suggest that white [police officers] were always working against them…arresting them and beating them up.”
District Six - built environment
- Most houses were small, some consisting of only one room housing as many as 16 people. The toilet was in the back yard and washing comprised turns in the bath tub in the kitchen
- In the 1930s the city engineer, W.S.Lunn imagined a dramatic reconstruction that would completely transform district Six and by the beginning of the Second World War, a total of 1127 homes had been built. The problem was that many of District Six’s residents were unable to afford the rents being charged for the new housing.
- Most of the built environment was demolished in the 1970s and 1980s - the only places left standing were places of worship and the newly built Cape peninsula University of Technology
District Six - demographic characteristics
- Within 40 years of its creation (1900s), it was home to a lively community made up of former slaves, artisans, merchants and other immigrants, as well as many Malay people brought to South Africa by the Dutch East India Company
- Home to over 10% of Cape Town’s population
- After the conclusion of the Second World War, it was made up largely of coloured residents which included a substantial number of coloured Muslims (Cape Malays)
District Six - socio-economic characteristics
- 1930s - a poor area where interdependence was key for survival with families supporting each other and creating a very close community
- During apartheid, despite there being a great increase in economic prosperity, the previous closeness of the community was shattered
District Six - physical characteristics
- Central location in Cape Town means it is in close proximity to the city centre, but it is also near to the Table Mountain
- Now a grassy areas of mostly wasteland with rubble
- Brownfield land
- Prime property area due to location
Brick Lane - timeline
- 16th century - Flemish immigrants settled in the area, bringing brick making and brewing. Brick Lane was known as ‘Brick Kiln Lane’ after the ovens in which the bricks were fired
- 17th century - French Huguenots moved into the area for housing, it became a centre for weaving, tailoring and clothing and attracted immigrants who provided semi-skilled and unskilled labour
- A Huguenot chapel called La Nueve Eglise was built in 1742 on the corner of Brick Lane and Fournier Street
- Huguenot street names still exist and residents have 25% Huguenot blood
- 19th century - Irish people (due to the Great Potato Famine) and Ashkenazi Jews (due to the assassination of the Tsar in 1881) began immigrating to the area.
- In 1898 the old chapel was consecrated as the Great Spitalfields Synagogue for the increased Jewish population
- Jewish built environment remains e.g. Beigel Shop (1855)
- 20th century - Bangladeshi families were the main immigrants, often from the Sylhet region, who sought safety after the partition of India.
- The influx of Bangladeshis caused many Jews to move out of the area, and the synagogue was adapted as the Great London Mosque in 1976. In 2010 a 29m tall minaret-style tower was added
- Brick Lane retains many curry houses and hosts London’s biggest Mela festival
- 21st century - Brick Lane has become a centre for art and fashion students, with many courses exhibiting their work in the Brick Lane area, as well as hipsters
- This is gentrification rather than a wave of immigrants, and it is reflected in shops such as the Cereal Killer Cafe
- The knowledge based economy has also taken of in Brick Lane, and it is now a popular tourist destination
Brick Lane - sense of place
- Bright and vibrant road in East London
Brick Lane - natural characteristics
- Runs from Swanfield Street, through Spitalfields to Whitechapel High Street
- Existed since 1550s - was a field path in open countryside well outside London (slight slope)
Brick Lane - built characteristics
- Built environment began in 18th century - many buildings occupied by industry (silk weaving)
- Low and closely built buildings - mode building storeys is 4
- Large quantities of graffiti present
- Most ground floor buildings (95%) are commercial or entertainment - predominantly bars and restaurants
Brick Lane - socio-economic characteristics
- Mainly independent + reasonably cheap shops (Gram Bangla, Al Badar fried chicken)
- Has become vibrant and desirable neighbourhood, leading to the influx of tourist services
- Premier Inn ‘Hub’ Hotel - £21.4 million, 189 rooms
- Cereal Killer Cafe - £4 per bowl of cereal
- “It was a bad area, very rough, now it is marvellous” - Antonio, Beigel Bake (open 44 years)
- Development of knowledge economy in Brick Lane
- Cameron announced ‘East London Tech City investment plan’ in 2010
- Second Home offers rentable office space for start-ups eg The Hatch
- Movement of tech companies to the area increases focus of economic activity in this area
- Lots of young students in area of Spitalfields and Banglatown
- Over 50% more students than London average
- Number of retirees is only half the London average
Brick Lane - demographic characteristics (from 2011 census of Spitalfields and Bangaltown)
- Very few children
- Age ranges from 0-14 each make up 5% or below of the total population
- Lots of student aged people
- Almost 50% of both male and female population aged 20-34
- Diverse with high proportion of Bangladeshi
- 41% Bangladeshi compared to London average of 5%
- 27% white british compared to 47% in London and 81% in England
Brick Lane - cultural characteristics
- High proportion of Muslims compared to Christians
- 41.5% Muslim compared to 12.4% in London and 5% in England
- Over 8 times the national average
- Only 18.4% Christian compared to 48.4% in London and 59.4% in England
- 41.5% Muslim compared to 12.4% in London and 5% in England
- ‘Cultural hub’ filled with many popular restaurants and bars
- City Spice + Aladin Brick Lane
- Exit Bar + 93 Feet East
- Centre of art
- Lots of artistic graffiti
- Banksy, Anthony Lister, Malarky, Stik
- Art galleries
- The Brick Lane Gallery
- Gallery S O
- Informal representations include Louisa Cook’s ‘Get Sketched In’ illustrations
- Lots of artistic graffiti
Space vs. place
It is difficult to define space and place, as their meaning is very subjective, but roughly:
- Space - a location which has no social connections for a human being. No value has been added to this space and no meaning has been ascribed to it. It is simply a set of coordinates.
- Place - more than just a location and can be described as a location created by human experiences. The size of this location does not matter and is unlimited. It can be a city, neighbourhood, a region or even a classroom. Creswell - ‘a meaningful segment of geographical space’.
Sub categories of place
- Public space - a social space that is generally open and accessible to people
- Private space - an environment restricted in its occupancy and use - not open to all members of the public
- Personal space - the area immediately surrounding an individual
- Abstract space - a hypothetical space with equal and consistent properties - homogenous for modelling or analysis
- Concrete space - a real world environment, categorised by lived experiences
- Territoriality - how people use space to communicate ownership or occupancy of an area
Canter’s theory of place
- One cannot know a space until they know
- The activity associated with that place
- The physical parameters of the place
- The correct conception of the behaviour in the physical context
Characteristics included in a place profile
- Political
- Natural
- Demographic
- Cultural
- Socio-economic
- Built environment
Environmental determinism
Environmental determinism is the belief that the environment determines the patterns of human culture and societal development
- This is relate to modern geography, as many geographers consider the built environment to substantially influence human behaviour
- An example often cited is Google’s HQ, which is deliberately laid out in a quirky manner with many shared spaces in order to encourage collaboration and sharing of ideas
- A more popular theory now is transactionalism, which believes that the environment and human behaviour are interactive
How age affects perceptions of place
- People’s perceptions of a place change as they get older
- Often a place which they associate with very positive memories leave them feeling very disappointed when they return many years later
- Disneyland Paris is an example of a popular place (275 million visitors a year) where age affects your likely perception
- Children - full of exciting rides and characters
- Parents - rides likely to be dull as they cater for a younger audience, likely to be worrying about looking after children as 11 children are lost every day in Disneyland
How gender affects perceptions of place
- In different societies, the roles men and women have are reflected in the way the two groups can move around and the type of places they can use
- Yemen - huge gender gap
- Came last out of 145 countries in 2015 Global Gender Gap Report with a score of 0.484 where 1 is equality and 0 is total inequality
- 70% of men and boy in Yemen are literate compared to 29% of women and girls
- No seats held by women in national parliament
- Fertility rate of 4.4
- Only 15% of professional and technical workforce in 2013 was female
- 14% of Yemeni girls married before the age of 15 and 52% before 18
- A man is entitled to 4 wives
- Niqab strongly enforced on all women
- This means women in Yemen are likely to feel
- Trapped - hard to escape from marriage arranged by family
- Angry - very few opportunities due to lack of education
- Scared - domestic abuse common due to Sharia law, only a female guardian can report it
- Powerless - a woman owns no property in marriage and has very few political and social rights
How sexuality affects perception of place
- Saudi Arabia - LGBTQ rights are not recognised as homosexuality is seen as immoral
- No protection from abuse and discrimination
- Jail sentence + 450 lashings for meeting a man
- Gay people likely to feel very scared and uncomfortable
- Brighton - 2,554 people in homosexual couples, 15 gay nightclubs and bars, biggest gay population in the UK and large annual pride parade
How religion affects perceptions of place
- Beach: Muslim’s cover up as part of their religion, however in France there has been a recent Burkini ban as a result of recent terrorist attacks. However this doesn’t affect Christians so much as they aren’t expected to remain covered up as part of their faith. As a result Muslim’s are going to experience beaches, especially in France, differently to christians and other people who don’t necessarily wish to cover themselves.
- Middle East: In Saudi Christians have to cover up, there are no churches and christians can’t celebrate christmas and easter. Furthermore Jewish people aren’t even allowed to enter the Middle East, however in 2015 Drake (a jew) was allowed to go to Dubai, this was a big deal there and marked the start of a possible change in attitude towards other religions. This will affect many religious people’s perception of these middle eastern countries as they will likely feel excluded and unwanted.
- Raif Badawi: A journalist in the middle east who supposedly “insulted islam” on his blog. He has been sentenced to 1,000 lashings and 10 years in prison.
- Jerusalem holds an incredibly different meaning for people of different religions
- Judaism - most sacred location and ancient capital of the Jewish state, home to the Temple Mount and the Western Wall
- Christianity - site of Christ’s execution and resurrection, making it Christianity’s most holy site, home to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (believed to house a piece of the cross) and the Garden Tomb
- Islam - site of Muhammad’s ‘night journey’ and home of Islam’s third most sacred shrine - the Dome of the Rock
How roles affect perceptions of place - inmates and victims
- Inmates:
- Regulation #5 - You are entitled to food, clothing, shelter and medical attention. Anything else is a privilege.
- All privileges had to be earned
- “Alcatraz was never no good for nobody” - Frank Weatherman, the last prisoner to leave Alcatraz.
- Each cell in B & C block was 5 feet by 9 feet. Inmates in D block were confined to their cells 24 hours a day.
- There were eight people murdered by inmates on Alcatraz. Five men committed suicide, and fifteen died from natural illnesses.
- The first warden, James Johnston, enforced strict discipline and prohibited the inmates from speaking out loud
- Victims:
- High number of inmates committed serious crimes such as murder.
- There is a large number of victims as a result of the crimes committed by all the Alcatraz inmates.
- One example is James “Whitey” Bulger, who was sentenced to life without parole as a result of the following offences:
- Racketeering, murder (19 counts), conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit extortion, narcotics distribution, conspiracy to commit money laundering, extortion and shoplifting.