Work

A clean and civil city: Local associations and the moral bordering of Parisian public space

Year: 2023

Type: article

Abstract: For years, city officials in Paris have tried to reduce ‘incivility’ to maintain public order and security. While civility is being used by the city to enforce a respect for others through a respect for public space, it is also being used to claim moral authority and legitimacy by groups who already enjoy a privileged access to these spaces. Although some of these groups may seek to bring their neighbours into an imagined moral community through ‘awareness raising’, others attempt a revanchist approach to push the ‘uncivil’ and ‘undeserving’ further outside the borders of this community. This article argues that in combatting incivility and bad behaviour, local associations attempt to establish a spatial and moral community that legitimises their vision of appropriate consumption and use of public space and excludes already-marginalised publics from its borders.

Source: European Urban and Regional Studies

DOI: 10.1177/09697764231168536

Author: Carrie Ann Benjamin

Institution: CY Cergy Paris Université

Language: English

Topic: Urban Planning and Governance

Subfield: Urban Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Sustainable cities and communities, Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: bronze

Funder: Leverhulme Trust