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Presentation
The Help-Yourself City: Legitimacy and Inequality in DIY Urbanism
University Scholar Series
Description
When local governments neglect public services or community priorities, how do concerned citizens respond? In The Help-Yourself City: Legitimacy and Inequality in DIY Urbanism, Dr. Douglas looks closely at people who take urban planning into their own hands with homemade signs and benches, guerrilla bike lanes, and more. He explores the frustration, creativity, and technical expertise behind these interventions, but also the position of privilege from which they often come. Presenting a needed analysis of this growing trend from vacant lots to city planning offices, The Help-Yourself City tells a street-level story of people’s relationships to their urban surroundings and a troubling individualization of participatory democracy.
Date of Event
2-19-2020
Disciplines
Citation Information
Gordon Douglas. "The Help-Yourself City: Legitimacy and Inequality in DIY Urbanism" (2020) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/gordon-douglas/96/