February 25, 2006
An "American" City in Africa
I have been doing a lot of reading recently on Johannesburg, and a friend recommended that I check out the Fall 2004 issue of Public Culture, which focuses on Johannesburg in particular. One article by AbdouMaliq Simone is especially interesting. In it he describes the informal networks and integration of city dwellers, concentrating on the aspect of people as flexible units of infrastructure.
One quote that struck a chord with me was his comparisons of the inner-city of Johannesburg with American urban centers:
"Many of the economic and political mechanisms that produced American inner-city ghettos have been at work in Johannesburg, and these are only reinforced by the strong influence of U.S. policy on South Africa. But large swathes of Johannesburg reflect teh failures of strong regulatory systems and the economic and social informalities commonly associated with urban Africa. Indeed, it is mainly Johannesburg's American features--its developed physical infrastructure, social anonymity, and extensive range of material and service consupmtion--that have attracted large numbers of urban Africans."
Interesting idea that I'm still digesting. I will try to post other things that I run across that I find myself wrestling with...
Posted by Cindy Wise at 09:56 PM | Comments (0)
