The Right to the City and informal housing

Sven da Silva

Chapter 5 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Economic Anthropology, 2025, pp 273-277 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Henri Lefebvre's Right to the City (RTC) continues to be popular amongst many actors who condemn the use of the city as a source of profit. As an analytical framework, the RTC helps activist scholars explore the relationship between urbanization, economic systems, and social relations. As a revolutionary call to action, the RTC serves as an umbrella slogan for social movements that address various inequalities. I focus on housing as a fundamental yet contested and uncertain right by reflecting on my encounter with a single mother who took part in a land occupation after being evicted due to a slum upgrading project. In doing so, I address the complexity of victimhood and resistance as that which the RTC lens obscures, arguing that the approach becomes problematic when it fortifies an agenda of “rescue, represent, and resolve”. I consider a dialogue between political and economic anthropology crucial to understanding RTC struggles better.

Keywords: Right to the City; Informal occupations; Housing; Popular economy; Victimhood; Resistance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035312566
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