Border crossers: movements in urban space and the social production of borders in French banlieues

Abstract

Intra-urban borders are a pervasive feature in today’s global cities. They are not only the result of urban planning but they are also reproduced in everyday movements and interactions. Based on interviews and participant observation in French banlieues of Greater Paris, Mulhouse and Strasbourg, I analyse how inhabitants narrate movements in urban space that lead them to cross the boundaries of their neighbourhood. I build upon Lefebvre’s notion of spatial practice and insights from border studies to understand how these movements relate to the social production of urban marginality. The findings show how experiences and representations of intra-urban border-crossing among banlieue residents are shaped by and reproduce geographies of exclusion.

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