Street Fighting

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles.2013/06/24/the-problem-with-cities.html

Hello Everyone:

Brazilian Protests
lbtimes.co.uk.com

The recent protests in Egypt, Brazil, Turkey, and even normally quiet Sweden have brought the issue of urban poverty around the world to the forefront.  Urban poverty is not a new phenomena.  What is new is the catalysts for this massive protests.  What may seem like superficial thing such as rising bus fares or saving a park, becomes platforms for addressing major social ills.  Interestingly, we're seeing more protests in the urban areas.  In her article for The Daily Beast, "The Problem With Cities," Janine di Giovanni looks at the implications urban poverty and the looming crisis facing cities around the world.

Rioters standing up to police
washingtonpost.com

The twenty-first century is the urban century.  Let me clarify that, the first really urban century.  Our cities are growing and their residents are getting pretty fed up with the rapid of growth.  From my point of view, it seems like those in charge have no clue as to where to go or what to do.  May I suggest you consider the historic preservation route and "recycle" your buildings?  The catalysts for the recent riots in Brazil were innocuous enough, rising bus fares and that vaguely defined reason, corruption.  The reality is that in countries like Brazil, Russia, India, China (the BRIC nations) there is a great divide between the haves and have-nots.  Why these countries in particular?  The BRIC nations have rapidly growing economies.  The wealthy flaunt themselves while life in the favelas, shantytowns of Rio and São Paulo, are brutally harsh.  The favelas were established by soldiers with no real place to go and have been a part of the Brazilian urban landscape for about one hundred years.  In the seventies, urbanization became a source for poor Brazilians looking for work and a breeding ground for violent gang, drug dealers, and corrupt politics.

Egyptian protests 2013
english.alarabiya.net

Now the shantytown dwellers, along with the angry young people, are rising up and making themselves heard.  The actual reason, such as saving a park, seem lost in the ferment of the violence and clashes.  Often, protests are organized through the social media sites.  Ms. di Giovanni points out, "It's ironic that the first clashes began in São Paulo two weeks ago, because just a week before, a conference was held in that city, with great success, sponsored by the New Cities Foundation (http://www.newcitiesfoundation.org/), a Geneva-based NGO."  The organization's mandate is the promotion of sustainable, dynamic dialogue in cities and finding ways make cities user-friendly for the people.  Flushed with the success of the conference, São Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad flew to Paris, France where he was feted and to try to garner interest for São Paulo's bid to host the World Expo in 2020.  Then, the protests broke out and the mayor flew back to find his city on fire and is now quickly retreating from the bus fare increases.  Too little, too late.

Protests in Tahrir Square 2013
theweek.com

In the meantime, in Istanbul, the protests are still going strong, despite the tear gas, police clashes, and threats.  The connection between the protests in Turkey and Brazil is the push back against urban sprawl that's threatening to destroy the cities.  In Turkey, there is the additional element of a push back against increased Islamization.  Let's pause for a second to remember the Arab Spring which began in Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia, when a vegetable seller frustrated with the never ending cycle of poverty, self-immolated.  This movement spread all over North Africa and the Middle East.  Could London, Paris, and New York be next?  Is there a link between all the uprisings?  Is there a way to make cities more sustainable and "user-friendly?"

Burnt out car in Sweden
theaustrailian.com.au.com

John Rossant, the chairman and found of the New Cities Foundation, believes that there is a connection between the Arab Spring and the current urban uprising.  The connections are rooted in the lessons from the past on how to live harmoniously, especially as cities expand and become regional entities.  Interestingly, Mr. Rossant notes that half of the Chinese population now resides in urban centers, whereas a generation ago it that number was barely twenty percent.  Yet there haven't been reports of Arab Spring-type rioting.  Why is that?  Tighter security and more control perhaps?  Discuss?  India and Indonesia's cities are expanding as more people come in from the rural areas to seek new opportunities.  Could this happen in the United States as well?

Overcrowded and badly organized cities have, historically been breeding grounds for discontent.  During the run-up to the London Olympics in 2012, the Docklands were turned into a theme park.  Despite the leadership of Boris Johnson, the working people are still angry over having to drive a car inside of the city center. Having never driven in London, or any other foreign city, I would guess that driving in London is less preferable to dental surgery.  In Paris, the city center is available for the white elite, while the poor are shoved off to the suburbs, out of sight, out of mind.  Yet, Ms. di Giovanni observes that during the revolt 2004, Parisians were curious as to why the poor and immigrant residents were complaining.  Manhattan, New York, increasingly less affordable to average-income earners was the site of the disorganized Occupy Wall Street Movement.  However, in both Paris and Manhattan, the message was loud and clear, the gap between those who can enjoy the urban living and those who cannot partake is too great.

Protester in Istanbul
washingtonpost.com

So what is the solution?  How can we all learn to live contentedly in our cities?  Mr. Rossant believes that the Brazil Riots are just the beginning of others.  More importantly, politics in the twenty-first century will be shaped by the cities and take place in the cities.  So what can local elected officials do?  Listen to the people.  "They need to stimulate the senses and the spirit as well as providing jobs," says Mr. Rossant.  This sounds a bit too "pie in the sky" for me.  In Los Angeles, where yours truly resides, we just inaugurated a new mayor how promises a "back to basics" approach to growth and job creation.  We'll see how this squares with reality and Los Angeles City Hall politics.

http://www.pinterest.com/glamtroy