Political ArchitectureFrance’s HLM

The Language of Poverty

What are some of the terms we have for subsidized housing? Subsidized Housing - Government

supported housing for people with low to moderate incomes

Terms

The Language of Poverty

What are some of the terms we have for subsidized housing? Subsidized Housing - Government

supported housing for people with low to moderate incomes

Terms Ghetto

The Language of Poverty

What are some of the terms we have for subsidized housing? Subsidized Housing - Government

supported housing for people with low to moderate incomes

Terms Ghetto Slum

The Language of Poverty

What are some of the terms we have for subsidized housing? Subsidized Housing - Government

supported housing for people with low to moderate incomes

Terms Ghetto Slum Inner City

La Banlieue

Francophone term meaning “outskirts” Linguistically implies the English

equivalent of “suburbs” Euphemism for France’s centers of

urban decay Low income housing is pushed out of

the urban centers and isolated in the distant reaches outside the cities Fundamentally different from American

“inner city” housing

HLM

Habitation à Loyer Modéré – “housing at moderated rents” Four million residences Fourteen million people One quarter of France’s population Half of France’s rented housing Mostly immigrants from North and West

Africa

The Birth of a Slum

Aftermath of WWII The war in France and the German occupation

resulted in enormous damage to the city French colonies in North and West Africa

provide abundant and cheap labor Muslim and Black Africans seeking better jobs and

French citizenship arrive en masse to begin repairs

Bidonvilles, a Francophone term for shantytowns, grow outside cities in response to the lack of available or affordable housing.

Birth of a Slum (contd.)

Hasty construction beginning in the early fifties and growing rapidly to keep up with demand often fell short of expectations.

In 1968, only 41% of these residences have running water and sanitation. It would be a decade before that figure rose to 80%.

Aesthetics of Oppression

To reduce construction costs, large complexes were built in simplistic rectangles and assembled le chemin de grue (“by way of the crane”) This allowed a crane on a single track to construct both sides of the building simultaneously.

Aesthetics of Oppression

Budget cuts and general apathy led to many aspects of construction to remain unfinished resulting in large amounts of dead space.

Marginalized Youth

Cut off from the city and isolated within their empty environments, the youth populace of France’s many HLMs are unemployed

and without constructive outlets.

La Haine (Hate)

1995 film by Mathiue Kassovitz Shows the mounting tension

between France’s disaffected youths and their police force

Contrasts the architecture and environment of the banlieues with the urban centers of Paris

http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=1gFenEV9N2U&feature=related

2005 Riots

The abundant policing of the banlieues coupled with antagonistic and overly abusive police finally reached its boiling point in October 2005.

After police killed two fleeing youths of African descent, the banlieues responded.

2005 Riots (contd.)

The resulting riots lasted for almost three weeks. 200 million Euros in damages 9000 cars burned 2900 arrests 126 injured police and firefighters 1 innocent bystander killed

Conclusion

The design of France’s banlieues represents a system of political architecture where active design choices and unchecked apathy have created a system of oppression.

Isolation from urban centers and activities coupled with an inability to find employment results in a disaffected youth population at odds with an antagonistic cop force.

Works Cited

http//:riotsfrance.ssrc.org http//:wikipedia.com McCoy, Heather. “La Haine.” French

Culture Through Film. Penn State University Park. December 10, 2009.

Parkour

French parkour http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qM5aYOIbklI&annotation_id=annotation_874301&feature=iv 2:15

Russian parkour http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVQNt64PxfE 2:04