The Sociology Book

106

T H E F R E E D O M T O

R E M A K E O U R C I T I E S

A N D O U R S E L V E S

HENRI LEFEBVRE (1901–1991)

T

he city need not be seen

as a concrete jungle—

grimy, unpleasant, and

threatening. For French sociologist

and philosopher Henri Lefebvre,

who dedicated most of his life to

the study of urban society, it is an

exciting and complex combination

of power relationships, diverse

identities, and ways of being.

Writing in the 1960s and 1970s,

Lefebvre maintained that one of the

most fascinating aspects of the city

is not simply the people in it, but

Cities should be places

that encourage freedom

of expression, play,

and creativity.

Cities must be

rebuilt in the interests

of the oppressed.

But modern cities

are shaped to reflect the

interests of powerful

corporations and

capitalism.

The poor,

the working class,

and other marginalized

groups are denied a say

in how cities are built

and social space

is utilized.

Reclaiming the “right to the

city” gives us the freedom to remake

our cities and ourselves.

IN CONTEXT

FOCUS

The right to the city

KEY DATES

19th century Extensive

urbanization takes place

across Europe and the US.

1848 Karl Marx and Friedrich

Engels offer a critique of class

inequalities in Western

capitalist society in The

Communist Manifesto.

1903 German sociologist

Georg Simmel publishes The

Metropolis and Mental Life.

From the 1980s According

to British sociologist David

Harvey and Spanish theorist

Manuel Castells, cities serve

the interests of capitalism and

this affects the interaction of

those who live there.

From the 1990s Lefebvre’s

concept of “right to the city”

influences social movements

across the world, including in

the US, France, Brazil, and the

Philippines.