Imprisonment of Public Space

Abstract

Public space is a multilayered phenomenon associated with accessibility, comprehensiveness, equal citizenship, and as representing/building democracy. Founded on Henri Lefebvre’s (1974/1991) definition, space is both a product and a precondition of the social processes. Moreover, public space comes to the fore as a multilayered spatial scene. This scene enables us to examine various manifestations of intervention, negotiation, freedom, struggle, or oppression through daily life routines, mass demonstrations, or preclusions. The inherent specificity of public space also represents the struggle for/on space clearly. By exploring the rooted meaning and function of public space, this study focuses on the imprisonment of space as a manifestation of power.

This chapter approaches the notion of imprisonment of space in two main ways. Firstly, the word “imprisonment” is used metaphorically to define the urban or architectural practices of the government, which have the power to transform the daily use and the symbolic meaning of public spaces. For instance, establishing or destroying symbolic or representative buildings adjacent to a public space creates empty and uncomfortable spaces where people only pass by. Secondly, the notion of “imprisonment” is used literally to define the way access to public spaces is blocked by building temporary or permanent barriers, as is done by the police for crime scene investigations.

This study aims to exemplify the imprisonment of public space through two current urban practices from Istanbul, Turkey. The first case regards two much-debated buildings: the construction of a mosque and the reconstruction of a cultural center, facing each other. The space between them remains a void where, in the past, many public demonstrations occurred which has attributed to this area a symbolic meaning in the collective memory of the city. The second case regards an urban square that is well known due to sit-in protests of the Saturday Mothers movement since 1995. To prevent sit-in protests from continuing, this square has been surrounded by temporary security barriers, vehicles, and military forces since 2018, making this location a literal example of an imprisoned public space. By discussing these two cases, this chapter illustrates how spatial interventions such as blocking or emptying of public spaces are not just conducted to prevent a claim of civic demands, but also to erase the collective memory connected to these areas. For this reason, these interventions should be discussed on their short- and long-term effects in order to build a powerful public reclaiming of space.

Citation

Akbalık, E. (2022), "Imprisonment of Public Space", Rozzoni, S., Boonstra, B. and Cutler-Broyles, T. (Ed.) Re-Imagining Spaces and Places (Emerald Interdisciplinary Connexions), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 45-59. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80071-737-420221004