The right to live in the city

Abstract

Purpose

Moral values and behavioural codes that governed the urban life and the appropriation of urban spaces changed significantly in Baku over the last two decades leading to conflicts over the right behaviour in the city and about the question who has the right to set the rules in public spaces. The purpose of this paper is to explore the current political as well as social rules that govern the public spaces in Baku and how they are discussed in order that the city should appear “European” in contrast to “oriental”.

Design/methodology/approach

The author focuses on everyday practices of people acting in the public sphere, how they use the space and which discussions emerge around different behaviour in public places. The paper is based on observations and interviews the author made between August 2010 and May 2012.

Findings

The paper shows new ways of appropriation of public space and dealing with social as well as official control.

Originality/value

The paper presents new research on a quickly changing post-Soviet city.

Citation

Krebs, M. (2015), "The right to live in the city", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 35 No. 7/8, pp. 550-564. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-10-2014-0088