Theorizing social fear and contested urbanism of displacement, alienation and contemporary processes of political, economic and religious-induced mobility: a cross cultural study.

Abstract

Fear is an intrinsic human response to social insecurity and epitomises the perceived disparity in anticipation and engagement with the 'other'. Fear of other ethnic minority groups and their involvement or not in the city's social and labour markets can manifest spatial insecurity through territoriality, boundary definition, ghettoization and access to communal public space. The cost of land and property, the incoming wealth and the ability of a migrant or refugee to generate income (or not)- to buy or rent or live illegally- are major contributing factors in social inclusion. Many metropolitan cities are challenged and pressured by economic, political, religious, and racial class divisions. Here we argue that contested urban settlements of migrant and low-paid workers need to be studied through the matrix of social fear using new methodologies of communication that map fear and displacement within the city and public space.