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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | Contemporary Housing Struggles in South Africa: The Politics of Shelter in Johannesburg Coloured Township |
Authors: | Parnell, Susan Payne, R. |
Year: | 1989 |
Periodical: | African Urban Quarterly (ISSN 0747-6108) |
Volume: | 4 |
Issue: | 3-4 |
Period: | August-November |
Pages: | 342-348 |
Language: | English |
Notes: | biblio. refs., maps |
Geographic terms: | South Africa Southern Africa |
Subjects: | housing townships urban renewal Urbanization and Migration Ethnic and Race Relations Politics and Government urbanization housing shortage Johannesburg (South Africa) |
Abstract: | The nature of housing demands expressed by the residents of the coloured township of Westbury, Johannesburg, South Africa, differs from those of other black township residents. The 1985 Westbury tenants' struggle focused on the issue of housing standards, rather than on problems such as unaffordable rents, housing shortages or the Group Areas Act. Urban renewal of the oldest and one of the poorest areas of coloured settlement in Johannesburg was initiated by the Johannesburg Council and implemented by the private sector. However, dissatisfaction with the overall plan and the poor construction quality of the redevelopment led this usually quiescent community to organized protest. Although the community was only partially successful in effecting changes to the original designs and in getting compensation on inadequate building, their action underscores the importance of micro-political struggles in shaping the built environment. Note, ref. |