Peacebuilding for the urban displaced: understanding participation and community in South African social cohesion interventions
Date
2011-09-08
Authors
Anderson, Jessica
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Abstract
This thesis explores whether the body of literature on peacebuilding—in both operational
tools and theoretical research— is relevant in a context of urban displacement. It particularly
focuses on ‘community’ and participation as critical constructs that are affected by the
invisibility, mobility, diversity, and insecurity that characterize urban displacement
environments. For this thesis, I conducted field research with twelve social cohesion
interventions that responded to the 2008 xenophobic violence in South Africa. In light of recent
experiences with xenophobic violence, and the subsequent civil society response of social
cohesion interventions, urban South Africa represents a unique case study that marries
peacebuilding issues with an urban displacement context. This thesis argues that the urban
displacement characteristics of mobility, diversity, insecurity, and invisibility ultimately
challenge peacebuilding ideas of participation and ‘community’.
The first section of this thesis summarizes the history of peacebuilding and urban
displacement literature. Then, the concept of ‘friction’ is discussed as a way to understand the
effects of carrying out ‘traditional’ peacebuilding interventions in a context of urban
displacement. ‘Friction’ is further used to interrogate and understand the assumptions embedded
in concepts of community and participation. The second section of this thesis focuses on my
fieldwork with social cohesion intervention staff, and how concepts of community and
participation manifest themselves in these interventions. These findings ultimately demonstrate
the complexity of operating in a context of urban displacement, and the need to question the
uncontested categories and assumptions of both practical tools and academic literature in
peacebuilding.