African Cities : Alternative Visions of Urban Theory and Practice

As African societies come to live more and more in cities, they do so in ways that challenge prevailing theories and models of urban development in geography, sociology, anthropology, and planning. This book uses African urban concepts and experiences to speak back to theoretical and practical concerns in urban studies and disciplines that study cities, as well as in African studies. It argues for a re-vision a seeing again, and a revising of how cities in Africa are discussed and written about in both urban studies and African studies. Cities in Africa still are either ignored, banished to a different, other, lesser category of not-quite cities, or held up as examples of all that can go wrong with urbanism in much of both the mainstream and even critical urban literature. This book encourages African studies and urban studies scholars across the world to engage with the vibrancy and complexity of African cities with fresh eyes. It uses the author's own research and a close reading of works by other scholars, writers, and artists on a broad range of sixteen cities in Africa to highlight six themes that help illuminate what is happening in and across the region's cities. As African societies come to live more and more in cities, they do so in ways that challenge prevailing theories and models of urban development in geography, sociology, anthropology, and planning. This book uses African urban concepts and experiences to speak back to theoretical and practical concerns in urban studies and disciplines that study cities, as well as in African studies. It argues for a re-vision_ a seeing again, and a revising_ of how cities in Africa are discussed and written about in both urban studies and African studies. Cities in Africa still are either ignored, banished to a different, other, lesser category of not-quite cities, or held up as examples of all that can go wrong with urbanism in much of both the mainstream and even critical urban literature. This book encourages African studies and urban studies scholars across the world to engage with the vibrancy and complexity of African cities with fresh eyes. It uses the author's own research and a close reading of works by other scholars, writers, and artists on a broad range of sixteen cities in Africa to highlight six themes that help illuminate what is happening in and across the region's cities As African societies come to live more and more in cities, they do so in ways that challenge prevailing theories and models of urban development in geography, sociology, anthropology, and planning. This book uses African urban concepts and experiences to speak back to theoretical and practical concerns in urban studies and disciplines that study cities, as well as in African studies. It argues for a revising of how cities in Africa are discussed and written about in both urban studies and African studies. Cities in Africa still are either ignored, banished to a different, other, lesser category of not-quite cities, or held up as examples of all that can go wrong with urbanism in much of both the mainstream and even critical urban literature. This book encourages African studies and urban studies scholars across the world to engage with the vibrancy and complexity of African cities with fresh eyes. It uses the author's own research and a close reading of works by other scholars, writers, and artists on a broad range of sixteen cities in Africa to highlight six themes that help illuminate what is happening in and across the region's cities [The Publisher] In this groundbreaking book, Garth Myers uses African urban concepts and experiences to speak back to theoretical and practical concerns. He argues for a re-visioning - a seeing again, and a revising - of how cities in Africa are discussed and written about in both urban studies and African studies. Cities in Africa are still either ignored - banished to a different, other, lesser category of not-quite cities - or held up as examples of all that can go wrong with urbanism in much of the mainstream and even critical urban literature. Myers instead encourages African studies and urban studies scholars across the world to engage with the vibrancy and complexity of African cities with fresh eyes. Touching on a diverse range of cities across Africa - from Zanzibar to Nairobi, Cape Town to Mogadishu, Kinshasa to Dakar - the book uses the author's own research and a close reading of works by other scholars, writers and artists to help illuminate what is happening in and across the region's cities. In this groundbreaking book, Garth Myers argues for a re-visioning of how cities in Africa are discussed and written about. Touching on a diverse range of examples, from Zanzibar to Nairobi, Cape Town to Mogadishu, Kinshasa to Dakar, Myers uses original research and a close reading of works by other scholars, writers, and artists to encourage us to engage with the vibrancy and complexity of African cities. About the author; Figures and tables; Abbreviations; Acknowledgments; Map; Introduction; 1 What if the postmetropolis is Lusaka?; 2 Postcolonial cities; 3 (I)n(f)ormal cities; 4 Governing Africa's cities; 5 Wounded city; 6 Cosmopolitan cities; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index This groundbreaking book shows how as African societies become increasingly urban they challenge prevailing theories and models of urban development. Garth Myers. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [199]-232) And Index.