Manshiyat naser, the slum outside of Cairo known as “Garbage City”  This photo and the story of Manshiyat naser, the slum outside of Cairo known as “Garbage City,” that first convinced me that I wanted to become involved in urban planning. While I first saw this photo and had it presented to me as an extreme infrastructure problem, I recently learned that that is not how Garbage City got its name. One of the poorest suburbs of Cairo, the community in Manshiyat naser is composed of Christian garbage collectors and pig farmers - three of the things most stigmatized by mainstream Egyptian society. The New York Times has a really interesting article on the impacts of the Egyptian government forcing the slaughter of all pigs in Cairo, including Manshiyat naser. The policy was originally argued as protecting against swine flu, later as cleaning up the “filthy, dirty neighborhoods” of the Zabaleen (“garbage collectors”). Unfortunately, pigs are (were?) used extensively by the Zabaleen to in the garbage disposal process — while the people re-purposed or re-used 80-90% of the waste they collected, and pigs consumed the food waste. Without the pigs, garbage is piling higher than before and sanitation conditions have worsened significantly. Failed government prescriptions from bureaucrats who think they know better than the people they are serving and need no public input are able to cause significant damage to the workings of a autonomously well-tuned society. It is certainly possible to improve the livelihoods of Garbage City’s inhabitants — providing access to alternative and more safe work, improving access to sewage, clean water, electricity, and basic public education all would be a great start. Making it more difficult to do their jobs now — particularly one that is vital for the health of the city’s inhabitants — does not help anyone. Globally, the problem of the slums as things that just need to be removed, rather than the foundation of peoples’ homes and livelihoods. The most interesting (or the most pathetic, maybe?) is that this approach from well-meaning philanthropists and technocrats alike has been utilized with terrible results for over a century. This quote on the destruction of a block of public housing and the eviction of its low income immigrant tenants is a great example to close on: “It was strange to find people so attached to homes that were so lacking in all the attributes of comfort and decency.” - Edith Abbott (1913) /via: waaayward : kerr : smartercities
Pop-upView Separately

Manshiyat naser, the slum outside of Cairo known as “Garbage City” 

This photo and the story of Manshiyat naser, the slum outside of Cairo known as “Garbage City,” that first convinced me that I wanted to become involved in urban planning. While I first saw this photo and had it presented to me as an extreme infrastructure problem, I recently learned that that is not how Garbage City got its name. One of the poorest suburbs of Cairo, the community in Manshiyat naser is composed of Christian garbage collectors and pig farmers - three of the things most stigmatized by mainstream Egyptian society.

The New York Times has a really interesting article on the impacts of the Egyptian government forcing the slaughter of all pigs in Cairo, including Manshiyat naser. The policy was originally argued as protecting against swine flu, later as cleaning up the “filthy, dirty neighborhoods” of the Zabaleen (“garbage collectors”). Unfortunately, pigs are (were?) used extensively by the Zabaleen to in the garbage disposal process — while the people re-purposed or re-used 80-90% of the waste they collected, and pigs consumed the food waste. Without the pigs, garbage is piling higher than before and sanitation conditions have worsened significantly.

Failed government prescriptions from bureaucrats who think they know better than the people they are serving and need no public input are able to cause significant damage to the workings of a autonomously well-tuned society. It is certainly possible to improve the livelihoods of Garbage City’s inhabitants — providing access to alternative and more safe work, improving access to sewage, clean water, electricity, and basic public education all would be a great start. Making it more difficult to do their jobs now — particularly one that is vital for the health of the city’s inhabitants — does not help anyone. Globally, the problem of the slums as things that just need to be removed, rather than the foundation of peoples’ homes and livelihoods.

The most interesting (or the most pathetic, maybe?) is that this approach from well-meaning philanthropists and technocrats alike has been utilized with terrible results for over a century. This quote on the destruction of a block of public housing and the eviction of its low income immigrant tenants is a great example to close on:

“It was strange to find people so attached to homes that were so lacking in all the attributes of comfort and decency.” - Edith Abbott (1913)


/via: waaayward : kerr : smartercities

Source: waaayward

43 Notes/ Hide

  1. lemondedathena reblogged this from waaayward
  2. fyonnka reblogged this from waaayward
  3. radarqnet reblogged this from smartercities
  4. shazanaamin reblogged this from waaayward
  5. flakesofnuisance reblogged this from waaayward
  6. tanya77 reblogged this from smartercities
  7. serata reblogged this from smartercities
  8. downtowncreator reblogged this from smartercities
  9. saarak reblogged this from smartercities
  10. smartercities reblogged this from waaayward
  11. waaayward posted this

Recent comments

Blog comments powered by Disqus