They call these sharp fins and benches “defensive design” or, more accurately, “hostile architecture”, where the built environment purposefully guides and restricts behaviour. It’s intended to deter homeless people from resting between its sharp or awkward edges but, increasingly, it has the added effect of making a city less comfortable for everyone else. “Sweeps, incarceration, enforcement of anti-panhandling laws and hostile architecture, after all, come with a hefty price tag estimated to be more than $31,000 per person, per year,” reports Jacobin. And yet, we are all one missed rent payment, one bad boyfriend, one sharp new policy away from poverty or homelessness. These spikes are a grim illustration of how public spaces are increasingly not for the public at all.

Source: The Guardian January 21, 2024 21:49 UTC