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Authorities in Paris have put the kibosh on Design Miami’s first Parisian edition after police there cited a lack of security at its planned site, the historic Place de la Concorde. The concern led to the July 29th denial of permit issuance by the city’s new police chief Laurent Nunez, who... View full entry
The council’s decision comes after months of significant organizing and protesting, including a two-day hunger strike last week, by vendors who felt that they were shut out of negotiations. It also follows months of mediating between the vendors and the Bumb family by councilmember David Cohen, who represents the district where the market is located. — The Mercury News
A large multi-use development project has been proposed for the site, which is adjacent to a BART station, since at least 2007. The site currently hosts a flea market that caters to primarily Spanish-speaking lower-income residents. Recent protests have combined public outcry to draw some... View full entry
Following a somewhat lukewarm reception to an initial statement released over the weekend from AIA 2020 President Jane Frederick touching on the recent days of anti-racism protests, the American Institute of Architects Board of Directors has issued an in-depth follow-up letter indicating their own... View full entry
Does the destruction of buildings matter when black Americans are being brazenly murdered in cold blood by police and vigilantes?
That’s the question that has been raging on the streets of Philadelphia, and across my architecture-centric social media feeds, over the last two days as a dark cloud of smoke spiraled up from Center City.
— The Philadelphia Inquirer
Inga Saffron, architecture critic for The Philadelphia Inquirer, offers a nuanced look at the relationship between protest, property destruction, and economic development in under-invested areas in her latest column. The article comes as cities around the country grapple with fierce protests... View full entry
Over the weekend as courthouses, monuments, business districts, and public spaces around the country became backdrops to fierce protests seeking justice for the killings of Minneapolis resident George Floyd and other Black Americans at the hands of police, a collection of architecture, design, and... View full entry
Widespread protests focused on countering China's quasi-colonial reign over Hong Kong continued over the weekend, as demonstrators began to take aim at the city's widespread surveillance infrastructure, The Guardian reports. Organizing in response to reports that Chinese... View full entry
The V&A Dundee is facing mounting pressure to return philanthropic donations tainted by opioid profits. The museum has reportedly received a £500,000 grant linked to the Sackler family, who, as the owners of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, have been embroiled in controversy for their role in... View full entry
Over the weekend, a group of more than 100 protestors demanded that the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum refuse further funding from the Sackler Family. Led by the American photographer Nan Goldin and her organization PAIN (Prescription Addiction Intervention Now), the activists have been targeting... View full entry
Mall of America’s ability to so zealously suppress the December 23 [Black Lives Matter] protest there highlights how, in a nation where more and more public life takes place in privatized spaces, the ability to exercise First Amendment rights has become increasingly contingent...
Legal arguments that free political speech should be allowed at malls center around the idea that the shopping center has replaced the town square as a place where opinions can be heard and exchanged.
— the Intercept
Related:Taking a stand against privately-owned public spacesFor in that death of malls, what dreams may come? Archinect Sessions #32, featuring special guest co-host, Nam Henderson!NY Mayor de Blasio's Times Square overhaul runs into massive opposition View full entry
French taxi drivers pulled out the throttle in an all-out confrontation with the ultra-cheap Uber car service Thursday, smashing livery cars, setting tires ablaze and blocking traffic during a nationwide strike that caught tourists and celebrities alike in the mayhem. — washingtonpost.com
Parisian taxi drivers have taken to the streets, smashing cars and burning tires to protest UberPop, a budget iteration of the car-sharing service akin to UberX in the States. Traffic came to a stop in the French capital, with reports of stranded travelers walking along the highway with luggage... View full entry
