Street renaming, symbolic capital, and resistance in Durban, South Africa

• Autores: James Duminy
• Localización: Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, ISSN-e 1472-3433, Vol. 32, Nº. 2, 2014, págs. 310-328
• Idioma: inglés
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• Dialnet Métricas: 2 Citas
• Resumen

  • In early 2007 the African National Congress majority within the local government authority of Durban, South Africa, approved two phases of a street renaming process, which culminated in the renaming of over one hundred prominent streets after various anticolonial and antiapartheid �struggle heroes�. The process led to an unprecedented degree of public attention and debate, expressed through a range of arguments and symbolic gestures, and local state representatives responded by casting this opposition in terms of �countertransformation�. This paper examines the Durban case with a critical analytical perspective that sees acts of place naming through the heuristic frames of �text�, �arena�, and �performance�, drawing attention to the complex spatial and material dynamics that attend acts of symbolic transformation and resistance. It contributes to theoretical discussions surrounding �naming as symbolic resistance�, by arguing that a performative conception of symbolic capital and resistance may aid our understanding of naming processes in contested memorial landscapes.