CCYSC Blog Theme for April 2021: Youth Urban Cultures in the Global South

We are happy to announce the April theme of the CCYSC Blog: 'Youth Urban Cultures in the Global South.'

Studies about youth culture have never been to solely understand youth themselves. Rather, in addition to offering a perspective (or perspectives) on the lived experiences of and processes by young people making their way through the world, we are also able to consider the ways in which society is structured. The urban street becomes particularly intriguing as it is a location where “new forms of the social and the political can be made” (Sassen 2011, 574). However, it must also be recognised that these are the very spaces in which existing power dynamics can be observed (Kerr 2010)—not just of juvenility, but also social inequality and marginalisation where youth “may dissimulate from aspects of social class stereotyping even as they acknowledge the existence of these formations” (Kehily and Nayak 2014, 1339). Simultaneously, it is important to consider that the ways in which young people engage with the street and the urban has changed drastically over the last decade or so, resulting in new behaviourisms reacting to the systems around them. Smith and Mills (2019) draw out the various trends in this regard as they reassert the need for a spatialised understanding of youth—including the impact of austerity, inaccessibility of the housing market, and so on.

Within this context, we invite submissions pertaining to the theme ‘Youth Urban Cultures in the Global South.’ In particular, we are keen to understand not just what these collective forms are, but also how youth cultures can come to be made (or unmade) within the context of the street and being on or accessing the street. We also encourage submissions that subvert from the dominant geographical narratives of the Global South as a space that is lacking or catching up with modernity enshrined—supposedly—by the Global North. Finally, we look forward to hearing about the various other ways in which social inequalities intersect and manifest along various social and spatial lines. This can include, but is not limited to, a consideration of: sex, gender, sexuality; racialised experiences and ethnicity; religion and facets of the same including caste and sects; and class and economic inequality.

We welcome short contributions in the form of essays/articles/research journal entries/visual and graphic representations of research tools/ video journals made by researchers etc. Written contributions should not be more than 1500-2000 words. For video contributions, please ensure that the file size is not more than 10 GB. All material should be sent to childyouth2020@gmail.com.

Please feel free to circulate this call among your circles.

We look forward to your contributions!