ЛОКАЛЬНА ІДЕНТИЧНІСТЬ ЯК МЕХАНІЗМ СОЛІДАРИЗАЦІЇ ГРОМАДЯН В УМОВАХ ВЕЛИКОГО МІСТА (НА ПРИКЛАДІ М. ОДЕСА)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of the local identity and its role in the solidarization of society. Considering urban identity as one of the types of local identity, some classical authors (F.Toennis, L. Wirth) insist on the principle impossibility of the existence of such phenomenon (urban identity) in the sense of belonging to the urban community. They point out the main characteristics of the city, such as: large number of people, density and hetero-geneity of population, alienation, fragility and artificial nature of a large city. However, this article proposed to consider urban identity as local, implying that connection of an individual with a certain territory and territorial community is mental, «imaginary» (according to O. Musiyezdov’s works).Local identity is considered within the framework of the approach, where it is interpreted as the awareness of personal responsibility for the fate of the city and the way of solidarization of the urban community in solving problems of common life, the arrangement of the urban environment, ecology, heritage conservation, social justice. It is suggested that urban identity increases the level of trust within the urban community and assists in building civil society as a phenomenon that determines heterogeneity and multilevelness of political culture. Such an approach seems very relevant in the context of modem transformations in Ukrainian society, decentralization reform, the creation of capable territorial communities, and the development of local self-government. Various research works show that traditionally there remain a large proportion of people with dominant local identity in Ukraine. At the same time, the majority of the population considers themselves to be Ukrainian citizens.The processes of solidarization in urban community are studied using the example of Odessa. The purpose of our study was to measure the level of local identity of Odessa inhabit- ants (Odessites) as a possible mechanism of solidarization. Data collection was conducted in November 2016 using the method of street survey. The sample consists of 500 people and represents the adult population of Odessa (over 18 years) based on age. gender and region of residence. Empirical research proved that Odessites have rather high level of local identity. This is especially typical for those who were born in the city. At the same time, respondents do not show high inclination to solidarization. which is demonstrated through the low level of trust and perceptions about the consolidation of Ukrainian society. Although the majority of respondents declare readiness for association to achieve certain goals, this readiness can be purely declarative and can differ from the actual behavior of the respondents. The author concludes that high level of local identity is not the only condition for self-organization of citizens and willingness to participate in solving community problems. The discovery of mechanisms of formation of local identity and the understanding of what respondents put into the concept of local identity can contribute to the understanding of local identity as a mechanism of solidarization of citizens. Key words: local identity, urban community, solidarization