Place Fontainas as a border area. Urban production with respect to sexuality, gender, ethnicity and social class

Alexandre Donnen

doi:10.4000/brussels.3760

Abstract

Located between the “gay” neighbourhood and the “working-class” Anneessens neighbourhood, Place Fontainas has been the site of several presumed homophobic acts of violence, thus contributing to its categorisation as a dangerous area, particularly for homosexual populations. In response to this type of violence, there have been several measures adopted by the public authorities, yet they are in keeping with an often binary and essentialising logic of security. Based on direct observation work and interviews at and around Place Fontainas, the present article intends to adopt a new approach. It examines this area based on the notion of border and, through an intersectional analysis, discusses the social and urban mechanisms which contribute to the establishment of abrupt changes in terms of sexuality, social class and ethnicity. However, in each of the areas studied, there is a continuity of male domination, which makes women invisible and limits their access to public space.

Highlights

37 Beyond the simplistic views sometimes presented in social, media and political rhetoric, marking the opposition between categories and spaces at times considered as violent and exclusive, an intersectional reading and the notion of border allow a change of perspective
This article shows that these elements make Place Fontainas the border of a non-heteronormative space starting at Rue du Marché au Charbon, which is essential for gay socialisation and identity building
Often thought of outside its social environment, the gay neighbourhood limits its access to the racialised populations which border it, and to other populations – including homosexual populations

Summary

City and border

The survey conducted between September 2017 and June 2018 made use of various data production methods. In addition to connecting two central boulevards of the Brussels pentagon, it is the junction point of five streets, a stopping point for several public transport lines and is next to busy consumer areas Despite both daytime and night-time crowds, “there is nothing to do”, according to a local resident, emphasising the more general view of a square whose uses are poorly identified. This contrast – between the perception of a busy square whose uses are not identified and the observations revealing stable practices and uses of the square – reveals how dominant perceptions of the functioning and organisation of public space have a propensity for making certain non-dominant practices invisible (such as loitering or drug use) As it contributes to social mix and cohabitation, hybridisation and transition, Place Fontainas reveals certain contrasts, which are most often perceived, and reflects the social fragmentation of a composite city

An intersectional boundary

A sexuality border

Class border and ethnic border

A gender border

Conclusion

Source