The duality of space: The built world of Du Bois’ double-consciousness

Abstract

Using Du Bois’ concept of double-consciousness, this article explores African Americans’ responses to urban redevelopment strategies that undermine their claims to urban space. Set in post-Katrina New Orleans, this study centers residents’ visions for urban redevelopment, which reveal the severe economic, social, and spatial inequalities that they have historically faced but also the beauty and vibrancy of these communities. This article explores the spatiality of black residents’ double-consciousness and argues that space’s material and symbolic functions contribute to residents’ subaltern visions for urban development, views which counter the denigration of spaces inhabited by people of color with more socially and racially just visions for the future of the city.