Challenging the Representation of Ethnically Divided Cities: Perspectives from Mostar

Challenging the Representation of Ethnically Divided Cities: Perspectives from Mostar questions the overrepresentation of Mostar as an ethnically divided city and explores how ethnic divides materialise or lose importance due to socio-political contingencies. It examines events, groups, and spaces that promote reconciliation from the bottom-up, contributing to broader debates about 'divided cities' by suggesting the need to engage with their complexities rather than reducing them to their ethno-national divisions.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 118 pages
Publication date: 25 September 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The book titled "Challenging the Representation of Ethnically Divided Cities: Perspectives from Mostar" delves into the prevailing portrayal of Mostar as an ethnically divided city, questioning its overrepresentation. While acknowledging the existence of internal borders, the chapters in this book argue that they are not solid or fixed but rather fluid and subject to transformation. By exploring how these borders become material or immaterial, the book offers a deeper understanding of the city's complex dynamics. The chapters are attentive to how ethnic divides materialize or lose importance due to socio-political contingencies. The book examines events, groups, and spaces that promote reconciliation from the bottom up, not necessarily to assess their success or failures but rather to explore how they create networks, build trust, and form platforms that generate novel understandings of ethnic loyalties and party memberships. Furthermore, drawing on empirical data and theoretical reflections, this volume contributes to broader debates about "divided cities" by advocating for engaging with these cities in their complexities rather than reducing them to their ethno-national divisions. The book delves into socio-political and economic complexities to shed light on how ethnic conflicts and resulting spatial partitioning often conceal much more complex dynamics that are challenging to disentangle and represent. The chapters in this book were originally published in the journal "Space and Polity."

Weight: 453g
Dimension: 246 x 174 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367707255