Planning a community cultural festival : the power of politics

Abstract

This investigation is catalyzed by my interest in the impact that cultural planning has had on the physical and social formation of cities. Beginning with the hypothesis that urban festivals have lasting impacts on cities, I intend to investigate how cultural planning shapes the social and physical form of a city through the mechanism of festivals. Since these festivals are ephemeral, one might assume that such events would have fleeting impressions on the communities they engage and the spaces they occupy. On the contrary, I will argue that the impacts of festivals are tangible and long lasting. They have significant economic effects, stimulating local and, at times, citywide development. In some cases, festivals spur urban design projects that have permanent consequences for the neighborhoods and cities where the event takes place. In addition to the economic revitalization that festivals produce, they are vehicles by which community organizations come to participate actively in political decision-making and ultimately help give voice and expression to cultural groups. I will investigate how two entities-city governments and community organizations-plan and produce special events, and I will analyze how their collaborative efforts influence the social and physical impacts that festivals have on cities. Comparing and contrasting the two municipal governments, Los Angeles and Chicago, I argue that cultural programming policies are not the only factors that influence how festivals impact space and communities; a combination of other policies and variables such as the social construction of identity and the shaping of urban space influence the impacts that these urban cultural festivals have on the city. I will use the ideas of the social construction of identity and power of place to understand better the planning and impacts of festivals.