Envelope of Ruin : Material and Spatial Responses of New York City Homeless to the COVID-19 Pandemic
Date of Award
Summer 8-2-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Anthropology
First Advisor
Megan Hicks
Second Advisor
William Parry
Academic Program Adviser
Jacqueline Brown
Abstract
This paper attempts to understand human material responses to catastrophic urban collapse. Using Henri Lefebvre's theories of spatial production and the history of a section of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE) this paper develops a theoretical framework for understanding the dynamics present in the creation of an urban ruin. Through the observation of homeless material responses, particularly the construction of encampments under the BQE, during the COVID-19 pandemic "lock-down" in New York City, this thesis illustrates how populations respond to urban ruin and social collapse. Moving forward, this paper hopes to serve as a synthesis of urban theory and archeological observation that will guide further investigation into social responses to urban collapse in the present, future and past.
Recommended Citation
Maxey, Kyle C., "Envelope of Ruin : Material and Spatial Responses of New York City Homeless to the COVID-19 Pandemic" (2024). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_sas_etds/1242