The rise in consumerism

Chapter 4: Consumerism and changing societal perceptions of those who do not ‘contribute’

The rise in consumerism

Consumerism is often referenced as another key turning point in the debate of hostile architecture. Stearns (2001, p. 21) identifies how the introduction of consumer cosmopolitanism and television advertisements in the 1980s has led to the consumer lifestyle being integrated within our everyday lives. Miles (1998, p. 7) takes this one step further when he suggests “consumerism is arguably the religion of the late 20th century”. Both Borden (2019) and Davis (2006) have linked hostile architecture to the ‘mallification’ of public space, where they suggest that public space is being transformed to focus on consumer spending. Whilst on consumerism and its effect on society, Borden (2019) identifies key writings by Henri Lefebvre. Lefebvre argues that everyone deserves the ‘right to the city’, he claims that what we see is not ‘authentic’, but a manifestation of ideas imposed by capitalism (Leary-Owhin. McCarthy, 2019). Consequently, considering the space within these terms, the increase of hostile architecture within our societies may be because of our capitalist ideologies, and the idea that the economy has importance over ethics and community values. Thorpe (2012, p. 8) links consumerism and the increase in hostile architecture with the introduction of POPS when she states: “Increasingly, structures, objects, and spaces of every kind are being viewed as surfaces for advertising” (figure 19), which suggests that private businesses may wish to remove the ‘undesirables’, to ensure they can maintain their image as a reputable company (figure 20). Thus, it could be our consumerist lifestyles which have further developed our initial ‘crime-based’ perceptions of the ‘undesirables’.