ジェントリフィケーションに抗する都市下層地域

―居住保障と地域経済活性化の取り組みを中心に―

抄録

    Like other major cities in North America and West Europe, Vancouver is now undergoing gentrification. In fact, housing values have continued to rise, and housing crisis has become one of the major social issues in the Canadian city. Gentrification in Vancouver is obviously and rapidly emerging in Downtown Eastside (DTES), a low-income neighborhood.
    In the present-day DTES, many low-income residents have been seriously threatened by the rising rents. In addition, some landlords have renovated and rebuilt their old buildings into condominiums and shops for the middle class, resulting in a decrease in affordable houses in this area and the eviction of tenants. However, some local groups and activists have declared a housing crisis and decried these developments to be a violation of the human rights of the low-income people in this neighborhood, demanding an increase of social housing.
    Furthermore, another phenomenon in DTES related to gentrification is that some local organizations and social enterprises have been trying to develop and support local businesses and create jobs in the community; however, this effort has sometimes conflicted with agenda of activists working on housing issues.
    This paper explains these two kinds of opposing movements concerning gentrification in DTES and their impacts on the community. It also examines the discussions on two locally oriented movements against gentrification to offer suggestions about the interaction between the advance of neoliberalism in global cities and the survival of local communities.