Narrative cartography of the social outburst in the Parisian banlieue: From the first concrete skyscraper to the subaltern bodies in the 2005 riot

Abstract

This article focuses on the Parisian periphery as a case study to analyze and highlight the origins, forms, and consequences of the 2005 social uprising, which originated in the neighborhood of Clichy-sous-Bois. It begins with a historical overview of the notion of the periphery —banlieu —, exploring La Cité de la Muette, a residential complex that became a concentration camp, and then addresses the degradation of popular neighborhoods around Paris. With the periphery contextualized, the methodology of narrative cartography is developed to highlight bodies and forces, going beyond the usual analyses of objects and forms, to explain from a spatial, corporeal, and affective perspective
the actions, factors, and actors that triggered the Clichy-sous-Bois uprising. This uprising began to take shape when Nicolas Sarkozy —then Minister of the Interior and future President of France— called the gangs of second and third-generation immigrant youth living in these ghettos “scum.” The article highlights narrative cartography as an operative tool that transcends purely morphological and quantitative spatial analysis. By focusing on the bodies, behaviors, desires, needs, and specific problems of the place, it allows for a closer understanding of the lived reality and enables more appropriate action in context.