ON THE CONCEPT OF URBAN CITIZENSHIP

Abstract

Urban citizenship is a frequent topic in studies in social sciences and it carries many different and ambiguous meanings. This paper is focused on the studies of urban citizenship as a type of the new concepts of citizenship, which is based on the idea that the city is a primary social and political community within which individuals and groups should exercise their rights. Contemporary demands for urban citizenship are mostly seen as a corrective of the neoliberal policy and unequal social power reflected on the use of space, and they are based on the viewpoint that a more inclusive policy is needed, which would include more citizens in decision making with regard to the (city) space. In this way, its pronounced commercial and consumer function would be reduced, and its use value would increase. In addition to urban citizenship being related to the idea of the right to the city at the theoretical and practical level, it is also based on the concept of citizenship (as a broader term under which it falls) and this paper also points to its variations.