The Role of Urban Spaces in Shaping Movements: 7 Sites of Resistance and Protest Across the USASave this picture!Washington Square Park, New York, NY, 2024. Photo by Barrett Doherty, courtesy The Cultural Landscape FoundationProtests, civil disobedience, and dissent are not only a defining part of our shared history since the colonial era, they also continue to the present day on campuses, at political conventions, and elsewhere. In this context, some historic marches, sit-ins, and other actions are enshrined in our collective narrative, while others have faded from memory; however, the cultural landscapes that served as stages where these events occurred still exist. These places are the focus of Landslide 2024: Demonstration Grounds and a portal for re-engaging with the stories of little-known or even forgotten events that were pivotal in USA history. The thirteen different sites across the country, represented in the new report and digital exhibition from The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF), touch on events that shaped individuals and sparked movements.From the earliest settlements to contemporary metropolises, cities have always been shaped by the need for collective engagement. Human beings are, by nature, social creatures, and urbanization reflects this inherent trait by creating spaces that foster the shared development of culture, politics, and the economy. Collectivity, therefore, is crucial in giving strength to ideas and actions, transforming individual demands into collective movements. In this context, cities also serve as stages for demonstrations, where spaces like universities, markets, squares, and parks take on an aggregating power, inspiring social involvement and voicing the population's dissatisfaction. Remembering the places hosting these events is vital for amplifying those voices and preserving their historical significance. Through narratives, these cultural landscapes are recognized as living witnesses to history, inviting future generations to actively participate in the shaping of their own legacy.Save this picture! Protests and mass demonstrations of dissent are a necessary part of a healthy democracy. I can't wait to see what this generation comes up with. - Zeynep Tufekci, professor of sociology and public affairs at Princeton University, New York Times. Related Article Public Spaces: Places of Protest, Expression and Social Engagement Informed by the digital exhibition Landslide 2024: Demonstration Grounds, we highlight seven significant locations across the United States where protests have taken place, investigating their role in shaping urban spaces and preserving collective memory. These protests have addressed a range of issues, including civil rights, LGBTQ+ rights, disability rights, urban renewal, sovereignty, and self-determination. Held in cities like Boston, Atlanta, New York, and Philadelphia, these demonstrations showcase how collective action has empowered marginalized and underrepresented groups to make their voices heard and advocate for change.Protecting the Market and Community: Pike Place Market, Seattle, WA In 1964 a group of citizens met in Lowell's Caf in Pike Place Market; they eventually formed Friends of the Market, an advocacy group that not only succeeded in preventing the demolition of the market, which had been operating since 1907, but in creating what is now a culturally significant nine-acre historic district that is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The group was led by architect Victor Steinbrueck, and their efforts, which began two years before the creation of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, would also attract the support of landscape architects Laurie Olin and Richard Haag. It was an early and powerful example of effective citizen-led advocacy that inspires, and a road map, for future advocates.Save this picture!Towards the Creation of an African American Beach: Biscayne Bay, Miami, FL Civil disobedience associated with the Civil Rights movement included "wade-ins" by African Americans at whites-only beaches. A 1945 "wade-in" led to the creation of an African American beach south of Miami. Another in 1959 brought about the desegregation of Miami's beaches. There are no interpretive markers at the sites of these two "wade-in" to tell visitors about their historic significance; by contrast, the African American beach created following the 1945 "wade-in" is well interpreted.Save this picture!Resisting Aggressive Urban Redevelopment: Tent City, Boston, MAThe three-acre site in Boston's South End was the center of a major four-day protest in April 1968 against the urban renewal plans of the Boston Redevelopment Authority, which had forcibly displaced residents and demolished 68 homes, a community center, and two parks in the area. Civil rights leader Melvin H. "Mel" King and other activists established a "tent city" that was briefly home to more than 400 protesters. Twenty years after the protest in 1988, an alliance of non-profit developers, the Tent City Corporation, opened the 269-unit mixed-income housing development called Tent City, named for the historic demonstration.Save this picture!Opposing the Transformation of Parklands into Expressways: Druid Hills, Atlanta, GA The last residential community designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr., and the only subdivision in which all three Olmsteds were involved, Druid Hills' spinal column is the curvilinear Ponce de Leon Avenue and its necklace of six parks. In the 1980s the expansion of Ponce de Leon into an expressway and a connection to the proposed parkway for the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum would have significantly altered three of the linear parks and forever decimated the Picturesque character of the neighborhood. Residents protested and finally won a consent decree that preserved and protected the neighborhood in 1991.Save this picture!Annual Reminder Day for LGBTQ Rights: Independence Mall, Philadelphia, PA Before the June 1969 Stonewall uprising for gay rights in New York City, and before annual pride marches in cities across the country, there was "Annual Reminder Day" in Philadelphia. On July 4th, 1965, the first of what was to become five annual demonstrations for gay and lesbian rights occurred in front of Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were created. They were called "Annual Reminder Day" demonstrations, to "remind the American public that homosexuals did not enjoy many of the rights that were protected in the Constitution." The site was transferred to the National Park Service in 1974 and incorporated into Independence National Historical Park (INHP) in 1997. There is on-site interpretation, but the INHP website does not include mention of the Reminder Days link to their webpage about Philadelphia LGBTQ history, which does cover the topic.Save this picture!The Grassroots Movement that Ignited Heritage Preservation Efforts: Washington Square Park, New York, N.Y. This ten-acre public space located in the heart of Greenwich Village, New York City, has hosted numerous notable protests since it was designated a public park in 1827. Its first public use was as a military parade ground, and in 1911, a procession to commemorate the devastating Triangle Shirtwaist Fire (which had occurred just one block east of Washington Square Park) proceeded through the landscape, followed by a rally for better working conditions attended by 20,000 workers the following year. A proposed redesign of the park by Robert Moses in 1935 would have routed a major roadway through its center, forever altering the relationship between the public space and its value as a common green. Over 23 years, community members defeated every proposal Moses made in a grassroots movement that inspired historic preservation efforts throughout the city.Save this picture!Playgrounds, Not Parking Lots: West 67th Street Playgrounds, New York, N.Y. The 1956 Battle of Central Park pitted Park Commissioner Robert Moses against more than 50 mothers and their children on Manhattan's Upper West Side. At issue was a half-acre wooded site on the edge of Central Park, next to the West 67th Street Playground, which Moses wanted to redevelop to include an 80-car parking lot for the Tavern on the Green restaurant. Skirting sit-downs and other protests, Moses surreptitiously began having trees felled; the ensuing furor led to State Supreme Court Justice Samuel Hofstadter issuing a temporary injunction. Following further legal action, including two lawsuits, Moses abandoned the plan. Instead, the West 67th Street Playground designed by Richard Dattner became the first Adventure Playground in 1967 and was followed by the adjacent space, now called the Tarr-Coyne Tots Playground, built on the site of the 1956 protest, in 1968.Save this picture!Image gallerySee allShow lessAbout this authorCamilla GhisleniAuthorCite: Camilla Ghisleni. "The Role of Urban Spaces in Shaping Movements: 7 Sites of Resistance and Protest Across the USA" 26 Feb 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1027158/the-role-of-urban-spaces-in-shaping-movements-7-sites-of-resistance-and-protest-across-the-usa&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream